SALVATION ARMY PLANS ANNUAL LUNCHEON
TO HONOR LOCAL DONORS
East Stroudsburg Corps recognizes Distinguished Service and Others Award recipients.

 

EAST STROUDSBURG, PA (May 15, 2013) - The Salvation Army East Stroudsburg Corps will hold its annual meeting at Stroudsmoor on Wednesday, May 15 beginning at noon. The event is held to give a report on the progress of the Corps in the past year and to award individuals and businesses that have made a significant impact with their services and donations. This year's award recipients are Bob and Lucy Gueiss and Advisory Board Member Gina Bertucci for Distinguished Service; Advisory Board Member Dr. James Leding with the Booth Award; and John Riley with the prestigious "Others" Award for years of community service.
The Distinguished Service Award is a special award presented by the Salvation Army Advisory Board to individuals who have given of their time, treasure and talents "above and beyond the call of duty." Bob and Lucy Gueiss, recipients of the 2013 Distinguished Service Award, have given a combined total of 92 years of volunteer service to The Salvation Army in East Stroudsburg through the Emergency Disaster Services program. As a team, they have faithfully served countless firefighters, natural disaster responders, and victims of fires and disasters for decades. As the Twin Towers fell in New York City on 9/11, the EDS Canteen Truck from East Stroudsburg was the first Salvation Army vehicle on scene, ready to serve, thanks to the quick response of Bob Gueiss. We are proud to have such a godly yet humble couple represent The Salvation Army in times of disaster and are very grateful for the many years of dedicated service.

Gina Bertucci is the Vice President of Marketing for The Bushkill Group where her responsibilities include the marketing of Fernwood Resort, Minisink Financial and The Villas at Tree Tops and Fairway. She has over 25 years of experience in resort, real estate and recreation marketing in the Mid-Atlantic region. For seven years, she was Vice President of Sales and Marketing for Camelback Ski Corporation where she was integral to the creation of Camelbeach Waterpark, Northridge Station residential vacation home community and Cameltubing Snowtubing Park. Prior to that, she was the Public Relations Director for the Shawnee Group Companies which owned Shawnee Mountain Ski Area, Shawnee Inn and Resort and other recreation facilities in Maine, South Carolina and Florida. She holds degrees in Economics and Music Performance from Rutgers University and is a licensed PA real estate salesperson. She has received the Pocono Mountains Vacation Bureau Tourism Achievement Award and was recognized as one of the top women in business in Northeastern PA. Her production and design work have received awards from HSMAI, the World Waterpark Association, the Print Marketing Association and ARVC. She has been a Salvation Army Advisory Board Member for almost two years and is the Chairperson of the Public Relations and Golf Tournament Committees, and actively participates in most of the standing committees. Her work has been instrumental to the success of many of the annual fundraisers sponsored by the Corps. Bertucci was born in Monroe County and has been active in several community and professional organizations including the Salvation Army, the Pocono Mountains Vacation Bureau, the Pocono Arts Council, the United Way of Monroe County, Habitat for Humanity, the Mountain Laurel Center for the Performing Arts, the American Cancer Society and the Worthington Hall Foundation. She has been a member of the Monroe County Planning Commission and the Citizen's Advisory Council of the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area.

William Booth, founder of The Salvation Army, dedicated his life to honoring God by serving suffering humanity. The Salvation Army has established the "William Booth Award" to honor individuals or organizations for their outstanding service to better their community. The award recipients are chosen on the basis of their dedication to The Salvation Army's goals of service to humankind; outstanding community service through the donation of time, expertise and energy; outstanding humanitarian effort; and substantial contributions to the work of The Salvation Army in the offering of time and/or financial resources. Dr. James Leiding is well recognized throughout the community as a career educator and tireless community servant. He is listed in Who's Who in America; Who's Who in the East; and the International Biography of American Educators. Leiding's 42-year teaching career spanned from elementary school to collegiate education. At East Stroudsburg University, he chaired the Sociology Department for 34 years, working with students to enhance their academic achievement. For over 25 years he chaired and co-chaired Contemporary Tours at ESU, which included study tours to around the world. He and a colleague established the first ESU Foundation. In addition, he served on the State and University Board of Directors and chaired or co-chaired ESU International Dinners for 18 years. He started the Internship program at ESU and had the first interns at The Salvation Army. Leiding's service to the Monroe County has included stints on the YMCA Board of Directors; Planned Parenthood Board of Directors; Maternal Health Board of Directors; Whitehouse Conference for Youth and Children; Whitehouse Conference for Aging; and the Alternative School Education Committee. He also served Leisure Ministries; St. John's Lutheran Church, Stroudsburg, PA; the Presbyterian Church of the Mountain, Delaware Water Gap; and, over the past 40 years, has ministered in various churches in and out of Monroe County. He conducts Christmas tree fundraisers for local private schools and ESU on a yearly basis and donates trees to those in need during the holiday season. In service to the Salvation Army, Leiding has donated Christmas trees for the past several years; chaired the finance committee; served on the scholarship, auction and development committees; served as bell ringer and was responsible for getting the ESU football team to volunteer as bell ringers; and has served as a waiter at the annual Celebrity Dinner.

