ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) — The Food Pantries for the Capital District will celebrate its coalition of volunteers and community members on Thursday. Four different volunteers from four different counties will be recognized as “volunteers of the year,” and other individual and group awards will be presented as well.

The four volunteers of the year are as follows:

• Albany County – Michelle Wooten of Redemption Church Food Pantry
• Rensselaer County – Donna Golinski of Pittstown Area Food Pantry
• Saratoga County – Regina Wagner-Garhartt of Faith Food Pantry
• Schenectady County – Jaimn Delacruz of State Street Food Pantry

The Sister Mary Coons Award will also be presented to Angela Warner, the director of the St. Vincent de Paul Food Pantry in Albany, who also doubles as the Board President of The Alliance for a Hunger-Free New York. The Sister Mary Coons Award is given to someone who is selfless and desires to love, help, and support community members, all qualities that Coons exemplified.

Dr. Janine Jurkowski will receive the Dinnie Shanley Award for her cross-sector initiatives addressing food insecurity. According to the Food Pantries, the award is named in honor of a longtime supporter in the fight against food insecurity who went above and beyond in her mission by supporting, encouraging, and having compassion for pantry coordinators and guests.

The Canister Team will be recognized as The Food Pantries for the Capital District Volunteers of the Year. Team members include Dave Cleveland, Bill Meehan, Jamie Greenberg, Marggie Skinner, Mary Sheridan, Tim Farrell, Rebecca Rector, Michael Roland, Debra Webster, and Susi Cleveland.

Stone Management will be the recipient of the Outstanding Community Partner Award.

“Community partnerships are the heart of our work as a coalition. Stone Management helps us serve the needs of the community and improve access to food assistance for our neighbors experiencing food insecurity,” said Natasha Pernicka, Executive Director of The Food Pantries. “Their years of partnership and financial and in-kind support have enabled us to expand program services to better meet the needs of our member pantries and the guests we serve.”

The Food Pantries’ mission is to address hunger within the Captial District and do so directly through member food pantries.