We asked you, our readers, to tell us about community members you believe have earned hero status for the things they are doing in their hometown. And you delivered. While we think all the nominations we got are eligible for Hometown Hero status, we have narrowed the group to the top five. Here they are, as described by the people who nominated them.
Editor’s note: Due an unavoidable delay we have had to push our planned deadline for the Heroes project and will announce the winner Sunday March 16. We congratulate all our nominees.
Patricia Mera
Patricia Mera is “a volunteer extraordinaire who is making a big impact in Round Valley.” She is a mother of two who still finds time to “give significantly to the community by her efforts to bring a skatepark to Covelo. She has been working tirelessly as the project leader for the last couple of years, and everything she does she commits fully to.
“The Round Valley Skatepark Project has the ambitious goal of building an 8,000 square foot skatepark in Covelo for the purpose of giving young people a way to express themselves, get outside, and have good mental health. This is a group effort, but Patty has been pushing the project along, never making excuses, or not giving a full effort at everything she does. From keeping the website and social media active, to distributing flyers and fundraising, she has kept the project fast-tracked towards success.
“The monthly skate nights have brought so many diverse families together for healthy activities, and she has never once wavered in her commitment.”
Mera also contributes to Friends of the Round Valley Library, and has led art shows, and helped put on an Earth Day Festival the last couple of years.
Duell Parks
“You may not know his name because he is behind the scenes doing what he can to make our community better. He is involved in many disaster relief organizations.”
He is on the board for the Disaster Relief Center and was “instrumental in their securing a permanent location. He is the head of logistics for our local Red Cross Chapter as well as VOAG, Volunteer Organizations After Disaster. With VOAG he is instrumental in getting our county prepared and a system in place should a disaster occur.
“Duell is also a member of SZU CHI which is another organization that works toward disaster relief, is a member of county Search and Rescue, an instructor for the Community Emergency Response Team for Mendocino County and also teaches First Aid and CPR.
“He is also Mendocino County’s Disaster Chaplain. He owns a security firm and often volunteers security for events so local non profitsdon’t have this expense. He volunteers for the Redwood Empire Food Bank at distribution sites. He is a member of Redwood Empire Lions Club and spends time supporting their many causes. Their bike recycling program could not exist if he did not give them a warehouse to work out of.”
And in addition to all that, Duell is president of Faith Lutheran Church.
“At all of these organizations he volunteers. The amount of money our county saves because of his effort is substantial. Yet he doesn’t pound his chest and say ‘look at me, look at me’ or seek glory. At his core, he loves to give back to the county he loves.”
Ken Edmonds
It’s not yet 6 a.m., but Ken Edmonds is on his way to Todd Grove Park with pockets full of Milk Bone treats.
“He’s here to hand out treats to dogs but until then he patrols the park. Ken picks up everything from gum wrappers and aluminum cans to Taco Bell and KFC debris, totes it to the nearest trash bin to make his first of many deposits of the day. He rolls overflowing plastic bins into the street for garbage trucks to more easily grab and dump. (The drivers love Ken, and wave and honk salutes as they slowly roll around the park.)
“He repeats these dreary but park-brightening chores until dogs start barking their way toward him. He grabs another load of 12-pack containers, used paper plates and some kid’s lost or forgotten jacket, and heads to the barkers on the east side of the park.
“He drops everything but the jacket into the trash, then feeds whatever leashed mutts have assembled, grumbles at their owners for not bothering to feed their dogs, instead expecting him to do it, and just so everyone knows, today is the final day he’ll be bringing treats to the park! He flings the kid’s jacket on the rock wall for emphasis. He means it! Everyone ignores him except the dogs, now on a fourth round of treats. The group walks clockwise around the park. Sunrise is half an hour away.”
“During sports seasons, which is always, he’s then off to fetch hot dogs at the Forks Market, candy at Lightell’s, pizzas at Slam Dunk, pick up buns here, get soft drinks at Costco, load it into his truck. He lugs it all up concrete steps to Ukiah High’s snack shack, puts things in the fridge, makes sure the popcorn popper will pop popcorn, or alternatively to Anton Field, and hauls peanuts, chips, crackerjacks, soft drinks and what-all to the shop near the third base dugout.”
At a pancake fundraiser at a school or community event, Ken is often the guy flipping flapjacks and sausages, and always the guy on the cleanup crew.
Ken Edmonds grew up in Ukiah. He’s the go-to guy for unloading firewood when your brother-in-law is busy and your neighbors don’t answer the door. He’s the small-time MVP around the corner, the guy who always has time to water your plants and feed the cat while you visit a sick kid in Santa Rosa.
Eileen Mitro
“Eileen is a woman on a mission to make Mendocino County and our world a better place. She is a tireless leader in Mendocino County citizens’ efforts to reduce the impacts of climate change, having co-founded the Climate Action Mendocino group. Climate Action Mendocino’s mission is to create an engaged, diverse team of community members who work with local government and other groups to provide opportunities for investigation, education, advocacy, and action on climate change issues in our county.”
Mitro also heads up her neighborhood’s FireSafe Council. She is on the board of the Sanhedrin Chapter of the California Native Plant Society, championing the knowledge and use of native plants and facilitating education and events to make sure the organization is stocked up on books and other education materials. A former career educator, Mitro is a volunteer at the Redwood Valley Outdoor Education project and she is both an active certified California Naturalist and a certified Climate Steward via the University of California’s UC Environmental Stewards Program.
“Eileen would be embarrassed by this nomination because Eileen never makes what she does for our community about Eileen. She is out there quietly and tenaciously doing the deep, and deeply unglamorous work of writing the letters and emails, leading and attending meetings, having tough conversations with leaders and community members, encouraging deeper engagement in climate and environmental issues, learning new ways to bring information to her community, and motivating community members like myself to be better and do better. As a respected elder in our community, the impact of her work will continue to benefit future generations for years to come.”
Denise Gorny
“I know of no one who has done more for kids in Ukiah than Denise Gorny.” She was in at the very start of the Alex Rorabaugh Center and continues to serve on its board.
“She has worked tirelessly, more than anyone else, for its success and continues to do so. She works even harder for the Boys and Girls Club on their board.”
Gorny is a Community Support Specialist II for the State Council on Developmental Disabilities, North Coast, and has served on the ARCC board since its inception in 1997. She has served on the Executive, Fundraising and Program Committees.
“Denise volunteers countless hours in the form of public presentations, fundraising events, solicitation of donations and grant research. Denise is a board member of the Ukiah Boys and Girls Club and in that capacity acts as a liaison between the two groups.”
So much of Gorny’s life has centered around children for 40 years, raising her three boys as a single parent. Her work at NCO and Rural Communities Child Care helped her realize the huge need for child care for working families, children’s intervention services, and a safe place for kids to recreate and have a great time. As a children’s advocate, she is involved with many additional community boards including the Policy Council on Children and Youth, Child Abuse Prevention Council, Child Care Planning Council, Rotary 20 years, and UVAH for 30 years.
According to the folks at the Ukiah Boys and Girls Club, “Her passion and hope is for all the community to give a little time and financial support so that our youth grow up healthy, strong, and free from abuse and drugs. Kids are the future of the community and realizing this we must be their mentors and their village and keep them safe and help them grow to their fullest potential.”
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Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( Hometown Heroes finalists chosen )
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