2011 Volunteer of the Year
The Williamstown Community Chest honored Paula Consolini as the Volunteer of the Year at its 84th Annual Meeting on May 19th at the Williams Inn. Her volunteer service includes work for the town, local schools, nonprofit organizations and her church. The full text of her citation follows:
Paula Consolini knows her place in the world: to make the world a better place. A Williamstown resident for twenty-one years, Paula is employed at Williams College as the Coordinator of Experiential Education, a role that encourages students to “learn by doing” outside the classroom. Courses with an experiential learning component provide students with guided opportunities to encounter first-hand the issues they read and study about, requiring them to apply academic learning to non-academic settings and to integrate those challenges and opportunities in unique and holistic ways, creating volunteers and citizens that will create the leaders of tomorrow.
In her private life, Paula is committed to those same ideals and leads by example. In her twenty-one years in Williamstown, she has served on the Board of the Berkshire Food Project, was Chair of the Williamstown School Committee, served on the Building Committee for the Williamstown Elementary School, and is one of the founders and organizers of “Sundays at Six.” She serves on the Building Committee at Mount Greylock Regional High School and on the Williamstown Finance Committee. She also is an active parishioner at St. John’s Episcopal Church in Williamstown, serving on various committees, teaching Sunday School, and helping with the parish’s Youth Ministry activities.
Paula will jump in wherever she is needed and infuses whatever she does with a smile and a positive, can-do attitude that energizes the people around her. She is reliable, intelligent, creative, fearless, and has a knack for bringing people together by recognizing their gifts and appreciating their contributions.
The Williamstown Community Chest is proud to name Paula Consolini the 2011 Volunteer of the Year.
