Volunteers of America Honored with Onie Cooper Award Sunday
Volunteers of America Honored with Onie Cooper Award Sunday (Reno, Nev.) The Nevada Clergy Association marked this Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday by recognizing individuals and organizations for their efforts in helping people. The Reverend Onie Cooper Humanitarian award was presented to Volunteers of America was for their efforts to end homelessness in Washoe County. Rachelle Pellissier accepted the award on behalf of the organization, saying, “What a great honor it is to work for an organization that is acknowledged for our work on such a great day. Dr. King once said, everybody can be great…because anybody can serve… I love that quote. We can all serve no matter who we are.”
The Reverend Onie Cooper Humanitarian award was also presented to Bill Moon of the Reno-Sparks NAACP branch executive committee and was presented during the interfaith memorial service “Moving Forward with the Dream” at the Second Baptist Church of Reno, 1265 Montello St. Reverend Onie Cooper was a long-time civil and human rights advocate in Reno, NV, leading the charge to rename a portion of Interstate 580 the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Highway.
Each night in Northern Nevada, Volunteers of America, a national nonprofit, faith-based human service organization, provides emergency shelter, transitional housing and affordable housing for more than 700 men, women and children, including seniors, veterans, and the mentally ill. At the Community Assistance Center in downtown Reno, Volunteers of America operates the Family Shelter, Men’s Shelter, Women’s Shelter, Resource Center, and ReStart Mental Health Support programs, serving more than 7,700 people each year. Community partnerships are building at an excellent pace, and now we’d like to harness those relationships into a strong financial foundation that will protect and expand programs to best serve our community.
Established locally in 1896, the Northern California and Northern Nevada affiliate of Volunteers of America is one of the largest providers of social services in the region, operating programs dedicated to ending homelessness, supporting the most vulnerable populations and transforming communities. For more information, see www.voa-ncnn.org or contact Sandy Isham, development and community relations officer at 775.322.7143 or sisham@voa-nv.org.
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MEDIA CONTACTS
Sandy Isham
Volunteers of America Northern Nevada Development & Community Relations Officer 775.322.7143; 775.560.6888 (cell); sisham@voa-nv.org