 
Senate Resolution No. 3268
 
BY: Senator BRESLIN
 
        COMMENDING  William  Stoneman upon the occasion of
        his selection to represent the Capital Region in the
        national Jefferson Awards competition in  a  virtual
        event to be conducted in September of 2020
 
  WHEREAS, It is incumbent upon the people of the State of New York to
recognize  and  acknowledge outstanding individuals within our midst who
have made significant contributions to the quality of life therein; and
 
  WHEREAS, A great community is only as great  as  those  persons  and
organizations   that   provide   exemplary   service,   whether  through
participation in voluntary programs or simply through a lifetime of good
citizenship; and
 
  WHEREAS, This Legislative Body is justly proud  to  commend  William
Stoneman  upon  the  occasion  of his selection to represent the Capital
Region in the national Jefferson Awards competition in a  virtual  event
to be conducted in September of 2020; and
 
  WHEREAS, The Jefferson Awards are a prestigious national recognition
program  which honors community and public service throughout the United
States; and
 
  WHEREAS, In 1972, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, United States  Senator
Robert  Taft,  Jr.  and  Sam Beard, Chairman of the National Development
Council, founded the American Institute for Public Service to  establish
a  "Nobel  Prize"  for public and community service on both the national
and local level, the Jefferson Awards; and
 
  WHEREAS,  The  Jefferson  Awards,  whose  stated  mission   is   "to
recognize,  inspire  and  activate  volunteerism  and  public service in
communities, workplaces and schools across America," serve as a "Call to
Action for Volunteers"; and
 
  WHEREAS,  On  the  local  level,  Jefferson  Awards  recipients  are
ordinary  people  who  do  extraordinary  things  without expectation of
recognition or reward,  while  national  award  recipients  represent  a
"Who's Who" of outstanding Americans; and
 
  WHEREAS,  William  Stoneman  of  Albany,  New  York,  began a garden
program at Myers Middle  School  in  2009,  when  his  daughter  was  in
eighth-grade;  that program grew into the Vegetable Project, a nonprofit
group organized by parents, teachers and  others  in  the  community  to
create learning opportunities for Albany children; and
 
  WHEREAS,  A  man  of  sincere  dedication,  William  Stoneman  is  a
substitute teacher at Albany High School; he also  teaches  students  to
build  gardens,  grow plants and harness the power of nature; during his
weekly garden clubs he encourages students to  plant,  nurture,  harvest
and cook; and
 
  WHEREAS, Furthermore, William Stoneman partners with Albany's summer
youth  employment  courses  to  offer  jobs  to teenagers in addition to
mentoring high-risk high school students through internships; and
 
  WHEREAS, It is the sense of this Legislative Body that when a person
of such noble aims and accomplishments is brought to our attention it is
appropriate  to  publicly  proclaim and commend them for the edification
and emulation of others; now, therefore, be it
 
  RESOLVED, That this Legislative Body pause in its  deliberations  to
commend William Stoneman upon the occasion of his selection to represent
the  Capital Region in the national Jefferson Awards competition, noting
his exemplary service to his community and extending  to  him  heartfelt
best wishes for a future of continued purposeful success and well-being;
and be it further
 
  RESOLVED,  That  a  copy  of this Resolution, suitably engrossed, be
transmitted to William Stoneman.
William Stoneman - Jefferson Awards 2020

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