On Friday, June 3rd, Twin Cities Habitat for Humanity held its 1st Annual Regular Volunteer Emeritus Celebration in St. Paul at Newell Park. We were happy to join some of our longtime regular volunteers that have decided to retire from volunteering and celebrate all of their hard work and dedication to Twin Cities Habitat’s mission. The 26 retiring volunteers contributed over 15,000 volunteer hours combined, and their impact is impossible to measure. Our regular volunteers continue to be the backbone of Twin Cities Habitat, and these volunteers are a shining example of that excellence.
Throughout the afternoon, Habitat staff and the guests of honor had opportunities to share stories from their time on site, share a lunch together, and take time to recognize the importance of volunteers to our work. Many remarked how much of a joy it was to catch up with friends and co-volunteers, and the gorgeous summer weather truly reflected on the fond memories being shared.
The retiring volunteers were then honored and officially joined our Regular Volunteer Emeritus Group. They were all presented with a fleece jacket to commemorate their induction into the group. Jim Ramberg, a longtime 3M volunteer, was honored with the Golden Hammer, given to the volunteer with the highest number of volunteer days in the history of Twin Cities Habitat. Jim volunteered 2,015 days of his time - what a commitment!
Volunteers that were celebrated: Rudy Anderle, Rol Anderson, Gus Avenido, Jerry Daml, Sandy Dykhuizen, Glen Frankee, Dick Hertel, Paul Higdon, Bob Hilliard, Lowell Kisrow, Dick Larkin, Tom Malone, Tom Melena, Kelly McGurran, Owen Nelson, Pete Pedersen, Calvin Peterson, Arlyn Poppen, Jim Ramberg, Pete Roth, John Rutherford, Bill Skinner, Bob Sutherland, John Swadner, and Louie Winslow.
We thank all who came out to honor and recognize our new inductees to our Volunteer Emeritus Group during this inaugural celebration!