The "Others" Award honors an individual or organization exemplifying an extraordinary spirit of service to "others." Consideration is given to those who have exhibited extraordinary service on behalf of others and exceptional service benefiting The Salvation Army and the community. John Riley, as a life-long Monroe County resident, has lived this philosophy throughout his life.  Entering military service at the completion of high school, Riley served our Country during the Korean War. He is the founder of Riley and Company in 1969 and is known for his honesty, integrity, and ethics. He is a man who has dedicated his professional career to helping others. After serving, Riley completed his postsecondary education at Churchman's Business College and earned a BA in organizational management from Eastern University. He has published many professional articles. Riley has been honored by The PA Institute of Certified Public Accountants with its distinguished public service award for the state of Pennsylvania. He was also honored as citizen of the year by both the Mount Pocono and Monroe County Chambers of Commerce. His was the recipient of the Monroe County Association Liberty Bell Award and the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants Public Service Award. In 2010, the East Stroudsburg Elks Lodge 319 selected Riley as recipient of the prestigious A. Mitchell Palmer Award, which recognizes individuals within Monroe County for their long-term and significant contributions in the field of law or community service. Riley has served on several endowment foundation boards, which funded local projects such as Monroe County Public Library and the Head Start program, and has presided over several prominent institutions and organizations at national, state and local levels, including The Institute for Conservation Leadership, The Pennsylvania Game Commission, the Optimist Club of the Stroudsburgs, and the state Federation of Sportsmen Clubs. He served as president and treasurer of the Brodhead Watershed Association and treasurer for the Eastern Monroe Public Library and the Wildlife for Everyone endowment Fund. He also served on the board of directors of the Kettle Creek Endowment Foundation, Burnley Workshop, and the Monroe County Affordable Housing Board and was honored by the Boy Scouts of America, Minsi Trails Council, with its executive award. He is a former Little League coach and has raised money for several new ball fields.  In addition to his involvement in various organizations, Riley is also a philanthropist, constantly donating money to Our Lady of Victory Church in Tannersville and the Salvation Army. According to Riley, "God has given me so much. He's got to want some of it back. The more you give, the more you get."

With the U.S. Census Bureau now rating almost half of all Americans in the poor or low-income categories, The Salvation Army nationwide is seeing heavy demand for food relief. Monroe County is no exception as more people are reaching the end of their savings and desperately need help. "We don't feed statistics, we feed people," remarks Major James Gingrich explaining his assessment of increased need. "And right now, we are feeding families and individuals in need which includes a whole new population coming to us for food. Our ranks are now being joined by the formerly middle-class, a group that's just begun to embrace a nightmare they probably thought they'd never see - no money for food because of long term unemployment. With the economy stalled and bumping along the bottom, times are hard for many in our community."

"Last holiday season we provided 1086 families with grocery orders which fed over 4,700 Monroe County Residents. The Toys for Joy, Toys for Tots and Angle Tree gift donations provided toys to 1,300 children and ongoing the Salvation Army feeds 347 Monroe County families monthly. Across the nation, The Salvation Army served more than 60,000,000 meals to those in need. This year, we expect to provide more than 60,000 hot meals to hungry men, women and children here in Monroe County and provide grants for rent, utility assistance, medicine and food for more than 10,000 families in desperate need."

"The Salvation Army has always served the neediest," says Gingrich, "and we will continue to respond to cries for help from those who need it most. However, we depend on the support of the community to do our work and are urging community members to make a gift so we can help those who are in great need. This lunch is how we give an update of our progress and our chance to say thanks to those individuals, businesses and organizations whom have helped us throughout the years." The public is welcome to attend the Annual Meeting with a $25 charge per person for lunch. For information about The Salvation Army's Annual Meeting, information about its local programs and to volunteer, please call Major James Gingrich at (570) 421-3050.

 

About The Salvation Army in Monroe County
The Salvation Army, an evangelical part of the universal Christian church established in 1865, has been supporting those in need in His name without discrimination for 130 years in the United States. Nearly 30 million Americans receive assistance from The Salvation Army each year through the broadest array of social services that range from providing food for the hungry, relief for disaster victims, assistance for the disabled, outreach to the elderly and ill, clothing and shelter to the homeless and opportunities for underprivileged children. 82 cents of every dollar spent is used to carry out those services in 5,000 communities nationwide. For more information, go to www.salvationarmyeaststroudsburg.org

Contact: Major James Gingrich - 570-421-3050 - 5/2/13 - james.gingrich@use.salvationarmy.org