ACTION Health held its Fourth Annual Awards & Community Recognition Banquet on Thursday, April 15 at Country Cupboard in Lewisburg to honor and recognize community partners that have worked to improve the health of area residents.

This year, 14 Exemplary Community Partner Awards were presented to various individuals, organizations and programs across the 5-county region ACTION Health serves. Each of the award recipients were nominated by one of the ACTION Health task force groups, which include Aging & Wellness, Cancer, Community Wellness and Dental.

Among the award recipients were the Bloomsburg University Psychology Association, Southern Columbia Area Middle School, the AmeriCorps program, 2 physicians, 4 local health care providers and several other organizations & programs. A complete list of the award recipients can be found by clicking here: 2009_Award_Recipients

In addition, the officers of each ACTION Health task force were presented an award for their time, effort and hard-work in serving the task force over the last year.

The presenting sponsor of the event was Capital BlueCross and Kim Capers, Chip Outreach Coordinator, welcomed attendees and thanked the various community partners, Board of Directors and staff for working together to promote healthy lifestyles. The event was also sponsored by Highmark Blue Shield and Herring & Roll, P.C.

Corinne Klose, ACTION Health Board President and VP of Nursing at Shamokin Area Community Hospital, also provided opening remarks. She noted the importance of community partnerships, hospitals and universities working together and thanked the dedicated task force members for all their support throughout the year. She also thanked the sponsors of the event for their support and attendance.

As over 85 attendees enjoyed lunch, Brett Simpson, Executive Director of Quest and The Corporate Institute at Bloomsburg University, presented the keynote address. His presentation, entitled “More Than a Mountain,” described a 7 year project to climb the highest mountain in Mexico, Pico De Orizaba (18,500’). This journey provided many lessons on facing adversity head on, the challenging and rewarding aspects of teamwork and the discovery of a final recipe for success. The keynote address, which was highlighted by a breathtaking slide-show of photographs, kept attendees riveted and was extremely well-received.

Next, Allison Clark, Executive Director of ACTION Health, commenced the Awards Ceremony. She elaborated on the noteworthy accomplishments of each task force group and described the exemplary volunteer work provided by the award recipients.

The event was concluded by a basket raffle, sponsored by the task force groups and board of directors, and raised a total of $595.00. The proceeds will benefit ACTION Health and assist in providing ongoing community health education.

ACTION Health sends a sincere “THANK YOU” to all the Banquet sponsors, including Capital BlueCross, Highmark Blue Shield and Herring & Roll, P.C. In addition, we would like to thank the other donors, including Beiter’s Department Store in Danville, Dollar General in Danville and numerous individual donors.

To view pictures from the event, please click here: 4th_Annual_Awards_&_Community_Recognition_Banquet