Seventeen honorees to be recognized at Sept. 21 Spirit of America event at Valley Grange

GUILFORD — Piscataquis County winners of the 2018 Spirit of America Foundation Tribute for outstanding community service will be honored at a ceremony on Friday, Sept. 21 starting at 7 p.m. in the Valley Grange Hall at 172 Guilford Center Road.

Spirit of America Foundation is a 501(c)(3) public charity established in Augusta to encourage volunteerism. Since the first Spirit of America Foundation award was presented to Alma Jones by Augusta’s mayor in 1991, over 500 Spirit of America ceremonies have taken place.

Those to be honored at the county-wide ceremony include: Wayne Bennett of Abbot, Atkinson Lady Quilters, William Manahan Jr. of Beaver Cove, Elaine Hartley of Bowerbank, Kevin Black of Brownville, the Kiwanis Club of Dover-Foxcroft, Richard Gould of Greenville, Christina Pratley of Guilford, Lori Anthony of Medford, Herbert Carey of Milo, Monson Public Library Board of Trustees, Time Lab Summer Bible Club in Parkman, Jimmy Bell of Sangerville, Sebec Volunteer Fire Department, Darell Sawtelle of Shirley, Emaline McClintock of Wellington and Gerald Packard of Willimantic.

The event is open to the public. “We hope friends and family of these recipients will come and help us salute these models of the volunteer spirit of America,” Spirit of America Foundation Director Bruce Flaherty suggested. “This will be a fun, uplifting evening with no long speeches.”

Valley Grange Program Director Walter Boomsma is excited the Grange has been given the honor of hosting the awards, “All Granges are about community and Valley Grange is certainly not an exception. We enjoy making our hall available to organizations dedicated to building strong individuals and communities. It is a special treat to host individuals and organizations doing just that!”

Additional information about the foundation is available at http://spiroaf.com and the event at http://valleygrange.com.