Stories

"I call Pleasanton, Texas my hometown," says Tom Wood, recently received as a new member of the Avon-Canton Rotary Club.  "It was a very small town known as the Birthplace of the Cowboy down in Atascosa County.  I have lived in over 25 places, including not only across Texas but also Colorado, Wyoming, Idaho and Connecticut.  I have resided in Avon since 1996."

Luke was born and raised in Connecticut, a Hard Hitten New Britain native, and most of his family continues to reside within the Northeast. He grew up in a family-oriented household, with strong roots in sports and sarcasm, but most importantly, an emphasis on family first. He spent a lot of my summers boating and fishing in Lake George, NY and on the Charlestown, RI beaches. He has an older sister, Kylee, who holds a Doctorate in Physical Therapy. 

When Luke was younger, he played baseball, soccer and lacrosse was an avid snowboarder. Frequenting the various mountains throughout Vermont is something he has been doing for the past 20 years, sometimes with his girlfriend Katie. He thoroughly enjoy the outdoors, whether it’s hiking or biking at the West Hartford Reservoir, fishing / kayaking along the Farmington river, or taking in the rays and waves in Montauk or Block Island in the summer.

Lauren Gardner was raised in Farmington, Connecticut in the same house her father grew up in, graduating from Farmington High School in 2011. She pursued her Bachelor of Social Work with a minor in psychology at Southern Connecticut State University, graduating magna cum laude in 2015.

At the age of sixteen, after being encouraged to strengthen her resume for prospective colleges, Lauren began volunteering a few days after school at FOCUS Center for Autism. What she once viewed as an easy way to enhance her resume, rapidly turned into a passion that she followed into a career. Lauren quickly fell in love with the FOCUS clientele, adoring their individuality, honesty and unique perspectives. She also fell in love with the FOCUS organization, its approach and how it transformed lives, including her own.

Lisa Barall-Matt was born in Hartford, Connecticut as one of four siblings, having a sister and two brothers. After living in Bloomfield through her high school graduation, she went to Ithaca College. Upon finishing school, Lisa took a computer programming job at Aetna. What was going to be two to five year stint at Aetna turned into a career as an information technologies executive with a run of twenty-two years.

Lisa got restless living the corporate life and decided in 2002 to “retire” from Aetna. She then entered the real estate profession and continues to practice today. Lisa has been with Re/MAX since becoming a realtor and has been its number one agent in Connecticut for six of the last eight years.

Steve Harris grew up in West Hartford, Connecticut and moved to Avon in 1977. He has lived there ever since. Steve graduated Kingswood-Oxford School in 1969 and attended the University of Virginia.

Steve was “fixed up” up with his wife Donna on a blind date, although they were in the same elementary school class together. They married in 1975 and have three daughters - Jennifer, Lauren and Katie and three grandchildren - Hanna, Trevor and Mason.

A good way to describe my career might be to call it "bi-vocational" - clergy and publishing. I grew up in a newspaper family in Bristol. My grandfather owned and operated the Bristol Press from the early 1900s until his death in the 1950’s, when my father and uncle took over. As a kid, I often got to tag along as my father chased stories all over the state. During my college years, I worked most of my summer vacations in the composing room, setting type and serving as a gofer for the newsroom.

After graduation from Bristol High School, I earned my B.A. in history from Wesleyan University. Feeling a call to the ministry of the United Methodist Church, I went on to earn a Master of Divinity degree at Yale Divinity School. I was subsequently ordained Deacon in 1960 and Elder in 1963. Later I earned an M.A. in American Studies and Religion from Trinity College.

Linda Sue Pendergast was one of four children born to Reverend and Mrs. Boyce Van Osdel in San Bernardino, California. She moved to the Bay Area at the beginning of high school and was in the first graduating class at Skyline High School in Oakland, preceding Tom Hanks by a few years. Other than one year in Colorado, it’s been “C” (California) to shining “C” (Connecticut) for Linda who resides in Avon.

Linda graduated from Linfield College in McMinnville, Oregon with a major in Sociology and a minor in Psychology, giving her the credentials to become a Probation Officer for the County of San Bernardino, a job she held for six years. After moving to Connecticut she had several short-lived jobs before venturing into retail. Together with partner Kaye Foland, “Lettres - Stationery of Distinction” was conceived and born in the late 1980’s. Linda sold the business in late 2001, giving her more time to devote to her growing family. Linda has two daughters - Laurie and Shannon. Her husband Paul has three sons - Sean, Kevin and Ryan. Together they are grandparents to twelve grandchildren, ranging in age from two to twenty-two. They also have one great grandchild, age three.

