We have always admired people who go to extraordinary lengths to help others. They are the kind of people who sow hope wherever they go. We write stories about such people, but five years ago we decided that wasn’t enough. So we created the Garden State Seeds of Hope Awards to honor their achievements.
This year’s panel of distinguished judges—Vicki Bixel of Semple Bixel Associates, Mary Ellen Burke of Continental Airlines, Rose Cali of the John J. and Rose Cali Family Foundation, Sandra E. Kapell of the Subaru Foundation, and Ellen Kramer Lambert of the Merck Company Foundation—accepted the challenge of selecting just four winners from a pool of more than 50 exceptional nominees. We will honor the winners at a luncheon this month at the Crystal Plaza in Livingston, a co-sponsor of the awards along with PNC Wealth Management and Reno’s Appliance of Elmwood Park, Fairfield, and Paterson.
Meanwhile, we take this opportunity to introduce the honorees to you. Click on the names below to learn more about these remarkable people and their accomplishments. Get ready to be inspired.
Patrick Gonnelli
Executive Director of the Smile Forever Foundation
Oakland
Carol Kivler
Founder of Courageous Recovery, a division of Kivler Communication
Lawrence
Sue Colacurcio
Executive Director, Franciscan Community Development Center of Fairview
West New York
Ruth Dugan
Chairwoman of the Board of Trustees, Bayonne Medical Center
Saddle River