Five people and a hospital group were named this week as the winners of Gilbert's second annual Volunteer MVP Awards.  

Awards were given to volunteers who align most with Gilbert’s values of driven, kind, bold and humble in addition to special recognition for the Youth Volunteer of the Year and Gilbert Kindness Group Award. 
 
The winners were each presented with an award and recognized at the April 16 Gilbert Town Council meeting by Mayor Brigette Peterson and the rest of council for the impact they have made in our community. 

The winners were: 

Casey Steketee | Driven 

Steketee is a volunteer with the Gilbert Fire Department through the Community Assistance (COM251) Volunteer Program. COM251 volunteers help families displaced by fires, provide on-scene support services for emergency crews, and more. 
 
“I have received numerous emails and phone calls from citizens about how he assisted them in some of the worst moments of their lives.” 

Kelly Geisler | Kind 

Kelly volunteers with Cultivate Goodness, a local nonprofit that bridges the gap between those who want to volunteer and those in need by providing a variety of service opportunities. 
 
"Each month, Kelly has a project going to support other charitable missions in our town but also finds ways to build this love with her community by enlisting the goodness of others to do little things like assemble goody bags for senior centers or incorporating kindness rewards to encourage kids to do small but great things.” 

Natalie Braun | Bold 

Natalie is a volunteer with Advocacy31Nine, a nonprofit organization that works on behalf of children impacted by foster care in Arizona. 
 
"She routinely breaks through institutional barriers and gets more services and support for kids than the parents dreamed were possible. I have overheard conversations with parents who were in tears of frustration at the beginning of their journey with Natalie get changed to tears of joy after she has worked her magic on their behalf.” 

Gail Loewen | Humble 

Gail volunteered at One Small Step whose mission is to provide clothing relief to those who can't afford what they need. She received her posthumously with her husband accepting it on her behalf. 
 
"Gail was inspiring to those around her and left a huge hole with her passing. Although she was retired, she was very well connected within the community and campaigned tirelessly to help people who were unable to get the help they need, including children who lived in poverty, unsheltered individuals, and recent immigrants to America.

Evan Vowles | Youth Volunteer of the Year 

Evan is an 11-year-old resident who is always looking for ways to serve others. 
 
"He brought toys he collected from his birthday party to refugee children on the border, organized a successful jelly drive for Open Arms in Gilbert, raised donations and funds to create homeless kits that he gave to Gilbert PD and a local foundation in Gilbert. He recently had other children help make valentines to hand out to seniors in an assisted living facility here in Gilbert.” 

Mercy Gilbert | Gilbert Kindness Group Award 

Mercy Gilbert Medical Center has 185 volunteers who support the community and more than 30 departments at the hospital. 
 
"In 2023, our volunteers served over 24,000 hours at Mercy Gilbert Medical Center, they escorted 7,588 patients and visitors, they gave 18,866 courtesy cart rides, they delivered 13,292 flowers to patients, and the pups in our PAWs for Patients Program provided 6,639 pet therapy visits.”