Bob Cave was born in Hartford, Connecticut and grew up in West Hartford. He received his electrical engineering degree from Grove City College in Grove City, Pennsylvania. Upon graduation, he accepted a job with Connecticut Natural Gas and later became the Assistant to the President. Bob moved to Pittsfield, Massachusetts to take a senior management position with Berkshire Gas Company. Later in his career, Bob spent many years in Washington, DC as President of a natural gas trade association. In 2004 he returned to Connecticut and started a new venture - remodeling homes. To date, he has “flipped” twenty-two homes in our area.

Kim Murphy grew up in Burlington, Connecticut and attended Tunxis Community College. Her son Tim, his wife Britt and her two grandchildren (ages five and two) all live in Ridgefield, Connecticut with their bulldog, Millie. She has two sisters and one brother that all live within thirty minutes of each other, as does her mom. Kim lives in Torrington at Lakeridge Condominiums.

For over ten years Kim has been a manager at Northwest Community Bank and has worked in banking for over thirty years.

Salin Low grew up in Oklahoma and lived in Manhattan, Dallas, Tulsa, and Philadelphia before moving to Connecticut. She attended William and Mary and the University of Oklahoma for undergraduate studies, receiving a Bachelor of Business Administration in accounting. Later she received a Master of Business Administration from the University of Tulsa and a Master of Divinity from Virginia Theological Seminary. Before going to seminary, she spent sixteen years in public accounting and banking.

Salin has lived in Connecticut since 1993 and was rector of St. John’s Episcopal Church in New Hartford before she retired in 2014. She now substitutes and leads services at various parishes. She also serves on several boards and committees for the Episcopal Church in Connecticut. Salin lives in Canton in the Oxbow Ridge townhomes and is now President of the Board for the residents’ association. Her husband died in 2016, so her golden retriever, Ellie is now in charge of the household. Salin’s hobbies include knitting and going to the movies.

Peter Vignati has fond memories of growing up in East Hartford. He says he is “the classic middle child” amongst five siblings. Peter attended the East Hartford public schools and went on to Bates College, where he majored in chemistry and biology. At Bates he really enjoyed playing golf and was the Maine intercollegiate champion one year.

After graduation, Peter went to work for Enthone, a West Haven, Connecticut manufacturer of specialty chemicals for the plating, electronics and aerospace industries. He started in sales, first in Wisconsin and then returned to Connecticut. Later he became an International Marketing Manager, traveling worldwide establishing relationships with overseas companies to license Enthone’s technology to them and also to license some of their technology. Being single, it was an exciting time for him to see and experience different people and their cultures. He went on to earn a Master of Business Administration from the University of Connecticut, taking classes at night.

Rauf Majidian was born and raised in Tursunzoda, Tajikistan, where most of his family still resides. HIs appetite for education was established at the Tajik-Turkish High School in the same town, where he graduated and ultimately served as a tutor.

At age twenty, Rauf decided to venture alone outside of Tajikistan and pursue educational opportunities in the United States. He spent the following years refining his English and going to school. He graduated from Brooklyn College, having majored in International Business with a minor in accounting. English is the fifth language Rauf has mastered. He is also fluent in Russian, Persian (Tajik), Turkish, and Uzbek.

Craig Buhrendorf was born in Dayton, Ohio and grew up in Westfield, New Jersey. He received a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania and is the third generation member of his family to graduate college with a Mechanical Engineering degree. While at Lehigh, Craig was actively involved with the Lehigh Radio Network as a “progressive rock” deejay, serving first as Program Director for its FM station, and later as General Manager for the AM-FM network. Craig also belonged to Pi Kappa Alpha Fraternity, where he was both Treasurer and President.

After graduation, Craig began his career at General Electric’s aircraft engine manufacturing plant in Lynn, Massachusetts. He had several assignments there, including a stint as a shop foreman. He then switched to selling large industrial machinery, working as an area manager for a couple of smaller international companies and living in New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Connecticut before settling in Avon in 1984. During that period he closed the largest industrial air compressor order ever for his division and broke into the ski industry with his division’s first sale of air compressors for snowmaking.

