Jennifer Tate, Anthony Goularte, Friends of the Library honored
for their contributions
A Morgan Hill resident, a community organization and a business will be recognized by Gavilan College on Thursday, Sept. 1, for their contribution to the Morgan Hill community.
The 2005 Community Spirit Awards will be presented to Jennifer Tate, Friends of the Library, and Anthony Goularte of Associated Concrete by the Gavilan College Board of Trustees during the Morgan Hill Chamber of Commerce breakfast, 7:30 – 8:30am, at Golden Oak restaurant, 16695 Condit Road.
Tate, a 28-year Morgan Hill resident, has served on many organizations in both leadership roles and as a committee member.
“The boards and committees she has served on have all brought great pride and recognition to this city,” said Jan Bernstein Chargin, Gavilan College spokesperson.
Tate has served for the past two years as program chair and then event chairperson for the Excellence in Leadership Award Dinner for Leadership Morgan Hill, which has raised over $80,000 in two years with a formal dinner honoring a leader in the community. She is also chairperson of Centennial Morgan Hill, a steering committee organized to celebrate the 100-year birthday of Morgan Hill in 2006.
In addition, Tate is a member of the Morgan Hill Rotary and a board member of the Morgan Hill Historical Society. She coordinates the annual Founders’ Day dinner, which honors pioneers who have lived in Morgan Hill for over 50 years. She likewise served on the City of Morgan Hill Community & Cultural Center opening, and was logistics chairperson for the Mayor’s Ball, a fundraiser for the Morgan Hill Community Foundation in 2002.
“It’s delightful and I’m thrilled to be honored. It’s nice to be noticed and it seems I am in very good company,” Tate said.
The Friends of the Library organization is an all-volunteer community organization that raises money for the Morgan Hill Library by holding two monthly book sales on the first Saturday and third Wednesday of every month. Members sort books, staff the library bookstore, and advocate for the library in the community. They are currently working to raise funds and awareness for the new library building.
“We are very grateful to Gavilan College for the recognition they are giving the Friends of the Library and what we do to support the Morgan Hill Library,” said Carol O’Hare, president of Friends of the Library. “The Friends of the Library raises about $20,000 a year through our twice-a-month book sales to support services the library otherwise cannot afford. The Children’s Summer Reading Program, which has been very successful, is an example of one of the activities we are able to support through the book sales.”
Anthony Goularte and his company, Associated Concrete, will be recognized in the business category. Goularte is a Kiwanian and very active in the community, often as a behind-the-scenes donor to local projects.
Goularte was nominated by a community member, who wrote, “Anthony has been a part of the community for 50 years. He has been a member of Kiwanis Club for probably 25 years. During that time, Anthony has given generously of his time and money to support many of the different segments of Morgan Hill. Whether it was the donation of concrete, money or his own labor to build and support such things as ‘Spirit of Morgan Hill,’ playgrounds, women’s shelters, hanging flags downtown, ChildSpree, putting up Xmas decorations, Anthony Goularte (Associated Concrete) has been doing it for a long time, never asking to be spotlighted for his works.”
“I want to thank the trustees for recognizing us and our company and what we do in our community. It’s nice to be recognized, but there are also countless people who give hundreds of hours of their time to make this a better place and we’re just a small part of that,” said Goularte.
The Community Spirit Awards were created in 1999 to promote and recognize service to the communities Gavilan College serves. Anyone may nominate an individual, organization, or business in the community for an award. A representative committee of the campus community reviews nominations and selects the award winners.
The public is invited to attend the Morgan Hill Chamber of Commerce breakfast. Cost is $15 for Chamber of Commerce members, and $20 for non-members. RSVP is required for this event. Call 408-779-9444, or RSVP online at http://www.morganhill.org/programs.htm#breakfast.
