Deadline Extended for Leading Lights NRV Volunteer Awards

NRV Leading Lights has recently announced an extended deadline for receiving submissions for this year’s Volunteer Award nominations from across the New River Valley. The new deadline to submit nominations is June 15. The nomination form is only online at http://leadinglightsnrv.org/nominations.

The organization also announced that a special new category of nominations will be received this year, COVID-19 Heroes, a category designed to honor grassroots groups and organizations that have specifically stepped up to serve the New River Valley in response to the pandemic. Nominees in this category are intended to recognize the collective group and not one individual person.

Those who have been nominated before but not selected as a Distinguished Recipient may be nominated again. Individuals and organizations are highly encouraged to submit nominations for outstanding New River Valley volunteers they know or volunteer with. Administrators, teachers, guidance counselors, club sponsors, and youth mentors are asked to nominate young people for the high school and college awards. Groups and organizations cannot be nominated for awards.

Leading Lights nominees are typically engaged in diverse volunteer activities across the New River Valley. Collectively they spend thousands of hours over their lifetimes volunteering with clothing banks, rescue and disaster relief teams, as youth mentors, managing holiday programs, overseeing weekend ‘food backpack’ programs, helping at local food kitchens, serving with civic groups, community building, and volunteering with more than a hundred other noble local charitable activities and programs. Leading Lights is focused on the impact of a volunteer’s work and leadership.

Awards are given in three categories: community (seven awards), high school (two awards), and college (two awards). In the community award category, there is an award reserved for a volunteer in each county/city of the New River Valley (Floyd County, Giles County, Pulaski County, Radford City), and two in Montgomery County (due to population size), and one across the whole NRV to recognize Lifetime Volunteer Achievement. Nominees must be current residents of the New River Valley or if being nominated for a student category, they must be currently enrolled in a school/college in the New River Valley. Distinguished Recipients in each category will be selected on the following criteria:
 Strong community involvement
 Demonstrated lifestyle of dedicated, continuous, long-term involvement to the community
 Proven leadership
 Creativity in initiating and implementing projects that lead to a better quality of life

NRV Leading Lights recognizes volunteers in the New River Valley each year who are making community-changing impacts culminating in an annual celebratory event. Due to the challenges of COVID-19, this event will be virtual for 2021, and the chosen charities of each Distinguished Recipient will be highlighted in the produced video. NRV Leading Lights also honors Distinguished Recipients by making a monetary donation to the non-profit of their choice and honoring all nominees in the virtual event and presenting each nominee with a plaque as well.

Call (540) 230-0815, email leadinglightsnrv@gmail.com, or visit www.leadinglightsnrv.org for more information or if assistance is needed. Area non-profit organizations collaborate with the Virginia Tech German Club Alumni Foundation (GCAF) for the Annual “Leading Lights: Shining a light on neighbors helping neighbors” recognition awards for volunteers in our community.