The Hanover Community Services Board has honored several outstanding community advocates with the 2018 Jean C. Harris Award for Excellence.

Honored by the CSB at a ceremony on October 24 were Melodie Fearnow-Kenney, president of a volunteer-run non-profit named Raise, Inc.; Frances Hubbard of the Department of Community Resources; and New Song United Methodist Church of Mechanicsville.

Since starting Raise, Fearnow-Kenney has worked to establish school-based coffee businesses in special education classrooms, involving 36 students who delivered over 1,000 teacher coffee orders.  The program enabled 54 IEP goals to be met and the students participated in four community events. Raise, Inc. recently received funding from the Hanover County Rotary clubs to purchase a coffee trailer so students can take their job skills ‘on the road’ to local events.

From working with those with development disabilities at Hanover Industries to providing enrichment activities at a local group home to volunteering with the ARC of Hanover in their new Book Club, Frances Hubbard has been “an empathetic and supportive source of wisdom to almost every sector of the population that she has encountered,” said Amy Gregory, co-chair of the Harris Award committee. 

New Song Methodist Church partners with Hanover Community Services and Hanover Cares by hosting substance use prevention and suicide prevention programming.  These include “Strengthening Families”; “Hidden In Plain Sight”; “Mental Health First Aid”; and “More than Sad.”

“This organization gives time and financial resources to support the implementation of programs that directly contribute to our community in regards to mental health,” said Anne Geddy Cross, another committee co-chair.  “They also support dozens of programs each year that relate to the health of community members including CARITAS, Backpack Nutrition Programs, Food Pantry collection drives, family assistance programs, home repair, blood drives and more.  New Song embodies a culture of service that supports the congregation and community's mental health.”

The late Mrs. Jean C. Harris was a founding member of both the Community Services Board (on which she served for 20 years) and Hanover Community Support Services.  The award named for her is presented annually to individuals who exemplify the many contributions that Mrs. Harris made to the mission, purpose and achievements of the CSB.