The United Way of. St. Charles Parish (UWSCP) recently announced the newly created Ray Tyree Memorial Citizenship Award, a new annual award the local nonprofit plans to offer each year to recognize an outstanding individual who has made a positive difference in the lives of St. Charles Parish citizens. It is not a requirement for nominees to be a St. Charles Parish resident.
The UWSCP is currently accepting nomination applications – any citizen who believes they know someone that meets the criteria of the award are encouraged to send in a nomination form. Both nomination criteria and nomination forms are available on the UWSCP’s website.
The winner of this year’s Ray Tyree Memorial Citizenship Award will be announced publicly at the United Way of St. Charles Battle for the Paddle on Thursday, October 5. The recipient will be notified in advance of the event.
The idea for the award came recently from another of the UWSCP’s board members, who had previously served with Tyree.
“One of our Board Members, McKinley Day, had the idea,” Dias said. “McKinley said that the idea ‘came to his heart’ to recognize Ray because he was special to us all at United Way and to the community as well, and the Board agreed.”
Tyree passed away in the fall of 2021 at the age of 66, a 40-year banking industry veteran who carried a Tulane master’s degree and was a longtime member of the UWSCP board.
“Ray was funny, and kind and he didn’t ever seem to care about who got credit for anything,” John Dias, Executive Director of United Way of St. Charles Parish, remembered of his former board member. “He was an active board member that would give his opinion but not need to get his way. He wanted success for others – he was just a wonderful man.”
Tyree served numerous positions during his time with the local United Way chapter, serving as Secretary-Treasurer, Board Vice President, Board President and later served as a Campaign Co-Chair for what at the time was considered to be the most successful fundraising effort in the UWSCP’s history.
“Ray was also part of the core group of board members that worked to get the Community College established,” Dias said of Tyree’s accomplishments.
Nominee criteria should be someone who frequently volunteers his or her time for the betterment of St. Charles Parish and its citizens, and has made a positive difference in the live of fellow citizens. Nominees should also display qualities of honesty and integrity, and have a willingness to continuously work towards the betterment of the community.
The deadline to submit nominate an individual for the Ray Tyree Memorial Citizenship Award is July 28th. To view the official nomination criteria, or to download a nomination form, visit www.uwaysc.org/RayTyreeAward.
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