Thanks for All the Help

Ellen Blair, 83, puts in dozens of hours each month delivering Meals on Wheels for HELP of Ojai. She also volunteers at San Antonio Elementary School.

Shellie Kwitkowski, 15, has rescued and cared for 95 abandoned dogs and cats in the past year. She has also developed contracts, forms and booklets for Concerned People for Animals Inc. of Oxnard.

They are two outstanding examples of the legion of volunteers who make life more manageable for all Ventura County residents--two-legged or four.

The Times saluted them last week at its ninth annual Community Partnership and Volunteers of Distinction awards luncheon.

Blair and Kwitkowski were honored along with three outstanding nonprofit groups for their contributions to the county’s quality of life. The organizations honored were the Assn. for Retarded Citizens of Ventura County, for its work in social services; the Free Clinic of Simi Valley, in health services, and Food Share Inc. of Oxnard, in youth and education services.

Each of the winning organizations received a $5,000 grant from The Times; individual recipients will have $2,500 donated to the charity of their choice.

“I’m amazed to get this,” said Ellen Blair. “HELP is the most marvelous place. It’s done more for me than I’ve done for it.”

Most volunteers would agree that the inner rewards of their work make up for the scarcity of recognition. But life in Ventura County would be far more difficult for many residents, in some cases impossible, without them.

It’s a pleasure to recognize and thank them all for their good deeds.