North County Incorporated Honors Community Leaders Making A Difference in North St. Louis County

Contact: Rebecca Zoll, Exec. Director
(314) 895-6241
May 15, 2009
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

As part of the organization's 32nd Annual Breakfast, North County Incorporated (NCI) recognized several area leaders for making a significant positive impact in North County. Friday, May 15, at the St. Louis Airport Marriott, hundreds of business, civic, and community leaders gathered at NCI's 32nd Annual Breakfast to honor this year's award recipients.

Chris L. Wright, Ph.D. received the prestigious Elmer Belsha Leadership Award, which is presented annually to an individual whose long-term commitment to the North County region and NCI has had a positive impact on the community and/or public body that they serve. Chris, a teacher and administrator in Missouri public schools for 33 years, has provided educational and community leadership to the North County area for more than 25 years. She has been superintendent of the Hazelwood School District since 2002 and served as superintendent of Riverview Gardens School District before that. She inspires her colleagues, leads her district courageously and does not hesitate to collaborate with others in order to make positive changes. Chris has developed and implemented an on-going leadership training program for all district administrators and teachers. Among her many accomplishments: Chris was named Superintendent of the Year for the State of Missouri by the MO Association of School Administrators, as well as a Distinguished Alumus by the University of Missouri-St. Louis. She has chaired the Greater North County Chamber of Commerce, is a Board Member for Christian Hospital and is on the Community Advisory Board for SSM DePaul Health Center. Chris has also been an active member of NCI for nearly 25 years, many of which she served on the Board of Directors and on the Executive Board. She was NCI's president in 2003 and has always been a valuable asset to North County Incorporated.

NCI's Business Development Awards were presented to Mr. Ronald B. McMullen, President of Christian Hospital, and Carolyn Pryor-Luster, M.D. of Serenity Women's Healthcare, Inc. for their efforts that have positively affected the economic development and business climate of the North County area.

During the short time Ron McMullen has been at Christian Hospital, he has improved the federal government CMS reported clinical-quality data rankings, successfully increased access to the Emergency Department through the reduction of ambulance diversions and hired an additional 150 nurses. Ron also opened Family Care of North County, a nurse practitioners' office in Hazelwood, and added new primary care and specialty physician practices to enhance medical services. Under Ron's leadership, Northwest HealthCare has been in the top 100th percentile nationally for patient satisfaction over the past two years. He has also implemented an aggressive $5 million investment in renovations of the hospital. Furthermore, Ron is a valued Board Member of NCI and is on the Greater North County Chamber's Board of Directors as well.

When other OB-GYNs were relocating West, Dr. Carolyn Pryor-Luster made a commitment to North County and has practiced in the area for more than 13 years. She opened her medical practice here and it successfully grew until expansion into a larger office space became necessary. She also worked hard to actively recruit two new doctors in order to address the shortage of OB-GYNs in the North County area. Carolyn invested in the purchase of a building in Old Town Florissant and undertook the complete renovation of the Serenity Women's Health Care suite of offices in that building to meet the needs of her rapidly expanding practice and increasing volume of patients. Carolyn is affiliated with SSM DePaul Health Center and she serves on the Regional Health Commission's Advisory Board. She is also a member of NCI's Board of Directors. She has professionally excelled and was named Best Physician in Region V by the National Medical Association, was featured in Essence Magazine in a reader's choice article, co-chaired the African American Leadership Giving Initiative in 2001 for the United Way, and was appointed to the Commission on Medical Economics, Third Party Medicine and Governmental Relations for the Missouri State Medical Association.

Ms. Marsha Bonds, Director of North County CARES, the Florissant Parks Foundation, and Mr. Ken Smith, President of the Old Jamestown Association, were given Community Development Awards for their selfless acts that have positively benefited youth, residents, civic organizations or others.

Marsha Bonds coordinates the North County CARES program, which is a community initiative that seeks to promote and support North County employers and service providers to enhance the quality of life for residents. Marsha's work focuses on professional development workshops for those individuals in transition and provides a link between schools and the Florissant Valley campus, assists at-risk students and partners with community and faith-based organizations. She has received numerous awards for her community outreach efforts, including a Focus St. Louis Award. Marsha is the author of "After the Alter" and continues to share her writing gift as an adjunct English instructor at St. Louis Community College at Florissant Valley.

Over the past few years, members of the Florissant Parks Foundation undertook the task of developing and building a Nature Lodge in Sunset Park. Although a master plan for the Nature Lodge was submitted in 1979, those plans lay dormant until 2001, when Florissant's Mayor Lowery started looking for activities for children in Florissant and began working with Ron Veach, Director of the Parks and Recreation. They found the old plans, dusted them off and made a commitment to Florissant to bring the plans to fruition. Because the city budget did not allow for this park project, a 501(c) 3 foundation was created in 2004 to seek private funding in the form of donations and in-kind services. Thanks to the tenacity of the many people on the Parks Foundation's team, the Behlmann & Zykan Nature Lodge opened on April 18th. It sits high on the bluff overlooking the Missouri River with a spectacular view. The building of this Nature Lodge is a great example of the success that can happen when collaborative partnerships are built for the betterment of the community. The Nature Lodge at Sunset Park will benefit the community, increase tourism and expand natural science education. Mark Behlmann accepted the 2009 NCI Community Development Award on behalf of the Florissant Parks Foundation.

