Colfax Commercial Club seeking nominations for 2024 J.D. Simons Community Volunteer Award
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By LeAnn R. Ralph
COLFAX — The Colfax Commercial Club is once again seeking nominations for the J.D. Simons Community Volunteer Award.
The J.D. Simons Community Volunteer Award for 2024 will be the ninth one awarded.
The award is intended to provide recognition people who have made the Colfax community a better place.
“We are looking for people we can recognize for their volunteer service. When JD left Wisconsin for Washington State he took his philanthropic ‘attributes’ with him. So maybe there’s someone from Colfax but who volunteers their time or talents in another community close to Colfax. Examples would be Stepping Stones, Feed My People, or Quilts of Valor. So in one way or another, these organizations help support the Colfax community,” said Mark Johnson, president of the Colfax Commercial Club.
The J.D. Simons Award reads, “In honor of your dedication to ‘all things Colfax’ and your outstanding community involvement, your willingness to volunteer your time across many organizations and for many individuals, and most importantly — for making Colfax a better place to live.”
J.D. Simons
J.D. Simons is recognized as the founder of Colfax in 1864.
Newspaper articles published in the Colfax Messenger prior to and after his death in 1918 indicate that Simons was a kind man, well loved by many, who was a business owner, an entrepreneur, and a proud and a staunch supporter of the Village of Colfax.
Placing and dedicating a gravestone for J.D. Simons at Hill Grove Cemetery next to the final resting place of Mrs. Simons was part of the Colfax Sesquicentennial Celebration in 2014.
It remains a mystery as to why there was no gravestone at Hill Grove Cemetery for J.D. Simons.
Simons died in Washington state when the milk truck he was riding on collided with another vehicle and overturned. His body was brought back to Colfax for burial.
Awards
The first J.D. Simons Award was presented in 2016 to Troy Knutson, author of “Looking Through the Lens.” Knutson has devoted all of his adult life to collecting the photographs and other memorabilia included in his book, published for the Colfax Sesquicentennial in 2014.
The second J.D. Simons Award in 2017 was presented to Ernie and Geri Bates for their dedicated devotion to the Caring Ministries Food Pantry, the Colfax Community Cares Food Pantry and the Support for Sunday backpack program for school children.
The third J.D. Simons Award in 2018 was presented to Mona Thorson, who has served tirelessly in a variety of organizations over many years, including the Colfax Woman’s Club, at her church, Colfax Lutheran, and with the Red Cedar Sounds Sweet Adelines Chorus.
The fourth J.D. Simons award in 2019 was presented to Claudia and Kyle Kressin, the now-retired owners of Kyle’s Market in Colfax. The grocery store has sponsored community events like the Easter Egg drop, donates food and prizes for groups and organizations, and allows bake sales, cookie sales and brat sales at the grocery store to raise money for non-profit organizations.
The fifth J.D. Simons award in 2020 went to Susan Hill, who grew up in Colfax and has devoted countless hours to volunteer efforts around the community for the American Legion Auxiliary, the Colfax Municipal Building Restoration Group, at the former Colfax Health and Rehabilitation Center, at her church, as the curator of the Colfax History Room in the Colfax Municipal Building and as a member of the Hill Grove Cemetery Committee.
The sixth J.D. Simons award for 2021 was presented to Anne Jenson, the owner of A Little Slice of Italy on Main Street in Colfax. Jenson has served on the Colfax Village Board for more than 10 years. According to the nomination, “Annie takes her business to heart and works with members of the community every time they ask.” She also is a staunch supporter of the Colfax FFA Alumni and the FFA Alumni Auction at the Colfax Free Fair.
The seventh J.D. Simons award for 2022 was presented to Michelle Knutson, wife of Troy Knutson. Michelle was instrumental in helping Troy with two books, “Looking Through the Lens” and Troy and Michelle’s book “The 1958 Colfax Tornado,” published in June of 2019 as part of Arcadia Publishing’s Images of America series. She is active in a number of community groups, including the American Legion Auxiliary, and at her church, Colfax Lutheran. Michelle and Troy provide food and comfort for the elderly and homebound people of Colfax, too.
The eighth J.D. Simons award for 2023 was presented to sisters Jeanna Berge and Heather Logslett.
Since 2020, Berge and Logslett have been organizing events in Colfax as part of the Colfantastic Events organization, including a Halloween costume parade on Railroad Avenue that typically draws hundreds of children and their parents, and “Christmas in the Village” in December that includes a lighted parade and visits with Santa and Mrs. Claus.
More recently, Berge and Logslett have started the Colfax Athletic Booster Club.
Nominations
To nominate someone for the J.D. Simons Community Volunteer Award, you can print off a nomination form from the Colfax Commercial Club’s website at www.colfaxcommercialclub.com.
Or you can write a letter about who you are nominating and why you believe that person should be the recipient. Include the person’s community involvement and how he or she has made the community a better place.
Nominations can be mailed to the Colfax Commercial Club at P.O. Box 417, Colfax WI 54730.
You can also e-mail your nomination to Mark Johnson at MJI2020@yahoo.com.
Nominations will be accepted until March 1.