Volunteer Appreciation Luncheon, April 9, at Kensington

Under the theme, “Many Hands Make Light Work,” The Shelter for Abused Women & Children honored its 450 dedicated volunteers, April 9, with a Volunteer Appreciation Luncheon at Kensington Country Club. In 2018-19, Shelter volunteers logged over 21,426 hours of service. If monetized, the total would exceed $529,000 based on information from the Independent Sector.

The lion’s share of the volunteer hours were given at The Shelter Options Shoppe, but countless hours were also spent answering The Shelter’s crisis hotline, making copies, attending events, cleaning, organizing the food pantry or serving on various Shelter boards and committees.

Colin Estrem was honored as this year’s Shelter Volunteer of the Year. Estrem is active in The Shelter’s Gentlemen Against Domestic Violence® (GADV) initiative. In 2016, he took part in a grueling 12-day, 1,256-mile bicycle ride from Naples to the Nation’s Capital to raise awareness for GADV. He serves as chair of the GADV’s signature Men’s Tailgate Event and led efforts to create the very first Gentle’men Against Domestic Violence® Day, which was ratified by Collier County Commissioners on March 12, 2019. Under his leadership, GADV also initiated the 250 Men & More Campaign, which resulted in 274 men publicly committing to standing with women to end domestic violence and human trafficking.

Other Outstanding Shelter volunteers for 2018-19 included:

• Jan Patterson, Gossamer Wing Award
• Bob Bernardo, Outstanding Administration Volunteer
• Diana Abbasy, Outstanding Shelter Guild Volunteers
• Jeanne Jones & Cara Martin, Outstanding Mending Broken Hearts Volunteer
• Linda Elisca, Outstanding Emergency Shelter Volunteer
• Ron Lovering, Outstanding Outreach Programs Volunteer
• Barbara Johnson, Rana Sider & Lynn Vela, Outstanding Options Volunteers

Volunteers with 10 or more years of service included Sandra Estridge, Jimany Sue McLaughlin, Barbara Johnson, Annabella Richardi, Lorraine Newcomb, Eileen Johnson, Patti Kipp, Diane Messana, Chris Kardon, Katy Olson, RaeAnn Patton, Pat Boyson, Nancy Herbert, Barb Lauber, Janice Rogers, Betty Tinsler, Rita Collins, Nancy Herbert, Norma Laird, Shirley Neu, Jan Smith, Jean Travlos, Irmgard Wannamaker, Charlotte Werdell, Carol Kulik, Minnie Longmire, Molly Stanley, Judye Baer, Patricia Murphy, Loreen Sellitto, Pat Wheeler, Sandy Cece, Laird Grant Groody, Lynne Hartman, Karen Lampart, Diane Miller, and Susan Sterner.