Herndon Hands Out Outstanding Performance Awards At Ceremony

Herndon VA

09 December, 2021

2:48 PM

Description

HERNDON, VA — The Town of Herndon presented its Outstanding Performance Awards on Tuesday to a wide range of town employees, ranging from a department head who worked to enhance safety among town employees to a cross-functional team that aimed to ensure the town was in compliance with COVID-19 regulations. Herndon Town Manager Bill Ashton presented the awards at a ceremony. "In this challenging year, the creativity and innovation demonstrated by these employees made our workplace safer, our employees healthier and our team spirit stronger," Ashton said in a statement. "Often, leaders emerge in times of trial. Each employee recognized by these awards exemplifies leadership in the truest, best sense of the word," Ashton added. Each year, award nominations are submitted by town employees. Nominations are then reviewed by a panel of Herndon business owners and citizens that determines award recipients in various categories. The 2021 award winners were decided by Martin Gruszka, owner of Herndon's Office Evolution, providers of flexible shared workspace, and Miriam Liggett, owner of Soliloquy Bridal Couture in Herndon's downtown. Award recipients received up to $1,000 for individuals and up to $2,000 for teams. Here are the 2021 winners of Herndon's Outstanding Performance Awards: Individual Excellence — Chris Mason, Operations Manager, Department of Public Works. At her own initiative, Mason conducted a safety and compliance assessment of town facilities, which identified issues that needed correction or repair. Her work significantly enhanced workplace safety and has established a template for ongoing safety review.Team Excellence — Lindsey Jones, Systems Technician, Parks & Recreation; Chris Mason, Operations Manager, Department of Public Works; Roxann Fox Simkins, Risk Manager, Town Attorney's Office; and honorable mention to Lesa Yeatts, Town Attorney. At the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, town operations pivoted into emergency mode that, due to its unique challenges, was uncharted territory. While the roles and responsibilities of all town staff were affected, these employees were on the front line in developing reporting systems, ensuring regulations were adhered to, keeping employees informed of protocols and mitigating the impact of the virus in the workplace and promoting employees' health.Innovation and Creativity — Lieutenants Jay Carson and Mark Dale, Herndon Police Department. Both brought on board in fall 2020, Carson and Dale were tasked with developing a comprehensive wellness program for the police department that would help officers coping with stressful incidents as well as contribute to overall positive mental health. The resulting program, developed in only eight months, is multi-pronged and incorporates a contracted police psychologist, annual wellness checks, peer support teams, meditation training and a dedicated wellness/meditation room, development of diversion policies in lieu of discipline, and acquisition of a facility dog for the department. In addition to the Outstanding Performance Awards, Ashton also presented the Customer Service of the Year Award to Matthew Ordemann, utility equipment operator in the Herndon Department of Public Works, who went above and beyond his normal duties in assisting the Herndon Police Department with lighting during a crime scene. A new award was presented for the first time in 2021 to Timothy Whetzel Jr., a utility equipment operator, who referred three successful candidates for town employment. David Higgins, utility work crew supervisor, also was recognized for 35 years of service to the town.