United Way seeks nominations for community impact award

FARMINGTON — The United Way of the Tri-Valley Area is seeking nominations for the annual Gary A. LaGrange Community Impact Award.

The award is presented to people who give back to the community without expecting anything in return, with such service being a lifelong commitment.

LaGrange had a passion for helping people with energy conservation. This fueled his career with Maine Community Action agencies, including building and repairing homes, facilitating fuel assistance programs, conducting energy audits and teaching home buyer education. He was often asked to go the extra step to help a homeowner, and this he willingly did, often on his own time.

Volunteerism had a constant presence in LaGrange’s life, playing Santa for Head Start classrooms each holiday, directing hundreds of Christmas packages to children through Operation Santa and fueling his love for the arts by spending many hours bringing sets to life with the Sandy River Players.

Upon retirement, he devoted himself to volunteering full time as a lead volunteer with the United Way of the Tri-Valley Area program called the Community Energy Challenge: building interior storm panels to save homeowners energy and money and providing energy education help to control their fuel costs.

LaGrange passed away Dec. 15, 2013.

Those who know someone who embodies this dedication to service are encouraged to nominate them. It doesn’t need to be a single person, it could be a couple or group.

Applications are due Jan. 15. They can be completed online at uwtva.org or a paper copy can be downloaded. Award presentation will be at United Way’s annual meeting in March 2019.

For more information about United Way of the Tri-Valley Area, call 207-778-5048, go to the office at 218 Fairbanks Road, visit uwtva.org, or go to facebook.com/uwtva.

Judy Frost of Western Maine Community Action accepts the Community Impact Award in March 2018.

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