By Staff
LANSING - Two local residents, Dr. Fred L. Mathews of Dowagiac and Rasma Kalnins of St. Joseph, have been selected as finalists for the 2005 Governor's Service Awards, announced Sen. Ron Jelinek, R-Three Oaks.
Governor's Service Awards honor dedicated citizens who give of themselves through volunteer service.
Mathews and Kalnins were selected from more than 260 individuals, businesses and non-profit organizations nominated.
Fred Mathews is a finalist for the Gov. George Romney Lifetime Achievement Award for Volunteerism. He helped establish Southwestern Michigan Community College in 1964 and serves as chair of the Board of Trustees today. He is a co-founder of the Michigan Community College Association and assisted the funding efforts to maintain Lee Memorial Hospital.
Mathews also has served on the Cass County Planning Commission, helped found the Dowagiac Area Industrial Development Corp. and chaired the Rotary Villa Senior Housing project. He also helped establish volunteer vision clinics in Head Start centers in Berrien, Cass and Van Buren counties.
Rasma Kalnins is a finalist for the Senior Volunteer Award of Excellence. She began volunteering at the Children of Blossomland Learning Center in 1969 and volunteers four days a week serving the special needs of severely mentally and physically disabled children.
She assists children throughout the day and shares her love by singing and talking with them. Grandma Rasma has volunteered more than 23,000 hours over the past 27 years.
Gov. Jennifer Granholm, First Gentleman Dan Mulhern and Former First Lady Rosalynn Carter will honor them at the Governor's Service Awards dinner on Saturday, June 18.
The awards are organized by the Michigan Community Service Commission, a state agency that builds a culture of service to strengthen communities through volunteerism.
MCSC supports and manages programs such as Mentor Michigan, AmeriCorps, Learn and Serve, Michigan Volunteer Investment Grants, Michigan Citizen Corps and Governor's Service Awards.