Award Winners Recognized at 2005 Annual Meeting

The 2005 Annual Meeting of North Coast Community Homes (NCCH) was held on Tuesday, December 6, 2005 at Windows On The River in downtown Cleveland.

Timothy F. Hagan, Cuyahoga County Commissioner, was the speaker. His topic was “The Role of Govenment in Society”. Robert E. Aufuldish, Lake County Commissiner, was on hand to give a few words of greetings.

Two special award presentations were made at this meeting. First, the Above & Beyond Award for 2005 was given to North Coast Neighbors, the volunteers of North Coast Community Homes. This award is given to a person or persons connected on some level with North Coast Community Homes who have engaged in at least one activity designed to improve the quality of life for one or more persons with disabilities.

North Coast Neighbors was organized in 2000 to educate others about the need for community based housing for persons with disabilities; to advocate for support of the NCCH mission of developing and maintaining safe, comfortable and affordable housing of high quality in Northeast Ohio for individuals with mental retardation, mental illness and other disabilities; to raise funds to carry out new and existing projects and to help fund the work of NCCH; and to volunteer time, skills and talents to enrich the lives of individuals with disabilities. The Neighbors have helped with mailings, staffed booths at trade fairs and expositions, assisted the NCCH Landscape Department with spring garden plantings and fall leaf raking projects at our homes, and raised funds for the ongoing work of NCCH. They host an annual Tenant Picnic for NCCH’s tenants with mental retardation and developmental disabilities. They deliver holiday gifts to all NCCH tenants. They conducted an advocacy campaign in 2004 to inform parents, guardians and supporters of NCCH about pending legislation that could be harmful to the vulnerable people served by NCCH. And, they participate in many fundraising events for the benefit of NCCH and the people it serves, including the annual reverse raffle, the sales of greeting cards designed by our tenants, and the Ohio Design Centre Sale Event.

 

The Community Service Award for 2005 was presented to Deborah Vesy, the President and Chief Executive Officer of Deaconess Community Foundation, a grantmaking public charity with roots in the United Church of Christ that focuses on providing resources to organizations that help empower people to become self-sufficient.

The Community Service Award recognizes an individual, organization or institution which has contributed to improving the quality of life for individuals with mental retardation, mental illness and/or other disabilities. Deborah’s very active involvement in the community certainly qualified her as this year’s award winner.

Besides her leadership position at Deaconess Community Foundation, Deborah serves as President of three HUD housing facilities for the low-income elderly that the foundation owns and operates. She is also currently serving as Co-Chair of Voices & Choices, a public engagement initiative developed by the Fund For Our Economic Future, an unprecedented collaboration among members of the philanthropic sector of Northeast Ohio to promote regional economic development. She is a member of the Advisory Council of El Barrio, a program of WSEM, which is a local nonprofit agency serving the Hispanic community; a Trustee of Applewood Centers and Business Volunteers Unlimited; a member of the Finance Committee of Ohio Grantmakers Forum; and the Leadership Cleveland Class of 2006.

North Coast Community Homes was very proud to recognize North Coast Neighbors and Deborah Vesy for their active commitment to serve persons with disabilities.

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