Greece firefighters receive 'Service to Education' award

The 21st Annual Marguerite Hare Browne Professional Education Awards dinner will be held Wednesday, October 19 at the Greece Marriott. This event is a celebration to honor individuals who truly contribute to the excellence of education in the community.

These Professional Education Awards were established in the 1980s through the SUNY College at Brockport Foundation, to honor students teachers (now called 'teacher candidates') and those Greece teachers who host them (now called 'school-based teacher educators,' or SBTEs). The annual awards dinner is hosted by the SUNY Brockport-Greece Friends of Education, and is also supported by Greece Rotary and the Greece Council of Parent-Teacher Associations.

Brockport's Professor Emeritus Marguerite "Peg" Browne began the development of a long-standing partnership between the school district and the college, in the training of new educators and the promotion of solid educational values in our shared community. The professional awards have now expanded, through Browne's generosity, to honor a broad scope of those who excel in, and promote excellence in, education.

This year's award recipients are: Kevin Speer, a recent graduate of Odyssey High School, who is pursuing certification in education at SUNY Brockport; Kristie Chechak, for excellence in student teaching in Greece schools; teachers Connie Gurske, Patricia Kirchmaier, and Cindy Rossi, for outstanding supervision and mentoring of teacher candidates; Danielle Fronczak, for excellence in scholarship and teaching potential; and William Veenis, SUNY Brockport, for contributions to the educational partnerships.

The final award, the Service to Education Award, is presented to all three of the Greece Fire District's Fire Education Teams. Capt. Dave Walker, with Michael Zodarecky and Michael Heberger of North Greece Fire Department; Capt. Bill Timmons of Ridge Road Fire Department; and Dean Smith of Barnard Fire Department are the firefighters who have created and brought fire safety education programs to Greece Schools for many years. These men have demonstrated their belief in, and support of, education in the town, to keep its citizens safe and prepared for the future. The firefighter "teams" have added the connection of reality to the lives of the children in schools, encouraging them to learn about fire safety and apply it to their own lives and homes.

The reception on October 19 will begin at the Greece Marriott at 6 p.m. with dinner served at 7 p.m. Tickets are $25 per person. Contact Donna Noble at 750-8249 or dnoble@rochester.rr.com for reservation information. All funds raised at the dinner go into the scholarship award fund.

October 9, 2005