Building Goodness Foundation announces Volunteers of the Year

Building Goodness Foundation is recognizing Karen Kocik and Tom Stephens as its Skip Wootten Volunteers of the Year.

Kocik, as volunteer project manager, worked throughout the spring of 2020 on the renovation of the Orange Senior Center. More than 80 seniors are now enjoying a redesigned and beautiful community center.

“I notice the capacity to quickly adapt and rebound at BGF. Always. Oh, we can’t do something this way, let’s do it that way. That is very evident to me with this organization,” said Kocik, who has volunteered more than 200 hours with BGF for over 10 years on six projects.

Stephens volunteered over the summer to be BGF project manager for its Abundant Life project. Abundant Life staff can now conduct programs in a new, sheltered space outside for everyone’s safety.

Stephens has volunteered more than 420 hours with BGF for over 15 years on more than 20 projects.

Both the Orange Senior Center and Abundant Life project engaged more than 70 volunteers totaling more than 300 volunteer hours. BGF adapted local work to address COVID-19 and volunteer groups by creating small shifts to keep people socially distanced and safe, creating shorter shifts to reduce the exposure to multiple people, and requiring masks when on the job site.