On September 22, Community Shares of Wisconsin (CSW) will honor local leaders and organizations who are advancing social and environmental justice in our community. The annual Community Change-Maker Awards event will take place at Union South and online. The public is invited to attend the event. For more information and tickets visit communityshares.com
Tickets purchased in support of this event help Community Shares award six nonprofits $1,000 each. To further the inspiring and critical work they do in our community, the Change-Maker Award winners will each select a nonprofit to receive $1,000 and the three winners of the Collaboration Award will each receive $1,000.
Change-Maker Award Winners
- Dana Pellebon, nominated by OutReach LGBTQ+ Community Center - Winner of the Liesl Blockstein Community Leadership Award
- Phyllis Greenberger, nominated by Disability Rights Wisconsin - Winner of the Sally Sunde Family Advocate Award
- Elisabeth Lambert, nominated by ACLU of Wisconsin Foundation - Winner of the Linda Sundberg Civil Rights Defender Award
CSW Collaboration Award Winners
Midwest Environmental Advocates, River Alliance of Wisconsin, and Wisconsin Environmental Health Network (the environmental arm of Physicians for Social Responsibility Wisconsin), for using the power of the law to protect the health of Wisconsin communities.
CSW Lifetime Achievement Award Winner
R. Richard (Dick) Wagner, for being instrumental in the movement for LGBTQ equality in Wisconsin and especially in Dane County. Awarded posthumously.
Dana Pellebon
Dana Pellebon is an activist, artist, and educator. Steve Starkey of OutReach LGBTQ+ Community Center describes Pellebon as a giver of time, energy, compassion, and expertise. As the Co-Executive Director of the Rape Crisis Center, a member of the OutReach board of directors, and a newly elected member of the Dane County Board of Supervisors, Pellebon’s dedication to her community is clear. On her role at the Rape Crisis Center, Pellebon says, “It is here that I’m firmly in place.” Pellebon’s impact is woven into the grassroots work happening throughout Dane County.
Phyllis Greenberger
Phyllis Greenberger has been a tireless champion for children and youth with disabilities since she began at Disability Rights Wisconsin over 30 years ago. A creative problem solver and fierce advocate, Greenberger uses her extensive knowledge of systems and resources to improve the lives of children in need of support and accommodations. Lea Kitz, Executive Director of Disability Rights Wisconsin, describes Greenberger’s ability to find a moment of opportunity in every negative pronouncement from a school, system, or facility, as “her magic.” In one of her many accomplishments, Greenberger worked to secure $100,000 in home modifications for a client that made it possible for the young man to return from a short-term treatment center to an accessible home.
Elisabeth Lambert
Elisabeth Lambert’s work as a teacher prior to attending law school prepared her for a career focused on advocating for children experiencing discrimination within their schools. Lambert understands that for students to thrive in school they need strong advocates. In her role as the Equal Justice Works Fellow at ACLU of Wisconsin, she represents students and families dealing with discriminatory practices within the school system. Lambert’s approach is simple: children are required to go to school, by law, and “when public schools tolerate discrimination and harassment…these schools are denying or failing to see those children’s humanity.”
Spills Law
Midwest Environmental Advocates, River Alliance of Wisconsin, and Wisconsin Environmental Health Network (the environmental arm of Physicians for Social Responsibility Wisconsin) collaborated to defend and uphold the Spills Law when Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce, the largest business lobbyist in Wisconsin, sued the Department of Natural Resources in an attempt to undermine the law.
The Spills Law serves to protect the people of Wisconsin by monitoring the levels of toxic chemicals in the waterways. If the law were undermined, it would have devastating impacts on the people of Wisconsin. Low-income communities and communities of color, which are more likely to be near industrial waste cleanup sites, would be especially impacted. As Beth Neary, M.D, Co-President of Wisconsin Environmental Health Network states, “Our participation in this case is about defending the legal protections that keep Wisconsinites from toxic contamination, especially those who are most vulnerable.”
R. Richard (Dick) Wagner
R. Richard (Dick) Wagner will be posthumously awarded the Community Shares of Wisconsin Lifetime Achievement Award for his instrumental work for LGBTQ+ equality in Wisconsin. In his 33-year-long career, he served as the first openly gay member of the Dane County Board of Supervisors, chaired the first Governor’s Council on Lesbian and Gay Issues in 1983, and joined the Board of Fair Wisconsin to fight the constitutional amendment against marriage equality in 2005. Upon his retirement, he published two books about gay history in Wisconsin. Megin McDonell, Executive Director of Fair Wisconsin, will accept this award on Dick Wagner’s behalf.