Leonard & Ageleen Stransky Park 17th & Perkins Blvd Mayor Seng & Shawn Rybe
AGELEEN STRANSKY 2005 recipient SHAWN RYBA 2006 recipient
for additional information go to the end of this page
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left to right Tracy Corr LNA, Patte Newman, Michelle Strand & Mayor Beutler
PATTE NEWMAN & MICHELLE STRAND 2007 & 2008 recipients
from left to right : John Krejci, Diane Walkowiak, Mayor Beutler, Larry Zink, John Diaz, Cyrstal Edwards
UNIVERSITY PLACE COMMUNITY ORGANIZATION & HY-VEE 2009 recipients
PLEASE GO TO THE END OF THIS PAGE FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ABOUT RECIPIENTS
PURPOSE: To recognize individuals, organizations and businesses that
have made significant positive impacts on the
neighborhoods of Lincoln.
Award nominees can include individuals, organizations and/or businesses that have completed actions that have brought measurable or observable improvement or betterment to neighborhood areas of Lincoln or to all of Lincoln. These actions have somehow improved the livability and family friendliness of the area.
Actions that could be recognized include things like leadership, outreach, organizational development, parks/playgrounds, green space, nature areas, individual home improvements or changes to laws, regulations or attitudes that enhance the livability of neighborhoods (i.e. zoning changes, density issues, flood control, neighbor relations).
Factors that the award judges will consider include:
Beneficiaries from the award activities can be city wide, several neighborhoods, single neighborhoods, home owner associations or the neighbors surrounding an improved home.
Age groups that benefit can include preschool, grade school, young adults, families, seniors or any combination of these.
Awards are encouraged for actions that could attract non-Lincolnites to visit Lincoln or a particular neighborhood.
The manner in which the action was financed includes:
Taxes, entirely private money, grants, mixed sources, in-kind labor
Is the projects “endowed” so that it is maintained?
Innovative uses of land or resources are encouraged. For example, a development area that takes a flood plain and converts it into a park is preferred over simply filling in a flood plain so houses can be built.
Neighborhood Hero Award Application
(Please use additional pages as needed.)
Applicant’s Name _____________________________ Telephone ___________
Address ________________________________ Email ______________
Contact Name (if different than applicant) _____________________________
Candidate’s Name ____________________________ Telephone ___________
Address ________________________________ Email ______________
(1) Type of action candidate is being nominated for:
A. Parks, playgrounds, green space, nature area, area of solitude
B. Individual residence improvements that impact the neighborhood
C. Changes to laws/regulations or attitudes that benefit the livability of a neighborhood
D. Exemplary leadership, neighborhood outreach, neighborhood relations or organization development
(2) Describe the action that the candidate accomplished (attach description)
(3) Beneficiaries of action:
A. City Wide B. Several Neighborhoods
C. Single Neighborhood
D. Home Owner Association E. Surrounding Neighbors
F. Other (please describe) ____________________________________
(4) Age Groups Benefiting from Action
A. Preschool B. Grade School C. Young Adults D. Families E. Seniors F. Other (please describe) ____________________________________
(5) Can the action attract non-Lincolnites to visit Lincoln or neighborhood? How?
(6) Manner of Financing:
A. Taxes B.Entirely Private Money C. Grants D. In-kind Labor E. Endowment Created F.Mixed Sources (please list)
(7) Special Circumstances (if applicable)
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STRANSKY PARK
Lincoln has a new park with a gazebo, playground with slides & swing set plus a stone waterfall. Angeleen Stransky and her late husband, Leonard, donated over 550 thousand dollars for the park and its endowment for maintenance. Leonard Stransky was a grocer who owned Trixie's IGA from the 1940's to the 1970's. Angeleen has stated that the park was Leonard's first idea when he thought of causes to donate to. from park dedication October 2003
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Shawn Ryba
Lincoln Free to Grow program strategies encourage neighborhood residents to take ownership of their own neighborhood by taking active roles in activities that help to improve the quality of life where they live. Shawn Ryba served as a Community Organizer with the program from 2003- 2007. Shawn help coordinate many of the neighborhood activities, which included block parties, neighborhood Watch groups, neighborhood clean ups, neighborhood beautification projects and helped facilitate the address of property deterioration and blight. Shawn helped coordinate a partnership of 13 public and private organizations that assisted with implementing these activities while enlisting resident participation and identifying neighborhood leadership. It was the efforts of the program and the leadership from the neighborhood that provided the opportunity for residents to make a lasting change in the Clinton Neighborhood. The program has been operating in the Clinton neighborhood since 2002. Program strategies are currently being adapted and implemented in other areas of Lincoln.
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Michelle Strand
Michelle Strand has demonstrated exemplary leadership in neighborhood betterment by her opposition to the closing of Hawthorne school which she recognized would be a long-term detriment to its surrounding neighborhoods.
Michelle and her team successfully rallied the neighborhoods of Witherbee, Clinton, Havelock, Near South and 40th & ‘A’ to oppose the closing. She made numerous presentations to the Lincoln Public School Board, its individual board members and other organizations with well researched facts and data,
Michelle and her team organized at least three rallies of Lincoln’s citizens that totaled over 500 persons.
Despite the sad fact that the School Board decided, on a split vote, to close Hawthorne, Michelle set a very high standard for organizing opposition to government actions that are harmful to neighborhoods without resorting to negativity.
Michelle actions continue the ‘Johnny Appleseed’ tradition of sowing seeds that will benefit Lincoln in the future.
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Patte Newman
Patte Newman was the driving force behind the graffiti ordinance adopted by the Lincoln City Council in September 2006. Patte relentlessly and tirelessly combined forces with LPD, VISTA Americorps, Lincoln Action Program and many others to educate the City of Lincoln and gain support for the graffiti abatement program now in place. For example, Patte organized a tour of Omaha with the Omaha City Council and several key Lincoln partners to see how Omaha combats graffiti. Patte was also instrumental in allocating City of Lincoln staff to handle graffiti complaints.
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UNIVERSITY PLACE COMMUNITY ORGANIZATION & HY-VEE 2009 recipients
John Krejci, Diane Walkowiak, Mayor Beutler, Larry Zink, John Diaz, Cyrstal Edwards
Early in 2008, Hy-Vee revealed plans to close its University Place grocery store, hoping customers would shop at a new, larger store at 84th and Holdrege.
The University Place Community Organization rallied neighborhood opposition with a Release the Lease grassroots campaign. Hy-Vee held the lease on the University Place building and barred another grocery store for five years.
After a month, Hy-Vee announced it would reopen a smaller grocery store at the University Place site called Heartland Pantry, which opened in the fall of 2008.
John Krejce - started and coordinated the idea with UPCO to have Hy-Vee “Release the Lease”
Diane Walkowiak - started a website with timely information and petitions, circulated petitions, conducted fund raisers, plus coordinated publicity with the newspaper, radio and television
Larry Zink - did lease research, drafted the petition and flyers, circulated petitions and worked with Hy-Vee management
John Diaz - current manager of Heartland Pantry (store that replaced original Hy-Vee) and represented Hy-Vee’s district manager Pat Hensley. Pat worked with UPCO and Hy-Vee to make Heartland Pantry a reality
Crystal Edwards - Wesleyan University professor and her students conducted economic and opinion surveys of neighborhood concerning the grocery store closing