Helping hands: Special People In Northeast Inc. was honored during Wawa Welcome America! festivities. Pictured are (from left) Marie Leonard, Kathy Brown-McHale, Judy Dotzman and Patti Parisi. SOURCE: SPECIAL PEOPLE IN NORTHEAST INC
Special People In Northeast Inc. was the winner of the Wawa Foundation’s first Hero Award, given to a nonprofit organization serving the Philadelphia area.
The Wawa Foundation Hero Award was launched during Philadelphia’s Wawa Welcome America! festivities and was presented in front of thousands of people as part of the Independence Day morning ceremony in front of Independence Hall.
During the event, Wawa president and CEO Chris Gheysens presented the awards on the stage, speaking about the significance of each competing nonprofit and their efforts to improve the lives of people in the Philadelphia area.
SPIN, 10501 Drummond Road, was selected as the Hero Award Gold Medal winner after receiving the highest number of public votes among four nonprofit finalists over a 10-day period on the Wawa Foundation website.
As the winner, SPIN will receive a $50,000 grant from the Wawa Foundation.
SPIN will dedicate the $50,000 from the Hero Award to health and wellness services for children, adults, families and staff at its Norcom Community Center, 10980 Norcom Road.
The other finalists were the Veterans Multi-Service Center Philadelphia, Philadelphia Reads and Beat the Streets, a youth wrestling program. The three runners-up will each receive Silver Hero Medals and $10,000 grants.
More than 11,500 votes were cast from people around the region.
The four finalists were chosen among more than 300 submissions from Philadelphia-area non-profits for having the most compelling stories of assisting others and advancing their communities.
The Wawa Foundation sought to recognize nonprofits for their outstanding commitment to assist others and helping to advance communities through preserving freedom, protecting safety, inspiring learning and encouraging and empowering others to become better citizens and community members.
Each applicant submitted a video or short story, with background on its impact on the community.
SPIN provides services and support for children and adults with autism and intellectual disabilities. The agency supports more than 3,500 infants, children and adults in southeastern Pennsylvania and the Lehigh Valley.
For more information on SPIN, go to www.spininc.org ••
