2009 Award Recipients |
As part of the organization's
32nd Annual Breakfast, North County
Incorporated (NCI) recognized several
area leaders for making a significant
positive impact in North County. Friday,
May 15, at the St. Louis Airport Marriott,
hundreds of business, civic, and community
leaders gathered at NCI's 32nd Annual
Breakfast to honor this year's award
recipients.
NCI's Rebecca Zoll
presents Leadership Award to Dr.
Chris Wright |
Chris L. Wright, Ph.D.
received the prestigious Elmer Belsha
Leadership Award, which is presented
annually to an individual whose long-term
commitment to the North County region
and NCI has had a positive impact on
the community and/or public body that
they serve. Chris, a teacher and administrator
in Missouri public schools for 33 years,
has provided educational and community
leadership to the North County area
for more than 25 years. She has been
superintendent of the Hazelwood School
District since 2002 and served as superintendent
of Riverview Gardens School District
before that. She inspires her colleagues,
leads her district courageously and
does not hesitate to collaborate with
others in order to make positive changes.
Chris has developed and implemented
an on-going leadership training program
for all district administrators and
teachers. Among her many accomplishments:
Chris was named Superintendent of the
Year for the State of Missouri by the
MO Association of School Administrators,
as well as a Distinguished Alumus by
the University of Missouri-St. Louis.
She has chaired the Greater North County
Chamber of Commerce, is a Board Member
for Christian Hospital and is on the
Community Advisory Board for SSM DePaul
Health Center. Chris has also been an
active member of NCI for nearly 25 years,
many of which she served on the Board
of Directors and on the Executive Board.
She was NCI's president in 2003 and
has always been a valuable asset to
North County Incorporated.
NCI's Business Development
Awards were presented to Mr.
Ronald B. McMullen, President of
Christian Hospital, and Carolyn Pryor-Luster,
M.D. of Serenity Women's Healthcare,
Inc. for their efforts that have positively
affected the economic development and
business climate of the North County
area.
Christian Hospital's
Ron McMullen accepts Business
Development Award from Lillie
Dumas. |
During the short time
Ron McMullen has been at Christian
Hospital, he has improved the federal
government CMS reported clinical-quality
data rankings, successfully increased
access to the Emergency Department through
the reduction of ambulance diversions
and hired an additional 150 nurses.
Ron also opened Family Care of North
County, a nurse practitioners' office
in Hazelwood, and added new primary
care and specialty physician practices
to enhance medical services. Under Ron's
leadership, Northwest HealthCare has
been in the top 100th percentile nationally
for patient satisfaction over the past
two years. He has also implemented an
aggressive $5 million investment in
renovations of the hospital. Furthermore,
Ron is a valued Board Member of NCI
and is on the Greater North County Chamber's
Board of Directors as well.
Lillie Dumas presents
Dr. Carolyn Pryor-Luster with
2009 Business Development Award
|
When other OB-GYNs were
relocating West, Dr. Carolyn Pryor-Luster
made a commitment to North County
and has practiced in the area for more
than 13 years. She opened her medical
practice here and it successfully grew
until expansion into a larger office
space became necessary. She also worked
hard to actively recruit two new doctors
in order to address the shortage of
OB-GYNs in the North County area. Carolyn
invested in the purchase of a building
in Old Town Florissant and undertook
the complete renovation of the Serenity
Women's Health Care suite of offices
in that building to meet the needs of
her rapidly expanding practice and increasing
volume of patients. Carolyn is affiliated
with SSM DePaul Health Center and she
serves on the Regional Health Commission's
Advisory Board. She is also a member
of NCI's Board of Directors. She has
professionally excelled and was named
Best Physician in Region V by the National
Medical Association, was featured in
Essence Magazine in a reader's choice
article, co-chaired the African American
Leadership Giving Initiative in 2001
for the United Way, and was appointed
to the Commission on Medical Economics,
Third Party Medicine and Governmental
Relations for the Missouri State Medical
Association.
Ms. Marsha Bonds,
Director of North County CARES at St.
Louis Community College at Florissant
Valley, the Florissant Parks Foundation,
and Mr. Ken Smith, President
of the Old Jamestown Association, were
given Community Development Awards
for their selfless acts that have positively
benefited youth, residents, civic organizations
or others.