Edgardo “Ed” Queirolo was born in Lima, Peru. At age eleven his family moved to Guayaquil, Ecuador, where he spent his high school years. Ed received an Industrial Engineering degree from Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. After graduating, he returned to Ecuador to work in the family candy business. During this period, he started his first company, distributing chemicals for the food industry. While in Ecuador, Nancy Schilling, a friend from Lehigh, came to visit with friends on vacation. A year later they married and moved to Nancy’s hometown of Farmington where they have been living for twenty-eight years.

Ed’s first years in Connecticut were spent in manufacturing, first at Precision Dynamics and later at US Surgical. In December 1993 he started his own commercial real estate company, ENE Realty Associates. The company currently owns 160,000 square feet of office space in Avon and Simsbury. Ed continues to love going to work every day.

Heather Pantano was born in Worcester, Massachusetts and moved to Thompson, Connecticut when she was seven years old. She notes that Thompson is located in the “quiet corner” of Connecticut and that her house was one mile from Massachusetts and five miles from Rhode Island. Although she spent most of her childhood in Connecticut, Heather like most people from Thompson, identifies with Massachusetts which has resulted in her passion for the Red Sox and the Patriots.

After graduating high school in 2000, Heather moved to New Britain, Connecticut and attended Central Connecticut State University. After graduation she moved around Hartford County from New Britain to Manchester to Rockville, back to New Britain, then to Windsor Locks, Hartford and finally to her current home in Avon. In addition to her BA from CCSU, Heather earned a Masters in Business Administration from Bay Path University. She is Director of Marketing for a Fortune 500 company, where she has been for over thirteen years.

Robin DiNicola grew up in Newington, Connecticut. She attended Newington High School and Connecticut School of Finance and Management. Robin spent many years in community banking and is now a Financial Advisor with Edward Jones in Southington, Connecticut.

Robin has run three marathons, raising over $15,000 for charity. She is especially proud of being an Avon-Canton Rotarian and currently serves on the board. She is also a Paul Harris recipient and has served the Club as an editor of the Early Riser, Sergeant-at-Arms, Secretary and President-elect. Robin is a long time member of the Avon Chamber of Commerce, having served as president and as a board member. For her service and dedication, the Chamber honored her with the Loren Bristol Spirit Award. Other organizations Robin has been involved with include the Salvation Army, the Exchange Club of Wolcott and the Junior Women’s Club.

Larry Sullivan was born in New London, Connecticut. He married his wife Brenda in June of 1964 and graduated University of Hartford on their first anniversary. Their oldest daughter Colleen was born the day before. All-in-all they have five children (three boys and two girls) and eleven grandchildren.

In September 1968 Larry went to work at O’Neill’s Chevrolet and took over the dealership in 1986. Later he expanded to two adjacent dealerships in Torrington with Chevrolet, Pontiac and Oldsmobile in one store and Chrysler and Jeep in the second. Around 2006, he added Cadillac, Buick and GMC in Torrington (after Pontiac and Oldsmobile were discontinued). In 2013 he purchased a Honda dealership, also in Torrington and at about this time, turned the management of the dealerships over to sons Sean and Kevin. He also turned over his Car Biz Collision and Towing Center off Old Farms Road in Avon to his son Tim.

Chuck Joseph grew up in Stoughton, Massachusetts where he met and married his high school sweetheart, Debbie. They raised their family in Sparta, New Jersey and moved to Avon in 2010 to start their family business, operating ShopRite grocery stores in West Hartford and Canton. Their son, Chuck III who also works in the business, his wife Paige and granddaughter Morgan Joseph (better known as MOJO) live in West Hartford as does Chuck and Debbie’s daughter, Liz.

Chuck attended Boston College as a pre-med student. After college, he began his supermarket career as Director of Operations for Heartland Food Warehouse stores. During that time he served as Chairman of the Finance Committee for the town of Mansfield, Massachusetts. In New Jersey, Chuck was the General Manager for the ShopRites of Hunterdon County. He also served on the Board of Directors for the Greater Morristown YMCA and was Vice Chair for Junior Achievement of Northern New Jersey. In Connecticut he is Chairman of the Connecticut Food Association, is a member of Focus on Canton and serves on the Board of Directors for the Avon Chamber of Commerce.

