Monday, April 10, 2006

CLEAN Honors Longerbeams

On Friday night, April 7, CLEAN, Inc. celebrated its twentieth anniversary with an awards banquet and silent auction. At the banquet, CLEAN honored two of its founders, James and Shelda Longerbeam. Delegate Beverly Sherwood introduced the Longerbeams and presented them with a trophy and bouquet of flowers.

The Longerbeam Family

Jim and Shelda Longerbeam played an instrumental role in the creation of CLEAN, Inc. back in 1986. CLEAN, the community anti-drug coalition, was formed from the merger of two grassroots organizations, Operation CLEAN and the Community Core Team. Along with Kids Are Our Concern, CLEAN has been working toward reducing substance abuse among teens in Winchester, Frederick County, and Clarke County for the past twenty years.

The Vice-Chairman of CLEAN’s Board of Directors and Administrator of the Frederick County Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office, Charles Stansfield, spoke on the history and future of the CLEAN coalition. Mr. Stansfield described all of the hard work that CLEAN’s volunteers undertook in the early years to build the organization. He also explained how CLEAN was responsible for the foundation of the area’s first teen center which has evolved into today’s Youth Development Center. The future, he said, relies on the ability to fund CLEAN’s programs and services through local support.

The banquet was made possible through sponsorships. The Silver sponsor was Valley Health Services with a donation of $500. Bronze sponsors donating $250 were Allen Properties, Inc., Bank of Clarke County, Clarke Motors, Inc. First Bank, Marsh& Legge Land Surveyors, PLC, and Virginia Sheriff’s Institute, Inc. Donors of $100 were Supporting Sponsors: Emmart Oil Company, Stan & Doris Harrison, Bill & Nikki Isherwood, Mitsi & Jim Lizer, Jim & Shelda Longerbeam, Our Health, Inc., Richard & Louise Shickle, Signet Screen Printing, Wal-Mart 3344, and Dr. & Mrs. Samuel Whitacre.

Also honored at the banquet were: the graduating seniors of CLEAN’s Youth Advisory Council, Nicholas Banks, Jessie Biggs, and Rachel Lamanna; Fellowship Bible Church, in recognition of their generous donation of their facilities for CLEAN’s coalition retreat; and Richard Maxwell, in recognition of his valuable contribution of countless volunteer hours of IT services.

During the banquet, Kathy Nerangis of Nerangis Enterprises, the local McDonald’s franchisee, announced that CLEAN, Inc. has been awarded a grant in the amount of $16,979 from the Ronald McDonald House Charities to support curriculum and training for CLEAN’s Student Assistance Program. Mrs. Nerangis also presented a personal check for $150 to support CLEAN’s efforts.

In his closing remarks, CLEAN’s Executive Director, Ciro Grassi, said, “In a perfect world, organizations like CLEAN would not have to exist.” He went on to explain, “Unfortunately, this is not a perfect world. So we must continue to do our jobs to the best of our ability for the benefit of our community.”

Gross proceeds from the event, including sponsorships, program advertisements, tickets, and the silent auction amounted to over $6,000.