National Charity League’s Santa Barbara Chapter held its annual Ticktocker Awards Meeting May 1, honoring young women who spend a significant part of their school year and summer volunteering for local philanthropies in the Santa Barbara community.
This year’s 7th-12th grade classes contributed a combined total of 9, 470 hours of service to the 21 charities served by NCL, breaking all previous records.
“This year’s theme was INSPIRE,” noted Jeannie Burford, NCL’s outgoing president. “And clearly, this group of young women are inspiring, for their dedicated volunteerism, generosity and talent for juggling service with schoolwork and an extraordinary amount of extracurricular activities.”
A nonprofit mother-daughter organization committed to community service, leadership development and cultural experiences, NCL services 21 philanthropies in Santa Barbara County, including FoodBank; Girls, Inc.; and the Koegel Autism Center, all of which were added to the organization’s roster this spring.
The May 1 Meeting recognized outstanding volunteer achievements by NCL members who have gone above and beyond chapter expectations to serve their community. Ticktockers, (as the young women are called), received awards in nine categories.
The Ticktocker Spirit Award is given to one girl in each grade, as voted on by her peers, who is friendly, positive and embodies the spirit of volunteerism. Recipients were Sasha Rose, Emily Steidl, Ava Burford, Amanda Roberts, Amanda Hayes and Julia Frohling.
The Mission Bell Award is given to Ticktockers who have completed 50 service hours at one philanthropy. Recipients were Hayley Bankhead, Safety Town; Jacqueline Berci, Unity Shoppe; Lauren Cantin, Safety Town; Ava Dore, Cottage Hospital; Julia Forster, Safety Town; Samantha Forster, Safety Town; Julia Frohling, Cottage Hospital; Ellison Gamberdella, Safety Town; Chloe Harrah, Safety Town; Amanda Hayes, Cottage Hospital; Lily McWhirter, Hearts Therapeutic; Catherine Mesipam, Safety Town; Amanda Roberts, Safety Town; Amanda Schwartz, Cottage Hospital; Ashley Steidl, Direct Relief; Sofia Tasca, Safety Town; and Charlotte Wall, Santa Barbara Museum of Art and Ridley-Tree Educational Center.
The Yellow Rosebud Award is given to Ticktockers who have completed 50 hours of service at a combination of philanthropies. Recipients were Hayley Bankhead, Natalie Baur, Jacqueline Berci, Elise Bevier, Ava Dore, Isabelle Doubleday, Megan Duffy, Hannah Echt, Emma Engmyr, Ellison Gamberdella, Natliel McCaffery, Catherine Mesipam, Gabriela Minier, Madison Minier, Audrey Murphy, Margaux Murphy, Jessica Rabinowitz, Isabella Reichard, Kate Roberts, Jenna Rode, Sascha Rose, Brynn Sofro, Ashely Steidl, Lily Stevens, Giulia Tasca and Taylor Wilson.
The Hearts of Gold Award is given to Ticktockers who have volunteered 75 service hours at one philanthropy. Recipients include Josie Doughty, Safety Town; Paige Doughty, Safety Town; Campbell Hodina, Explore Ecology; Isabella Hurvitz, Hearts Therapeutic; Clare Kelly, Santa Barbara Museum of Art and Ridley-Tree Educational Center; Alexandria Marx, Safety Town; Bridget Mitchell, Santa Barbara Museum of Art and Ridley-Tree Educational Center; and Chloe Stevens, Hearts Therapeutic.
The Yellow Rose Award is given to Ticktockers who have volunteered 75 hours of service at a combination of philanthropies. Award recipients were Lauren Cantin, Emily Condon, Ella Dore, Julia Forster, Samantha Forster, Julia Frohling, Amanda Hayes, Sydney Hess, Isabella Hurvitz, Lily McWhirter, Bridget Mitchell, Siena Pomerantz, Amanda Roberts, Sofia Tasca, Charlotte Wall and Delaney Werner.
The Yellow Rose Bouquet Award is given to TIcktockers who have volunteered 100 hours at one philanthropy. Recipients were Georgia Caesar, Hearts Therapeutic; Mary Nicole Ramirez, Safety Town; and Emily Westmacott, Santa Barbara Zoo.
The Hourglass Award is given to Ticktockers who have completed 100 hours of philanthropic service in a combination of different philanthropies. Recipients included Amanda Avila, Georgia Caesar, Josie Doughty, Paige Doughty, Chloe Harrah, Campbell Hodina, Clare Kelly, Alexandria Marx, Mary Nicole Ramirez, Amanda Schwartz, Emily Steidl, Chloe Stevens and Emily Westmacott.
The Merci Award is given to the Ticktocker who earned the most philanthropic service hours during the year. It was awarded to Georgia Caesar for the third year in a row for her ongoing dedication to Hearts Therapeutic Equestrian Center.
Caesar, who also received the Senior Award for earning the highest number of cumulative philanthropic service hours during her NCL years, volunteered a total of 1192.5 hours, and most of them were at Hearts Therapeutic.
It was through this organization that Georgia discovered her passion, mission and educational direction, as she will be heading to Colorado State University in the fall to pursue a degree in equine science.
The last award of the day was the Diane Gilchrist Award for the most hours served as a mother-daughter team awarded to Cynthia and Julia Frohling with a total of 74 philanthropic hours.
The annual Ticktocker Awards Meeting also represents a time of transition. The patroness mothers take on new leadership roles while provisional members become a formal part of the organization and a new board of directors is introduced.
This year NCL’s president, Jeannie Burford, passed the gavel to incoming NCL president, Ann Marquis, and outgoing grade-level advisers and board members were recognized for their service to the organization and the community.
Nonprofits supported by National Charity League, Inc., Santa Barbara Chapter include American Cancer Society, Bunnies Urgently Needing Shelter, CADA (Council on Alcoholism & Drug Abuse), CALM (Child Abuse Listening Mediation), The Children’s Creative Project (I Madonnari Chalk Festival), Cottage Hospital, Dream Foundation, Direct Relief, Explore Ecology, Foodbank of Santa Barbara County, Girls, Inc., HEARTS Therapeutic Equestrian Center, Koegel Autism Center, Santa Barbara Museum of Art and Ridley Tree Educational Center, Museum of Natural History and Sea Center, Safety Town (Soroptimist International), Special Olympics, Storyteller Children’s Center, Teddy Bear Cancer Foundation, Unity Shoppe and the Santa Barbara Zoo.
— Ann Pieramici represents the National Charity League’s Santa Barbara Chapter.