Gary Miller was born and raised in New Jersey—mostly in Livingston, where he lived until leaving for Dartmouth College in 1966. He attended Dartmouth on a full Navy ROTC scholarship and was commissioned an Ensign upon graduation. He served as a Naval Aviator for twenty years prior to retiring in 1990. While in the Navy, Gary lived in Pensacola, Florida (one year), Virginia Beach, Virginia (fourteen years), Somerset, United Kingdom (two and a half years), and Key West, Florida (one and a half years). Following flight training, he flew helicopters for the majority of his career—mostly ship-based, engaged in helicopter anti-submarine warfare.
While in England, he served with the Royal Navy, flew with the Royal Marines and worked at the Royal Navy Flight Safety Centre. Prince Andrew trained and flew at the same Royal Navy Air Station (Yeovilton). While serving, he received an MBA from Golden Gate University and the Aviation Safety Officer designation from the Navy Postgraduate School in Monterey, California. He completed a Master of Science in Computer Science from RPI while working for the Travelers in its IT Department.

Greg DeManche grew up in East Hartford, Connecticut and lived in Pennsylvania, Tangier, Morocco, and Indiana before settling in Avon. While earning his Bachelor of Arts in Social Sciences at Hofstra University in Hempstead, New York, he was recruited for the rifle team and received varsity letters in track and field, football and soccer. At Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut he received his Master of Arts in Education and earned his Connecticut secondary school teacher certification. He earned his Doctor of Jurisprudence at Indiana University School of Law in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Greg is currently an attorney at DeManche, McChristian, LLC in Avon. Previously he was a teacher, coach and dormitory master at the Rectory School in Pomfret, Connecticut; Director of Athletics, coach and teacher at The American School, Tangier, Morocco; Assistant Athletic Director, coach and teacher at The Park Tudor School, Indianapolis, Indiana; Tax Examiner and Senior Analyst at Indiana State Department of Tax and Department of Commerce; and Sales and finance executive at United Technologies Corporation, Otis Elevator Company, Indianapolis, Indiana and Farmington, Connecticut.

Rollie Sterrett was raised in North Haven, Connecticut and graduated from Williston Academy, a boarding school in Easthampton, Massachusetts. He graduated Colgate University in 1965 with a major in political science. As an undergraduate, Rollie was on the varsity swim team and a member of Beta Theta Pi fraternity. He took Air Force ROTC and was commissioned a Second Lieutenant at graduation.

In the USAF, Rollie was trained as an air intelligence officer (at Lowery AFB, Denver, Colorado), assigned to the Directorate of Targets at 7th Air Force Headquarters (Tan Son Nhut AB, Saigon) and after one year, in 1967, was assigned to the underground Command Post at Strategic Air Command Headquarters (Offutt AFB, Omaha, Nebraska). His duty assignments were as a daily intelligence/operations briefing officer at the Commanding General level, including USAF General William Momyer (Commander 7AF), USA General William Westmoreland (Commander US Forces, Vietnam), and USAF General Bruce Holloway (SAC Commander). Rollie separated from the Air Force as a captain in 1970.

Paul Mikkelson grew up in Hartford, spent some time in Tampa, Florida and now lives in Simsbury, Connecticut with his wife, Ann. Paul and Annie have a son, David who works for the Travelers and is married to Jen, a pharmacist. Their daughter Liz is a consultant who works with women entrepreneurs and is married to Mark, who also works for the Travelers.

As an undergraduate at University of Connecticut, Paul was a marketing major. He earned his Masters in Business Administration at the University of Hartford. Early in his career Paul worked as an Employee Benefits Consultant for CIGNA. Later he became President of Dill, Joyce & Thresher Insurance, working with twenty-eight non-profit organizations. Paul is retired now, but still volunteers and serves as a board member with several of them. He is both a Chartered Life Underwriter (CLU) and a Chartered Financial Consultant (ChFC).

Joanne Santiago was raised in New Jersey and moved to Avon in 1984. Her extensive education credentials include a BA in Zoology from Rutgers University, an MS in Nutrition from University of Bridgeport, her Doctor of Chiropractic from New York Chiropractic College, a three year postdoctoral resulting in a Diplomate American Board of Chiropractic Sports Physician and another three year postdoctoral resulting in a Diplomate American Board of Chiropractic Internist.

Since she was a child, Joanne knew that she wanted to be a Chiropractic Physician. Her practice is Avon Chiropractic Health Center located across from Avon High School. She is currently President of the Connecticut Chiropractic Association as well as President of the Northeast Chiropractic Council, which are important in her profession.

