Presentation Speech for Arlene Kidd, Glide First Citizen 2020
Presented by Kelli Long, Glide First Citizen 2015

Earlier Dianne talked about people who prefer to stay behind the scenes and out of the spotlight.

Our first honoree has, over the last 8 years, devoted almost 2500 hours working at Helping Hands, and yet you might not even know she is there. She works in the back, quietly and persistently using her sewing talents to make quilts – cutting, piecing, ironing, sewing, backing, hand-tying, hemming, and finishing. When queen or king-size quilts are being made, out come the big frames and she supervises 4 or 5 other people in the process of hand-tying. Her workmanship is so beautiful and what she makes is always such high quality.

Since 2012 she has made several hundred beautiful quilts which were sold to bring in revenue for the food pantry. Some quilts have been given to the pantry’s new moms, and some were sent down to Paradise to warm the fire victims. She made 15 or 20 animal quilts which were sold, then donated to an animal organization for a fundraiser, then sold again, so they had double benefit. And every year several of her quilts are donated to the FFA for their auction, where they bring in several hundred dollars each. Did you know that Beaver quilts go for more than Duck quilts? We’ll take that win!

In addition to the quilts, she has fresh, new ideas to broaden what is available at Helping Hands – smaller quilts for pets, quilted potholders, baby slings. She takes new ideas and runs with them, and all the receipts help support the pantry.

She also is a back-up for other pantry jobs, when regular volunteers don’t show or are sick. She helps clients shop in the pantry, suggesting food choices, explaining how to cook items, and answering questions. And she comes in to help stock shelves on days the pantry is closed, without being asked.

She’s reliable and dedicated. A quick learner, she can take on any task, and she welcomes new challenges. Which shows in the many other ways, large and small, that she volunteers at places besides Helping Hands. Living in Glide for over twenty years, she has stitched herself into the fabric of this community.

You saw her helping this evening making sure everyone got their food quickly and efficiently.

She has done this job for years. Other years she has helped make lasagna for the dinner, or helped serve in the kitchen.

In the spring she has worked at the wildflower show, some years helping sell pie to raise money for scholarships. Standing all day behind that pie table, smiling and selling. Some years she has worked as a greeter at the front door, welcoming guests, taking donations, and answering questions.

She also works at the letter carrier food drive, helping with the games, where her love of kids, her smile and her laugh help make everyone have a good time. And at Christmas, she helps with the Boy Scout food program. This is another on-your-feet-all-day sort of job. She stands outside in the cold, often in the rain or even snow, at the pick-up check-point, talking with each family that arrives, with a smile, kind words, and positive attitude.

Over the years she has also done behind-the-scenes work for the Community Club. She organized the finances and served as interim treasurer during a difficult time.

She’s the kind of volunteer that can always be called on, sometimes on short notice, for help with an event or a project. Like her nomination said: "She represents the definition of a true First Citizen."

Usually, she’s a quiet, behind-the-scenes person, but it’s her time to be in the spotlight. Please join me in thanking and honoring Arlene Kidd, Glide First Citizen 2020.

Presentation Speech for Barbara Pieske, Glide First Citizen 2020
Presented by Kelli Long, Glide First Citizen 2015

Our second honoree must truly love this community, because she keeps coming back to it. She grew up here, came back to be Glide’s school librarian for 30 years, left for about 15 years, and has returned again.

As a librarian, she made a difference in so many kids’ lives, including mine, by instilling a love of reading, a love of information. I remember sitting in the library as she read to us amazing stories about a world outside Glide and Dixonville. Other former students remember her as someone who didn’t hesitate to keep you on track when you got off the straight and narrow. She was a drill sergeant with a heart of gold.

During those working years, she coached volleyball and track and worked on the junior high school annual, doing almost all the photography herself. Yes, she was paid for all these jobs, but not for working after hours and on weekends. The love, respect, and caring she gave to the students was way beyond what she was paid.

Back in the 80s, she also served on the board of the Glide Community Club, helping to maintain and improve these facilities.

During her working years, her home always had several foster children. For 17 years in a row, she took her foster kids to Disneyland, for something fun, positive, and memorable for them. She also hosted 32 foreign exchange students over the years. She changed the lives of all those kids, but also the lives of the rest of us, who got to meet and interact with kids from different backgrounds and different cultures.

Since she’s returned to Glide, she’s continued to do things to help out our kids. She’s a SMART reader, spending time one-on-one with kids who can learn from her the joy of books. She’s helped build beds with Sleep in Heavenly Peace, sanding and painting the wood frames.

She has established this amazing project where she makes and gives bookmarks to every single kid in the Glide schools. It takes her about two solid weeks, working most of the day, to make all those bookmarks – designing, copying, laminating, cutting, hole-punching, ribbon-tying. At other times through the year, she’ll place into each teacher’s mailbox a bundle of bookmarks she has bought. She knows how many kids are in each class and counts out the exact number so each kid gets a new bookmark. Glide Elementary really focuses on reading, and the kids love their bookmarks.

The bookmarks have a theme of taking pride in our beautiful community, and this is the other theme of her volunteer work. She’s taken up the cause of keeping Glide clean and organizes twice-a-year highway clean-ups from milepost 12 to 20. She contacts ODOT to make arrangements, lines up volunteers, and provides all the stuff – vests, gloves, trash bags. She stays available during the whole event, provides encouragement, and helps pick up. And at other times, she’s been known to spot freshly dumped messes and go clean them up.

She loves Glide and loves our kids. Her nomination said she is one of those people who is the glue of the community. We are so grateful that she came back to us and is continuing to use her gifts to make this a better place. Please join me in thanking and honoring Barbara Pieske, Glide First Citizen 2020.