The Rockfall Foundation is pleased to announce the recipients of our 2021 Environmental Champion Awards. The award winners were selected from nominations submitted by members of the community across the Lower Connecticut River Valley. Kim O'Rourke has been selected for the Tom ODell Distinguished Service Award, which honors long-term accomplishments in environmental conservation and preservation. Certificates of Appreciation are being awarded to Bernie Gillis of the East Haddam Conservation Commission and Dr. Diba Khan-Bureau of Three Rivers Community College.
The awards will be presented at the Foundation's Awards and Grants Celebration on Tuesday, November 9. You are invited to join us for this virtual celebration! Click here for event details.
Tom ODell Distinguished Service Award Recipient
Kim O'Rourke:
Kim has served 30 years as Recycling Coordinator for the City of Middletown. Starting as the City's second coordinator at a time when mandatory recycling was new in Connecticut, Kim has built a program in Middletown that has received recognition statewide and regionally. Throughout her career, Kim has expanded the purview of her one-person operation to include multiple aspects of environmental conservation, including ecosystem protection, sustainability, waste reduction, composting, and organic food production.
Learn more about Kim's accomplishments here.
Certificates of Appreciation
Bernie Gillis:
Bernie is a Member of the East Haddam Conservation Commission, East Haddam Land Trust, and East Haddam Planning & Zoning Commission who is dedicated to the preservation of, and public access to, open space.
Learn more about Bernie's accomplishments here.
Dr. Diba Khan-Bureau:
Diba works as a professor and the Program Coordinator for the Environmental Technology and Biology TAP Pathway at Three Rivers Community College who has successfully blended her career as a professor with her dedication as a local conservationist.
Learn more about Diba's accomplishments here.
Congratulations Kim, enormously well-deserved. Difficult to grasp how much one person has achieved , the whole town is in her debt.
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