Susan Budde was born in Reading, Pennsylvania and grew up in Southington, Connecticut. Since her marriage to her husband Bill sixteen years ago, she has lived in Avon. Sue has two stepchildren: Jessica, age twenty-nine and Ryan, age twenty-six. Jess is engaged to be married and will give birth to their first grandchild in May 2019.

Sue is one of the founders of Dog Star Rescue, an all breed dog rescue that started in 2014. To date they have placed over 2,000 abandoned, abused or neglected dogs into forever homes. She also chairs the Board of Christian Outreach at West Avon Congregational Church. Sue has been an Avon-Canton Rotarian since 2012 and serves on both the Community Service and Membership committees.

Carrie Firestone grew up in a rural area in central New York with her younger sister, Jennifer and her service-minded parents. She studied English and anthropology at Hobart and William Smith Colleges. Inspired by her work with Chinese students at a summer program, she moved to Taiwan five days after graduating to teach English in a remote town. Carrie discovered she loved teaching English to speakers of other languages and decided to pursue her Master's degree in TESOL (Applied Linguistics) at Teachers College, Columbia University.

Carrie settled in New York City and taught American history and government at a Manhattan Comprehensive High School where she worked with young people from more than thirty nations. She started a community service club to share her love of service with her students. One day, at a New York Sports Club on the Upper East Side, Carrie met Michael, young radiology resident. They married two years later. Recently, Michael and Carrie returned to the gym to show their daughters Emily (a freshman at Avon High School) and Lauren (a seventh-grader at Avon Middle School) where it all began. Michael is a huge poker fan and currently a partner at Radiology Associates of Hartford. They have two dogs - Murphy, a mix and Roxie, a loveable pitbull.

Dr. Sabrina Waqar, is currently a dermatologist in Avon CT. She opened her medical practice, Farmington Valley Dermatology & Surgery, in 2014. During various phases of her medical education, she has lived in California, Arizona, Pennsylvania, and Florida. She has an undergraduate degree in Biology, a Masters in Public Health, and a Doctorate in Medicine. She did an Internal Medicine residency and followed it with a Dermatology residency. She is Double Board Certified in Internal Medicine and Dermatology.

After she completed her Dermatology residency, Sabrina her husband Joel moved to Worcester Massachusetts. After working for two large medical groups, she decided to open her own practice in the Farmington Valley.

Sabrina immigrated from Pakistan with her parents and siblings in 1992, and settled in Oakland California. She met her husband Joel while volunteering at the Berkeley Free Clinic.

Eleni (rhymes with “a-penny”) Kavros DeGraw was born in Honolulu, Hawaii. She grew up in Alexandria, VA and moved to Farmington in 1998. Eleni attended James Madison University in Harrisonburg, VA graduating with a B.A. in English and a minor in Technical Writing, with concentrations in Criminal Justice and Italian. She worked as a journalist right out of college and as a marketing writer when she moved to Connecticut. She has spent the last several years writing children’s books.

She met her husband Allen “just like every Greek woman” - working at a Greek diner in Alexandria, VA. They joke that they should probably be getting royalties from “My Big Fat Greek Wedding” since much of it is their story. Her husband is a small business owner in Middletown and they have three children, Callista (17), Sabrina (15), and Lucas (8). Eleni and Allen moved to Avon in 2013.

Dan attended UConn, Storrs where he majored in economics and minored in marketing. He was Vice President of the Entrepreneur Club and was very active in other clubs around the campus. He is currently pursuing his MBA as well as a Master’s in Business Analytics and Project Management at UConn in Hartford.

Dan’s parents came to the United States from Madeira, Portugal when they were ten and six years old. A fun fact for international soccer fans is that his grandparents’ house was two houses down from Cristiano Ronaldo’s childhood home and she knew the family very well. Dan is currently single and “looking for the right dog”. He has a brother who is a Chemical Engineer in Fairfield County.

Cherie worked as a molecular biologist in a hepatology lab at the UCONN Health Center for twenty years. She now teaches biology, microbiology, as well as anatomy and physiology as an adjunct at Tunxis Community College, Central Connecticut State University and the University of Hartford.

When Cherie was a little girl, she used to daydream about becoming a scientist and traveling to Africa. In August 2016 she found herself in Africa presenting her scientific research to nursing students. At that moment, Cherie realized her little girl dreams had come true!

