On Tuesday, Pat Coy of the Kosciusko County United Way accepted an award on behalf of the agency during the third annual “Helping People. Changing Lives.” awards recognition luncheon held in South Bend.

The local United Way was nominated by Warsaw’s Combined Community Services for the Day of Caring Program and was the agency winner for the five counties that REAL services covers. In addition to United Way, Fiesta Salons of Warsaw was also nominated for its help with the CCS Tools for Schools program.

According to Coy, though the Day of Caring has been held for the past 8 years, this is the first time the organization has been nominated for the Agency or Program of the Year award. The 2013 Day of Caring wrapped up the year with over 75 projects completed with the assistance of 1,000 volunteers (see related). Coy stated there were seven other nominations up for the award.

“The recognition is an honor and we appreciate it,” stated Coy. “We have been doing the Day of Caring for 8 years and its nice to be recognized for it. We will keep doing this event, it is a very good event for our community.”

According to CCS, the goal of the luncheon was to take a moment to recognize the many organizations, programs and individuals who have worked tirelessly to support those who have needed a helping hand in our low-income population.

According to REAL Services, the winners for each award were based on supportive documentation provided from the candidates nomination. Event awards included five categories: Agency or Program of the Year, Religious or Civic Group of the Year, Volunteer of the Year, Educator(s) of Low-Income and the Sergeant Shriver Lifetime Achievement Award.

According to United Way, the 2014 Day of Caring activities will be primarily focused in the southern part of Kosciusko County in the communities of Pierceton (south of U.S. 30), Silver Lake, Claypool and Sidney, however, applications for projects will be accepted from all parts of the county.