The Manhattan Beach Community Group honored five hometown heroes at their end-of-the-year award ceremony on Dec. 3.
The selfless servants who received the awards are locals who have helped the community in a variety of ways, said the group’s president, adding that she selected only the best of the bunch for awards.
“When you give out awards, the less awards, the more it means,” said Judy Baron, the president of the Manhattan Beach Community Group. “Every single one of those people that got those awards is terrific.”
Many of the award recipients said Hurricane Sandy motivated them to get more involved. The superstorm made one resident reevaluate her role in the community — and she said her love of the neighborhood motivated her to ensure the area makes a full comeback from the disaster.
“This is our community and I love it, and I want to do whatever I can to get it back to where it was before the hurricane,” said Shari Kaplan, who received the “Over and Beyond” award because went above the community’s expectations. “Whatever I do, I do because I love the community.”
Another individual who became involved in the group after Sandy said he is using his professional background to help the neighborhood prepare for the next storm by trying to secure funding for plumbing gear for the 1,500 homes in Manhattan Beach to prevent sewer backups during storms.
“They started to talk about things like check valves, which I knew a little about, and environmental issues that I’ve always been interested in, so I volunteered my services,” said Ronald Danner, who was honored with the “Community Service Award.”
Baron said the night was a great way for the group to show their appreciation for the local leaders who help everyone they meet.
“These are the kinds of people that we give awards do — who do things for others,” said Baron. “Our mantra is to do things for the entire community, for everybody.”