Alicia Canning was raised in Providence as one of seven children.  It was there that she started her career at age sixteen with McDonald’s.  In the years that followed, she took business courses at a junior college and met her former husband, a fellow McDonald’s employee.  

In 1979 Alicia (pronounced “ah-LEE-shah”) received her degree in Hamburgerology at Hamburger University in Chicago.  From 1982-1995 she lived in New Jersey. In 2000 she and her husband became owner-operators of McDonald's franchises in Windsor and South Windsor, Connecticut.  They subsequently added franchises in Canton, Granby, Simsbury and Torrington. Alicia ran the Canton McDonald’s from 2009 to 2015, after she and her husband parted ways.

Steve Morris was born in a Navy hospital at Quonset Point, Rhode Island. Since his dad was an anti-submarine helicopter pilot, he and his family moved around quite a bit. Steve has been in Connecticut since the 4th grade however, and he graduated from Simsbury High School. Steve attended the University of Rhode Island where he played football and received a BA in Psychology and UConn Storrs where he received his Masters in Public Administration.

Dr. Arnold Goldman is well-known in our community as a veterinarian. After several years working in general practices as well as emergency and critical care practice, he opened Canton Animal Hospital in 1995. Arnie earned his Master of Public Health degree in 2011 and is one of a very few veterinarians accredited as a Certified Emergency Manager by the International Association of Emergency Managers.

Bruce Sayward grew up in Southington, CT doing woodworking with his father, who did it as a hobby.  He eventually became a carpenter and has had his own business, Sayward Companies, LLC for over thirty-three years.  Early in his professional life, Bruce spent eight years living in Colorado and Maine. During his time away from Connecticut, he served in the Air Force as a Munitions Maintenance Specialist and attended classes at Colorado State and the University of Maine.  He returned to Southington where he currently lives with his wife Bonnie.

During the month of October, Rotarians in District 7890 have been asked to focus on the goal of a polio free world. To this end, World Polio Day on October 24th presents an opportunity to sponsor programs to highlight our efforts and seek a continuing commitment from our members, friends and business associates.

Special events are being planned around the world. A key event will the live streaming of the fifth annual World Polio Day event at 5:30 PM EST. The website: https://www.endpolio.org/world-polio-day has a host of materials and planning guides that can be used to plan events and learn what other Rotarians will be doing.

Rotary of Avon-Canton Pledges $150K for Favarh 

Keeping with Rotary’s commitment to public service, a portion of proceeds from the Tastes-of-the-Valley and the annual golf tournament will go towards the construction of an exciting new Life Enrichment Program (LEP) building for Favarh – The Arc of the Farmington Valley. This project will help the nonprofit provide even greater support for its clients with intellectual and developmental disabilities. The 7,500 square-foot building, located at 100 Commerce Drive in Canton, will enhance Favarh’s day programs for adults who can’t work because of disability and medical complexities or who have retired from work. Favarh day programs place a high emphasis on daily community excursions with a priority on volunteer work.

The new facility will be named the Rotary of Avon-Canton Building.

The Rotary has pledged $150,000 through 2021 toward the project. The new building will be adjacent to the Rails-to-Trails, enabling the inclusion of a Rotary Café operated by Favarh participants where walkers, bikers and their canine friends will be able to enjoy healthy snacks and drinks. Construction is expected to begin this summer, with completion slated for late 2018. 

Anyone interested in donating to the project can send contributions to:

Rotary of Avon-Canton

Favarh Building Fund

P.O. Box 11

Avon, CT 06001

Dennis Bianchi served as a police officer in Avon from 1973 to 2000 and over many years, he has been involved in many community activities, fundraisers and has coached several children's teams in a variety of sports. He has been very involved in the Avon Volunteer Fire Department, where he directs the Citizens Fire Academy and helps raise funds for departmental needs. President Don noted the similarities between Mr. Bianchi and the many Rotarians he knows who are very active in their communities.

Past president Gary Miller introduced our second Paul Harris Fellowship recipient, Rebecca Stevenson. Ms. Stevenson is also a Burlington resident, and is Director of Admissions & Marketing at Cherry Brook Health Care Center in Canton. She has been very involved in her community, participating in community events and fundraising. She serves on the Canton Chamber of Commerce Outreach Committee, and has supported organizations such as Gifts for Canton, Focus on Canton and the Canton Senior Center, as well as the event Walk for Food & Hunger.