NCI Executive Director
Rebecca Zoll presents North County
CARES Marsha Bonds with Community
Development Award |
Marsha Bonds coordinates
the North County CARES program, which
is a community initiative that seeks
to promote and support North County
employers and service providers to enhance
the quality of life for residents. Marsha's
work focuses on professional development
workshops for those individuals in transition
and provides a link between schools
and the Florissant Valley campus, assists
at-risk students and partners with community
and faith-based organizations. She has
received numerous awards for her community
outreach efforts, including a Focus
St. Louis Award. Marsha is the author
of "After the Alter" and continues to
share her writing gift as an adjunct
English instructor at St. Louis Community
College at Florissant Valley.
Florissant Parks
Foundation President Mark Behlmann
accepts 2009 Community Development
Award |
Over the past few years,
members of the Florissant Parks Foundation
undertook the task of developing
and building a Nature Lodge in Sunset
Park. Although a master plan for the
Nature Lodge was submitted in 1979,
those plans lay dormant until 2001,
when Florissant's Mayor Lowery started
looking for activities for children
in Florissant and began working with
Ron Veach, Director of the Parks and
Recreation. They found the old plans,
dusted them off and made a commitment
to Florissant to bring the plans to
fruition. Because the city budget did
not allow for this park project, a 501(c)
3 foundation was created in 2004 to
seek private funding in the form of
donations and in-kind services. Thanks
to the tenacity of the many people on
the Parks Foundation's team, the Behlmann
& Zykan Nature Lodge opened on April
18th. It sits high on the bluff overlooking
the Missouri River with a spectacular
view. The building of this Nature Lodge
is a great example of the success that
can happen when collaborative partnerships
are built for the betterment of the
community. The Nature Lodge at Sunset
Park will benefit the community, increase
tourism and expand natural science education.
Mark Behlmann accepted the 2009 NCI
Community Development Award on behalf
of the Florissant Parks Foundation.
Old Jamestown Association
President Ken Smith gets Community
Development Award |
Ken Smith is president
of the Old Jamestown Association and
has diligently worked with the St. Louis
County government and neighboring communities
on many issues affecting the residents
of north St. Louis County. His dedication
and work has for years enhanced the
quality of life for everyone. He recently
reached the successful conclusion of
his decades-long effort to preserve
the unique geological karst formations
located in North County. Over many years,
Ken successfully educated and worked
with the St. Louis County Planning Department,
elected officials and developers in
his pursuit of the karst area preservation.
In early March, the St. Louis County
Council passed legislation to create
a special zoning district known as the
Karst Preservation District. Ken has
a history of serving North County. He
is currently the City of Northwoods'
City Engineer, and he organized the
Civil Engineering Department at St.
Louis Community College-Florissant Valley.
Ken and the Old Jamestown Association
are also members of North County Inc.
Public Service Awards
were presented to Mayor Virginia
A. Bira, City of Vinita Park, Mr.
Randy Gardner, News Director for
News 20, City of Black Jack, and Judge
Timothy Kelly, City of Florissant,
for their long-time service, which has
had a positive impact on the community
and/or public body they serve.
City of Vinita
Park's Mayor Virginia Bira accepts
NCI 2009 Public Service Award
|
Mayor Virginia A. Bira
has generously served the City of Vinita
Park for nearly 40 years and has been
their mayor since 1984. She raised money
and developed the first completely handicapped-accessible
park in St. Louis County, which the
city named Bira Park in honor of the
extensive work she did to bring it to
fruition. She is currently working with
Great Rivers Greenway and Trailnet to
expand hikers' and bikers' access from
local bus routes onto a pathway through
their industrial park to connect the
Forest Park trail to Creve Coeur Lake.
Virginia is also diligently working
on a major transportation improvement
along Page Avenue, which will help foster
economic development in Vinita Park's
Page Industrial Park. In the past, Virginia
has served as president of the Mayors
of Small Cities and St. Louis County
Municipal League. She is a Board Member
for NCI and a past Board Member of East-West
Gateway Council of Governments. Her
service and work have been recognized
with numerous honors, including the
Outstanding Lifetime Achievement Award
by the East-West Gateway Council.
