San Rafael, CA – The Marin County Board of Supervisors honored exemplary volunteer service and intern involvement by recognizing five individuals and three teams during its November 2 meeting. The ceremony celebrated 2021 MarinShares and Marinterns participants who made extraordinary impacts.
In addition, three County employees, including the first Staff Supervisor of Interns of the Year, received resolutions of commendation for excellent work with volunteers and interns.
The event format was hybrid, with some honorees in the Board of Supervisors chamber at the Marin County Civic Center and others attending online. Human Resources Director Mary Hao emceed, and Board President Dennis Rodoni presided. Watch the video on the Board’s webpage (see agenda item No. 12).
The Honorees
Lucy Marie Edwards Volunteer of the Year Lucy Marie Edwards of the Marin Medical Reserve Corps (MMRC) serves with the County Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Helping to stem the spread of COVID-19, she quickly organized and trained teams to meet public demands. Early in the pandemic, she created informational group chats and educational resources to help team newcomers get up to speed. In addition, she steadily volunteered for weekday and weekend shifts. Edwards addresses challenges with equanimity and is equally effective as a leader and as a team player.
Gabriela McElligottIntern of the Year Gabriela McElligott serves with the HHS Marin Telehealth Profession Intern Program. She noticed that a gap in communications was causing some redundancy in care for older clients, so she single-handedly developed an electronic health record system. McElligott collaborated with fellow health-profession interns, instructors from three universities, and Marin staff to develop the system. She also taught the importance of thorough documentation to interns, social workers, and public health nurses. The new system supports 120 clients, 63 interns, and serves as a backbone for the Marin Telehealth Program.
The Volunteer Team of the Year is the Marin Medical Reserve Corps (MMRC), which supports the fight against the spread of COVID-19. Long before vaccines were available, MMRC volunteers contributed their skills to answer call-center phones, conduct contact investigations, support testing, and reach out to isolated residents. When vaccines became available, volunteers immediately began helping with distribution. A significant portion of this team of 800-plus healthcare professionals has contributed “21,000 hours, and counting, for COVID-19 operations alone,” said team coordinator Anne Carta of HHS. Devoted to health and safety, MMRC volunteers train regularly and stand ready to respond to medical emergencies and disasters.
Two student teams tied for Intern Team of the Year honors, one from HHS and the other from the Marin County Free Library.
The COVID Response Mobile Testing Intern Team includes members Ana-Sofia Arena, Celine Bennett, Ian Duncan, Jillian Hickey, Max Manwaring-Mueller, and Ryan Samway. These college students modeled courage and adaptability on the front lines of the pandemic response with HHS employees. They made site visits to test people in congregate living facilities and in lower-income areas disproportionately impacted by COVID. While exploring medical careers, they gained experience in documentation, specimen collection, and administrative support. They learned to safely don and doff PPE and experienced being deployed as volunteer disaster service workers. Always willing to learn, the team stepped up at an unsettling time when most people were staying home.
While many libraries halted teen volunteering during the pandemic, the Marin County Free Library created a virtual opportunity: the Teen Leadership Crew. This gave otherwise socially isolated teens a way to connect and impact their community. Students Harita Kalvai, Simon Scheuer, Sofia Casano, Kate Lane, Claire Austin, Christianna Gatti, James Bah, Stella Vazquez, Madeline Knightly, and Sajiv Kumar comprise this Intern Team of the Year. They produced Friday-night open-mic events, trivia games, cooking tutorials, and more. When school resumed, they started an e-magazine for Marin peers. The Spire includes artwork, interviews, essays, poetry, and hobbies. This diverse student team is self-motivated and service oriented.
Pam Roman (left) and Rachel Gila (right)Outstanding Volunteer Supervisors of the Year: All volunteers have County staff supervisors who provide orientation, support, and connection. For their work with senior peer counselor volunteers, the 2021 co-honorees are Mental Health Practitioner Pam Roman and Mental Health Registered Nurse Rachel Gila of HHS. As Senior Peer Counseling program supervisors, Roman and Gila have honed a comprehensive training program that sets up participants for success. They make careful matches between volunteers and clients, supervise weekly meetings of counselors, and continually build volunteers’ confidence so that they can support good mental health in their clients who face challenges of aging.
Nancy VernonOutstanding Intern Supervisor of the Year: All interns receive guidance from County staff supervisors. For her work with Board of Supervisors interns, the honoree is District 2 Board Aide Nancy Vernon. Vernon prepares for, mentors, and recognizes students. She learns about their internship requirements, gets to know them, and creates experiences that meet their interests. Teaching them to lead with strengths, Vernon empowers students to contribute. She also ensures that they learn how the County organization serves Marin residents. Former intern Julia Reinhard said Vernon is an “inspiring mentor because of her care and commitment to the well-being of the County and its communities.
Marinterns Coordinator Joy Fossett highlighted that in spite of dealing with the pandemic, students are eager to learn, whether remotely or in person with safety protocols.
“Although opportunities have been limited temporarily, students quickly adapted to the inconveniences of the pandemic by learning via Zoom and other alternatives to serving in person,” Fossett said. “No matter the circumstances, students are ready for whatever and continue to gain positive internship experiences.”
During the pandemic most County volunteer assignments paused, yet volunteer offers continued, said MarinShares Coordinator Anne Starr.
“It was impressive to hear from people who wanted to volunteer even before vaccines were available,” Starr said. “We are thankful for those offers – and grateful to those who’ve been able to continue by adapting. For example, senior peer counselors swapped in-person sessions for phone appointments. We look forward to welcoming back all volunteers and interns as soon as public health conditions allow.”
For 42 years, Marin’s central volunteer program has connected people with their County organization and enhanced delivery of services to residents. For details about the MarinShares and Marinterns programs, see the webpage for volunteering and internships or contact Anne Starr for volunteering and Joy Fossett for internships.
