Darlene Shields Receives Top Club Honor for Volunteers; 44 Others Also Recognized

Darlene Shields, who chairs the National Press Club's Photography Committee, received the Club's top honor for her contributions and volunteer efforts in 2009.

NPC President Donna Leinwand selected Shields as the winner of the 2009 Berny Krug Award from among the many dedicated Club members who contribute time, talent and enthusiasm to making the Club the premier journalism institution.

Shields received the award Jan. 8 at a reception honoring the Club's top volunteers.

Leinwand said she asked Shields to "start anew to make our Photography Committee vibrant, welcoming, inclusive and exciting."

"Darlene exceeded all my expectations over and over again," Leinwand said. "So many members attended committee meetings that the committee outgrew its space."

Shields also revamped the Club's system for photographing its events for publications, the website and the archive. Shields was assisted by vice chair Ed Hazelwood and volunteer photographers Noel St. John and Greg Tinius, who were also recognized Thursday for their contributions.

Hazelwood, St. John and Tinius were among 45 stellar volunteers honored at the reception for their contributions. Each volunteer received the Vivian Award, named for past President Vivian Vahlberg.

The recipients of the 2009 Vivian Awards are: Marc Wojno, John Cosgrove, Don Larrabee, Bill Hickman, Arlen Withers, Mark Schoeff, Andrew Schneider, Joe Motheral, John Clark, Joe Luchok, Jan King, Jamila Bey, Peg Simpson, Cori Zarek, Arshad Mahmud, Jan DuPlain, Sylvia Smith, Angela Greiling Keane, Melissa Charbonneau, Andrea Stone, Greg Tinius, Noel St. John, Lorna Aldrich, Bill Miller, Larry Lipman, Lisa Mascaro, Rachel Belkind, Sean Reilly, Ken Mellgren, Ralph Malvik, Ed Barks, Frederica Dunn, Christine Dell'Amore, Jonathan Salant, Cary O'Reilly, Joel Whitaker, Lisa Zagaroli, Jerry Zremski, Susan Heavey, Pat Schoeni, Don Frederick, Abeer Abdullah, Lou Priebe, Darlene Shields and Ed Hazelwood.