-
Pioneer Valley Executive Editor Dan Crowley, left, presents the Greenfield Recorder’s Citizen of the Year award to Kirsten Levitt, executive director and chef at Stone Soup Cafe in Greenfield, at the Franklin County Chamber of Commerce breakfast at Deerfield Academy in December 2022. At right is her husband David Levitt. -
The Greenfield Recorder’s Citizen of the Year Kirsten Levitt, executive director and chef at Stone Soup Cafe in Greenfield, receives a standing ovation from those in attendance at the Franklin County Chamber of Commerce breakfast at Deerfield Academy in December 2022.
The Greenfield Recorder is seeking nominations for its Citizen of the Year, an honor given annually to a person who has made significant contributions to the life and community of Franklin County.
This year marks the 41st anniversary of the tradition and comes on the heels of a year that saw a record number of nominations. While many past Citizens of the Year have been recognized for a lifetime of achievement, the honor is open to anyone — prominent or not — whose work or volunteerism is deserving of recognition even if it is done quietly under the radar. Nominations must be received by Friday, Oct. 27.
“Over 40 years ago, the Recorder began recognizing its Citizen of the Year. I’m sure that then, as now, the staff witnessed such good works in the community that they had to highlight the best among them,” Recorder Publisher Shawn Palmer said. “What an honor it is for us to continue that work today, shining the light on those who truly go above and beyond for their communities.”
Last year, the Recorder honored Kirsten Levitt, executive director and chef of Stone Soup Cafe, the pay-what-you-can meal program serving weekly meals from All Souls Church on Main Street in Greenfield. Levitt was recognized for her work in food justice and community building, which has profoundly impacted Franklin County for more than a decade.
The year prior, the Recorder honored Carolyn Shores Ness for her decades of community service, including with the United Way of Franklin County, the Franklin County Community Development Corporation, the Girls Club of Greenfield and her many roles in Deerfield government. In 2020, the honor was bestowed on Susan Samoriski, who founded and served as executive director of the Mary Lyon Foundation in Buckland for 30 years until her retirement.
Previous honorees were Robert “Robbie” Cohn, a businessman who has served on numerous boards (2019); David Chichester, who served in 10 volunteer positions for his former town of Conway (2018); and Robert Pura, former president of Greenfield Community College, who retired the following year (2017).
Nominations can be submitted online at recorder.com. Look for an online nomination form down the right side of the homepage. One can also send a written statement with as much detail about why someone deserves to be Citizen of the Year to the Greenfield Recorder by mail to Recorder Citizen of the Year, P.O. Box 1367, Greenfield, MA, 01302. Include your name, address, phone number and email, and the same information for the person you are nominating.
An advertisement is running regularly in the Recorder as a reminder. Nominees who weren’t chosen in the past can be considered with a new nomination this year.
A committee consisting of the Recorder’s editorial board and volunteers from the Franklin County Chamber of Commerce board will review the nominations. The editorial board will make the final decision regarding a winner.
The honoree will be celebrated at a breakfast hosted by the Recorder and the Franklin County Chamber of Commerce in December. The Citizen of the Year also will be featured in a story on the front page of the Recorder.
The Citizen of the Year will receive $500, half of which will be donated to a charity of the honoree’s choice.
Other past winners include Joan Vander Vliet, Al Dray, Elizabeth Hollingsworth and Philip Gilmore of Deerfield; Pearl Care of Erving; Theodore Martineau of Montague City; Rolland Gifford, Marion Taylor and Marvin Shippee of Shelburne Falls; Ann Hamilton, Amy Clarke, Marjorie Reid, Edward Tombs, Irmarie Jones, Jean Cummings, David McCarthy, Charles Carter and Arline Cohn of Greenfield; Marie Putala, the Rev. Stanley Aksamit, John Carey, Shirley Lovett and Richard Kimball of Turners Falls; Albert Diemand and Theodore Lewis of Wendell; Frank R. “Bud” Foster and William Shores of Bernardston; Marian Holbrook and Raymond Zukowski of Northfield; Allan Adie of Gill; Clifford Fournier, Marty Picard and Geneva Lawson of Orange; and Adelia Bardwell of Whately.
Dan Crowley can be reached at dcrowley@recorder.com.