In Reston, Virginia, Robert Schnapp is the founder and leader of A Simple Gesture Reston, an effort that inspires and enables his community to help neighbors overcome the growing threat of hunger and food insecurity. Eight years ago, Bob realized that many donors work Monday through Friday “business hours” and that local pantries were mainly open for donations during those same hours, making it a challenge to donate. In the beginning, he served more than 40 hours a week to get the program off the ground, doing everything from signing up donors and drivers, to creating routes, sending emails, delivering...

Congratulations to George and Kim Melnyk, Jr. - winner of the 2021 Governor's Volunteerism and Community Service Award for Outstanding Volunteer Family! For low income students in Hampton Roads, the pandemic created a whole new set of challenges, from scarcity of school supplies to wi-fi accessibility. Even having a desk for virtual classes and homework was a major issue for many families. For George and Kim Melnyk, Jr., owners of Premier Millwork, this particular need turned out to be a perfect fit for the family. As soon as they were contacted by CHIP (Children’s Health Investment Program) of South Hampton...

Congratulations to Aniya Hubert - winner of the 2020 Governor's Volunteerism and Community Service Award for Outstanding Young Adult Volunteer! Aniyah, a senior at Averett University, began volunteering at a young age and continued throughout her high school and college career. She has served organizations such as Habitat for Humanity, Bacon Street Counseling Center, Thrive Peninsula Food Pantry, Sister4Sister on campus service group supporting young girls, and online as a crisis textile to aide individuals experiencing trauma. A double major in Marketing and Psychology, Aniyah was just inducted in the National Society of Leadership of Success because of her high...

Congratulations to Tommy & Jimmy Davis of Mechanicsville - winner of the 2018 Governor's Volunteerism and Community Service Award for Outstanding Volunteer Family! For more than 15 years, brothers Tommy and Jimmy Davis dedicated their time and talents to providing much needed home repairs and re-building efforts to individuals and families in need. It was Tommy who first became dedicated to home repair outreach when on a mission trip to Romania. Later, he recruited his younger brother Jimmy to help with disaster relief following Hurricane Katrina. The brothers would later commit their lives to service through Resurrection Disaster Relief, a home repair...

AmeriCorps State Member of the Year (Robert E. Wone Award for Exemplary Service) Sarahbeth Vernon, Virginia College Advising Corps, Charlottesville Sarahbeth Vernon serves the Northern Neck communities of Richmond and Westmoreland counties by advising high school students to develop and enact their post-secondary plans. Although she grew up in Richmond, she had several family members who resided in Northern Neck and was excited about giving back to this community. As a college advisor, Sarabeth provides one-on-one admissions and financial aid advice to any student or family seeking assistance; organizes group workshops that encourage students and families to consider, plan for,...

Kim Martin