Ken Smith is president of the Old Jamestown Association and has diligently worked with the St. Louis County government and neighboring communities on many issues affecting the residents of north St. Louis County. His dedication and work has for years enhanced the quality of life for everyone. He recently reached the successful conclusion of his decades-long effort to preserve the unique geological karst formations located in North County. Over many years, Ken successfully educated and worked with the St. Louis County Planning Department, elected officials and developers in his pursuit of the karst area preservation. In early March, the St. Louis County Council passed legislation to create a special zoning district known as the Karst Preservation District. Ken has a history of serving North County. He is currently the City of Northwoods' City Engineer, and he organized the Civil Engineering Department at St. Louis Community College-Florissant Valley. Ken and the Old Jamestown Association are also members of North County Inc.

Public Service Awards were presented to Mayor Virginia A. Bira, City of Vinita Park, Mr. Randy Gardner, News Director for News 20, City of Black Jack, and Judge Timothy Kelly, City of Florissant, for their long-time service, which has had a positive impact on the community and/or public body they serve.

Mayor Virginia A. Bira has generously served the City of Vinita Park for nearly 40 years and has been their mayor since 1984. She raised money and developed the first completely handicapped-accessible park in St. Louis County, which the city named Bira Park in honor of the extensive work she did to bring it to fruition. She is currently working with Great Rivers Greenway and Trailnet to expand hikers' and bikers' access from local bus routes onto a pathway through their industrial park to connect the Forest Park trail to Creve Coeur Lake. Virginia is also diligently working on a major transportation improvement along Page Avenue, which will help foster economic development in Vinita Park's Page Industrial Park. In the past, Virginia has served as president of the Mayors of Small Cities and St. Louis County Municipal League. She is a Board Member for NCI and a past Board Member of East-West Gateway Council of Governments. Her service and work have been recognized with numerous honors, including the Outstanding Lifetime Achievement Award by the East-West Gateway Council.

Randy Gardner works at News 20, the cable channel for the City of Black Jack, and is also the city's Public Relations Director. He has worked in North County for 25 years and has 49 national broadcast awards, 3 international broadcast awards and 3 Mid-America Regional Emmy Awards to his name. He has written a column for the Independent News for 12 years and writes a feature article for "Our Town" magazine. Randy donates endless hours to produce videos to help many community service organizations. He is a member of the St. Louis County Emergency Management Planning Commission and in 2005 was named a St. Louis County Honorary Police Officer. He donates his time and talent as a judge for the Ms. Senior America Pageant and hosts and MC's multiple organization's fundraisers, helping raise over $100,000.00 for local charities. He was recently named a member of the Selection Committee for the St. Louis Sports Hall of Fame, and this past year he was recognized as an up-and-coming leader in North County by NCI as part of the 30 Leaders in their 30s campaign.

Judge Timothy Kelly is celebrating 30 years of public service as a judge for the City of Florissant. He has presided over the Florissant Municipal Court since 1979 and never shied away from the challenge to be fair and just with those who appeared before his bench. Many say he conducted his court with compassion when possible and a firm hand when needed. Judge Kelly was also a judge for the City of St. John for 12 years. He is a devoted friend to the youth of our community - not only in his court, where he found creative ways to encourage good citizenship from troubled teens, but also in his dedication to youth sports and activities that help build future leaders. Judge Kelly has also been the Chairman of the Tom Howe Benefit Spring College Soccer Tournament and for decades has helped many organizations sponsor activities that teach the values of teamwork, leadership and hard work to young players through sports.

The AARP Senior Community Service Program and Mr. Fletcher E. Wells II of St. Johns Bank and Trust Co. received NCI's 2009 Special Recognition Awards for their volunteerism, contributions to civic and charitable organizations, and/or for their betterment of the community.

The AARP Senior Community Service Program, under the leadership of Lisa Bishop, helps job seekers over the age of 55 improve their skills, obtain training, and find a job. Specific to the North County area, this program supports approximately 120 people at any given time. The SCSP program serves about 300 people each year. While helping seniors transition into employment, this program also helps 50-75 non-profits and/or state agencies in assigning trainees to work at these organizations at little or no cost to that agency. This is more than a $6,600 annual savings to a single organization in community service time.

Fletcher E. Wells II is the Vice President and Director of St. Johns Bank and Trust Co. He handles special projects and represents the bank through business development and community relations and is well-suited in this role as it allows him to work closely with many, many community organizations. Fletcher is an active member of the organizations in which he is involved. He is on the Executive Board of NCI, serves as its Treasurer, and also serves on the Board Development Taskforce, North County School/Business Partnership and the Business Retention Stakeholder Taskforce. In 2005, he was the Chairman of the Northwest Chamber. Fletcher is a charter member of the Lambert Airport Rotary Club and is a four-time president and treasurer. He was also a District Conference Chairman in 2005. Fletcher is a member of the Board and Treasurer for the Lutheran Blind Mission, a member of the Woodson Terrace Business Association and Junior Achievement. He is also on the Economic Development Commission for the City of Maryland Heights. Fletcher has been honored with numerous awards, including: the Outstanding Rotarian Award, the Volunteer of the Year Award by the Northwest Family YMCA, the Business Person of the Year Award by the Northwest Chamber of Commerce, and he has been named an Honorary Citizen by the City of Woodson Terrace.

North County Incorporated is a regional development organization, which acts as a catalyst to define and advocate economic and community development for North St. Louis County. NCI was established in 1977. The Board is composed of community leaders and business owners. Ms. Lillie Dumas is the current president.

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