April 25, 2002

MOUNT WACHUSETT COMMUNITY COLLEGE FOUNDATION TO HONOR HAROLD E. DRAKE CITIZEN OF THE YEAR AND CORPORATE CITIZEN OF THE YEAR AT ANNUAL DINNER

(GARDNER) — Workers’ Credit Union President and CEO Frederick D. Healey will be honored as the Harold E. Drake, Jr. Citizen of the Year and SimplexGrinnel will be honored as the Corporate Citizen of the Year at the Mount Wachusett Community College Foundation Annual Dinner, Thurs., May 2. The Foundation will also recognize students who have received foundation-funded scholarships. Thirty students have received $24,700 from the MWCC Foundation, Inc. this year.

"Since coming to North Central Massachusetts in 1995 to serve as president and CEO of Workers’ Credit Union, Fred Healey has left an indelible mark on our community," said MWCC President Daniel M. Asquino. "In seven short years he has not only been at the helm during a period of unprecedented growth at Workers’ Credit Union, he has given literally thousands of hours of his time to better the lives of his fellow citizens through community service."

Healey served as Chairman of the Board of Directors for the United Way of North Central Massachusetts and as Campaign Chairman for 1998-1999. He is a trustee for the Community Foundation of North Central Massachusetts and serves on the Board of Trustees for the Fitchburg Art Museum and the Thayer Symphony Orchestra. He serves on the Board of Directors of the North Central Massachusetts Chamber of Commerce and the Rotary Club of Fitchburg. He also serves on the Executive Board of the Nashua Valley Council of Boy Scouts of America and sings in the choir at St. Camillus Church in Fitchburg.

Past recipients of the Harold E. Drake, Jr. Citizen of the Year Award are: Richard Flannagan, 1992; Ronald Hurd, 1993; Ronald Ansin, 1994; Leo P. LaChance, 1995; Nancy Leger, 1996; James Hashem, 1997; the Crowley Family, 1998; the DiGeronimo Family, 1999; Anthony A. Cetrone, 2000 and William E. Aubuchon, III, 2001

"We are also proud to be honoring SimplexGrinnell as Corporate Citizen of the Year," said Asquino. "SimplexGrinnell understands the importance of civic engagement and local community involvement and is highly committed to being a responsible corporate neighbor."

SimplexGrinnell and its employees are major contributors to the United Way of North Central Massachusetts and support the American Cancer Society’s Relay for Life and the Gardner Rotary Club, as well as numerous local youth, sports, cultural and recreational organizations. SimplexGrinnell is also a strong and consistent supporter of fundraising programs and educational initiatives at elementary and secondary schools throughout the area and provided technical support to help Montachusett Regional Vocational Technical School participate in the FIRST Foundation’s National Robotics Competition. The company also provides strong and consistent support for Mount Wachusett Community College and collaborates with the College’s Electronics Training Program that enables SimplexGrinnell employees to advance their skills and, through its parent company Tyco, provides tuition reimbursement to support educational advancement for its full-time employees and a scholarship program to support the education of immediate family members.

"Communities are only as strong as their citizens," said Asquino. "As we launch a ‘Decade of Civic Engagement’ here at Mount Wachusett Community College, it is fitting that we honor Fred Healey and SimplexGrinnell. Alexis DeToqueville, writing in Democracy in America, observed that America’s greatest strength in the 1800s was the involvement of ordinary citizens in associations, ‘of a thousand different types.’ We are fortunate to have such wonderful citizens in our midst."

The Foundation’s Board of Directors are: Charles P. Bowles, chairperson; David Jacques, treasurer; and Christopher L. Olson, secretary. Other board members are: Peter Armbruster, William E. Aubuchon, III, Scott Barrett, Richard A. Cella, Anthony Cetrone, Georgana B. Cochran, Pamela Dobek, Jane Doyle, Richard Flannagan, Peter Garlock, Gary C. Gitto, Vincent G. Gould, Frank Hirons, Tom Kymalainen, Keith W. Lauer, Kathleen McDermott, Carlton "Tuck" Nichols and William A. White.

The evening will begin with a social hour at 5:30 p.m. followed by dinner at 6:30 p.m. The evening’s entertainment will feature a selection of musical numbers from the Theatre at the Mount Production Chicago. For more information on the 2001 MWCC Foundation Dinner, call Richard J. Pullen, executive director, at (978) 632-6600, ext. 276.