Dominion Selects 16 as Volunteers of the Year

April 9, 2008

RICHMOND, Va. – Dominion, one of the nation’s largest energy producers, has honored 16 employees as the 2007 Volunteers of the Year, paying tribute to their gift of caring for others and their communities.

Coming from seven states and representing various Dominion business units, efforts of the volunteers range from delivering medical supplies to Third World countries to mentoring children in academics and sports. The Dominion Foundation, the company’s philanthropic arm, donated $1,000 to charitable organizations chosen by each honored volunteer.

"These men and women are outstanding role models whose actions personify caring – the seed from which all volunteer service grow," said Thomas F. Farrell II, Dominion chairman, president and chief executive officer. "Together, they set a high standard of giving and contribute to our reputation as a caring company."

The 2007 honorees were:

  • Suzanne Allen, Dominion Resources Services, Richmond, Va. Allen has traveled to Phuket, Thailand, where she participated in recovery efforts following the December 2004 tsunami, and Romania, where she helped conduct a medical and eye clinic for villagers.

     
  • Dan Diefenbach, Dominion Virginia Power, Richmond. Diefenbach coordinates public service activities among his fellow employees in the Richmond area. He works with Habitat for Humanity, Rebuilding Together and the Central Virginia Foodbank.

     
  • P. Lynette Green, Dominion Resources Services, Clarksburg, W.Va. Green volunteers at the Harrison County Sheltered Workshop and Salvation Army; coordinates Dominion’s educational partnership at West Milford Elementary School; and represents the company as a Chamber of Commerce member.

     
  • Robert Hagy, Dominion East Ohio, Cleveland. Hagy and his family have traveled to Tanzania, Mexico and Germany as part of their church’s missionary outreach. He also serves on numerous church ministries.

     
  • Walter Hazlett, Dominion Resources Services, Pittsburgh, Pa. Hazlett volunteers as Board of Trustees president of the C. C. Mellor Memorial Library and Edgewood Community House. His duties include overseeing the continuous operations and maintenance of the facility, which must generate all of the necessary funding from private contributors and governmental agencies.

     
  • Katie Reich Imel, Dominion Virginia Power, Richmond. Imel organizes and coordinates volunteer efforts, including: American Cancer Society’s "Making Strides Against Cancer" event; Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s "Light the Night Walk;" Muscular Dystrophy Association "Stride and Ride" event; and coordinated a team that helped build a Habitat for Humanity house.

     
  • Edwina LaBrecque, Dominion Generation, Salem, Mass. LaBrecque works with fellow employees on such hands-on projects as restoring a once-neglected city park and installing a new Veterans’ Memorial Garden at the same facility.

     
  • Frank Matovic, Dominion Generation, Waterford, Conn. Matovic and fellow employees at the Millstone Power Station founded the "Save the Kid Fund" in 1986 to help the families of children who have such diseases as muscular dystrophy, spina bifida and cerebral palsy. Today, the group, which once relied on recycling soda cans to fund its assistance programs, now annually raises and distributes $50,000 in assistance.

     
  • Patrick Naughton, Dominion Generation, Mineral, Va. Naughton’s volunteer activities include traveling to Gulfport, Miss., to help rebuild hurricane-damaged homes and leading a group of teenagers from his church in renovating houses of low-income residents in nearby Petersburg.

     
  • Marty O’Baker, Dominion Virginia Power, Alexandria, Va. O’Baker organizes and coordinates volunteer environmental projects in Northern Virginia. He also volunteers at three local schools.

     
  • Leon Pearson, Dominion Generation, Chesapeake, Va. Pearson focuses his volunteer efforts on Rena B. Wright Elementary School, which Dominion’s Chesapeake employees adopted in 1999.

     
  • Jay Tutwiler, Dominion North Carolina Power, Kitty Hawk, N.C. Tutwiler’s volunteer involvement includes serving as a girls’ basketball coach, band chaperone, environmental project coordinator and church vestry member.

     
  • Jeff Washington, Dominion Resources Services, Richmond. Washington helps coordinate a mentoring program between Dominion and the city of Richmond school system. He serves on the board of directors for the East District Family Resource Center, a non-profit agency, which provides preventive and supportive services that improves the quality of life for families and individuals in Richmond.

     
  • Sally Wetzler, Dominion Resources Services, Richmond. Wetzler shares her love of the outdoors as a volunteer instructor for the Wintergreen Adaptive Paddling Program and as a board member and treasurer of the James River Outdoor Coalition, helping to generate resources and make improvements in the James River Park System.

     
  • Melinda Whitehead, Dominion East Ohio, Akron. Whitehead coaches soccer during the spring and fall seasons, works the African American Festival in summer, and is a Salvation Army bell ringer during the Christmas season.

     
  • Keith Woodson, Dominion Virginia Power, Richmond. Woodson uses his tools, time and talent to build a better life for Native American families in Arizona, and helped restore hurricane-ravaged houses in Mississippi and Louisiana. He raises money for his mission trips by doing home construction projects for hire during evenings and weekends.

>>  View videos of these volunteers.

Dominion is one of the nation's largest producers of energy, with a portfolio of approximately 26,500 megawatts of generation.  Dominion serves retail energy customers in 11 states.  For more information about Dominion, visit the company's Web site at http://www.dom.com.

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Media: Daisy Pridgen, (804) 771-6115