NCI's Lillie Dumas
presents Public Service Award
to City of Black Jack's News 20's
Randy Gardner |
Randy Gardner works
at News 20, the cable channel for the
City of Black Jack, and is also the
city's Public Relations Director. He
has worked in North County for 25 years
and has 49 national broadcast awards,
3 international broadcast awards and
3 Mid-America Regional Emmy Awards to
his name. He has written a column for
the Independent News for 12 years and
writes a feature article for "Our Town"
magazine. Randy donates endless hours
to produce videos to help many community
service organizations. He is a member
of the St. Louis County Emergency Management
Planning Commission and in 2005 was
named a St. Louis County Honorary Police
Officer. He donates his time and talent
as a judge for the Ms. Senior America
Pageant and hosts and MC's multiple
organization's fundraisers, helping
raise over $100,000.00 for local charities.
He was recently named a member of the
Selection Committee for the St. Louis
Sports Hall of Fame, and this past year
he was recognized as an up-and-coming
leader in North County by NCI as part
of the 30 Leaders in their 30s campaign.
NCI President Lillie
Dumas presents Public Service
Award to Judge Kelly |
Judge Timothy Kelly
is celebrating 30 years of public service
as a judge for the City of Florissant.
He has presided over the Florissant
Municipal Court since 1979 and never
shied away from the challenge to be
fair and just with those who appeared
before his bench. Many say he conducted
his court with compassion when possible
and a firm hand when needed. Judge Kelly
was also a judge for the City of St.
John for 12 years. He is a devoted friend
to the youth of our community - not
only in his court, where he found creative
ways to encourage good citizenship from
troubled teens, but also in his dedication
to youth sports and activities that
help build future leaders. Judge Kelly
has also been the Chairman of the Tom
Howe Benefit Spring College Soccer Tournament
and for decades has helped many organizations
sponsor activities that teach the values
of teamwork, leadership and hard work
to young players through sports.
Rebecca Zoll presents Special
Recognition Award to AARP's Lisa
Bishop |
The AARP Senior Community
Service Program and Mr. Fletcher
E. Wells II of St. Johns Bank and
Trust Co. received NCI's 2009 Special
Recognition Awards for their volunteerism,
contributions to civic and charitable
organizations, and/or for their betterment
of the community.
The AARP Senior Community
Service Program, under the leadership
of Lisa Bishop, helps job seekers over
the age of 55 improve their skills,
obtain training, and find a job. Specific
to the North County area, this program
supports approximately 120 people at
any given time. The SCSP program serves
about 300 people each year. While helping
seniors transition into employment,
this program also helps 50-75 non-profits
and/or state agencies in assigning trainees
to work at these organizations at little
or no cost to that agency. This is more
than a $6,600 annual savings to a single
organization in community service time.
Fletcher Wells
II accepts Special Recognition
Award |
Fletcher E. Wells II
is the Vice President and Director
of St. Johns Bank and Trust Co. He handles
special projects and represents the
bank through business development and
community relations and is well-suited
in this role as it allows him to work
closely with many, many community organizations.
Fletcher is an active member of the
organizations in which he is involved.
He is on the Executive Board of NCI,
serves as its Treasurer, and also serves
on the Board Development Taskforce,
North County School/Business Partnership
and the Business Retention Stakeholder
Taskforce. In 2005, he was the Chairman
of the Northwest Chamber. Fletcher is
a charter member of the Lambert Airport
Rotary Club and is a four-time president
and treasurer. He was also a District
Conference Chairman in 2005. Fletcher
is a member of the Board and Treasurer
for the Lutheran Blind Mission, a member
of the Woodson Terrace Business Association
and Junior Achievement. He is also on
the Economic Development Commission
for the City of Maryland Heights. Fletcher
has been honored with numerous awards,
including: the Outstanding Rotarian
Award, the Volunteer of the Year Award
by the Northwest Family YMCA, the Business
Person of the Year Award by the Northwest
Chamber of Commerce, and he has been
named an Honorary Citizen by the City
of Woodson Terrace.
North County Incorporated
is a regional development organization,
which acts as a catalyst to define and
advocate economic and community development
for North St. Louis County. NCI was
established in 1977. The Board is composed
of community leaders and business owners.
Ms. Lillie Dumas is the current president.
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