FORT EUSTIS, Va. –
Fort Eustis honored its dedicated corps of volunteers at the 2013 annual Volunteer Recognition Ceremony, April 19 at the on-post club.
Organizations from across the installation honored volunteers with certificates of appreciation and gifts, with the post Volunteer Advisory Council naming volunteers of the year in eight categories.
Carissa Burgett, a U.S. Army spouse, won the Command Sgt. Maj. David E. Minor Volunteer of the Year award, named to honor the 30-year Army veteran and outstanding Fort Eustis volunteer who succumbed to cancer in 2001.
Burgett serves as the hospitality and welcome committee chairperson, secretary and recorder for the 221st Military Police Detachment Family Readiness Group. Throughout the year, she volunteered with Army Community Service as a program assistant, relocation program assistant and a spouse's series instructor.
According to Donna Cloy, Fort Eustis' Army Volunteer Corps Coordinator, volunteers provided 64,038 hours of service in 2012, equating to more than $1.5 million saved in labor costs for the post. Volunteers worked in a variety of roles, including in family FRGs, with the American Red Cross at McDonald Army Health Center, as fitness instructors at the post's two fitness centers, with youth athletic leagues and organizing fund raisers and clothing, food and toy drives year-round in the Spouses' Club.
Army Col. Thomas Wetherington, 733rd Mission Support Group commander, said senior leaders know the significant role volunteers play in the community.
"Fort Eustis is a great place to live, work and serve, and our volunteers make it even better. You take time away from your personal lives and invest that into other people," Wetherington said. "You volunteer because you simply want to make a difference and take ownership of your community. At the end of the day, you make a difference in the lives of so many people that live, work and serve on this installation."
Maj. Gen. Bradley May, senior commander of Army Element Eustis and deputy commanding general of Initial Military Training, echoed Wetherington's statements, calling the volunteers "unsung heroes working behind the scenes to make a contribution."
"Without a doubt we are inspired by you and your actions. It has been said that the contribution to the war is not always measured by ones proximity to it," May said to the crowd. "Frankly, there are programs that would simply not exist without our volunteers. There's no award or commendation that can adequately express the appreciation of our community and our nation."
The 2013 Volunteers of the Year, per category, are:
- Command Sgt. Maj. David E. Minor Volunteer of the Year: Carissa Burgett
- Commander's Gold Award for Community Service: 128th Aviation Brigade
- Youth Volunteer of the Year: Robert McCartney
- Retiree Volunteer of the Year: Retired Lt. Col. Robert Price
- Single Soldier Volunteer of the Year: Spc. Taylor Hermansen
- Soldier Volunteer of the Year: Staff Sgt. Ricky Butler
- Volunteer Family of the Year: Sgt. 1st Class Jesus Perez and family
- Volunteer Family Member of the Year: Barbara Perez