Sylvia Besana was a Roseville native who epitomized the word
"volunteer". An educator, counselor and avid community leader, Sylvia
spent the greater part of her life giving back to the community and
making a difference through her continued commitment to serve.
The
Sylvia Besana Community Volunteer Award is a tribute to her and to her
lifetime of community service. This annual award recognizes individuals
in the Roseville community who display dedication through consistent
commitment to community service, serve as role models by inspiring
others to volunteer, and demonstrate leadership, excellence and
integrity through volunteer service.
Click on the links below for more information regarding the criteria and nomination process for this award.
Sylvia Besana Community Volunteer Award Criteria
Sylvia Besana Community Volunteer Award Nomination Form
Recipients are recognized at City
Council Meetings and their names are engraved on a perpetual plaque
commemorating the honor; the plaque is displayed in the lobby of the
Civic Center.
2018 Winner:
Margo Ezell is the recipient of the 2018 Sylvia Besana Community Volunteer
Award.
Margo started giving back to the community upon her
retirement in 1996, when she began looking for opportunities to give
back to her community. As such, she became a judge on the Placer County
Election Board and has since served on every election in Placer County.
In 1999, she joined the Board of Directors at
St Rose Church and became the social outreach director. From 1999 to
2014, she served breakfast at Saugstad Park for the hungry and homeless
and drove those who needed County-provided services such as medical,
dental, mental care, and legal services to Auburn.
She also helped the homeless who weren’t able to read and
write by filling out paperwork for Social Security benefits and later
became their payee. As their advocate, she found them housing, paid
their rent/bills and setup weekly allowance for numerous active clients
and collectively for 42 clients throughout the years.
In 2015 she also started helping those in need at St Vincent de Paul, driving her clients individually to receive services.
Past Recipients
2017 Nayan Pradhan
2015 Fred and Pauline Wight
2014 Ed and Marian Tiedemann
2013 Olu Shaola
2012 Esmerita Rivera
2011 Janet Zeitman
2010 Aldo Pineschi, Jr.
2009 Melba Erven