Individuals and organizations recognized for their volunteerism

Individual volunteers and organizations were recognized at the 2019 Governor's Awards for Service and Volunteerism.

The ceremony was held at the University of Maine during this year's Volunteer Leadership Conference.

Mark Wisecup of Windham was recognized as Volunteer of the Year.

He established the SEALs for Sunshine initiative wich raises funds and acts as a beacon of light for military families facing the tough journey of having a child with a life-threatening illness.

They have raised roughly $600,000 to send military families and their children to Camp Sunshine.

Wisecup says, "I really don't feel like this is my recognition at all. We have over 2,000 volunteers at Camp Sunshine every year. Over 70,000 hours go in every year just to keep camp going. So, I'm accepting this honor on their behalf and being able to bring that back to camp and thank them."

Volunteer Maine says these awards also seek to inspire other to be active in civic life and follow in the footsteps of those recognized.

Other award recipients include:

Volunteer of the Year: Mark Wisecup, of Windham (Volunteer at Camp Sunshine, of Casco, 20-year Navy SEAL Commander)

Excellence in Volunteer Leadership: Jan Cerabona, of Elliot (Volunteer coordinator for the Maine Education Association Retired, of Augusta)

Outstanding Nonprofit Volunteer Program Award: Literacy Volunteers of Bangor

Outstanding Volunteer Team: The Medication One-on-One Team (Southern Maine Area Agency on Aging, of Scarborough)

Service Enterprise of the Year: Mid Coast Hunger Prevention Program, of Brunswick