If you want something done, ask a busy person.

That adage is based on the belief that busy people manage their time efficiently and are likely to be productive.

The volunteer work of Jerry Andree, the retired Cranberry Township manager who serves many community and regional organizations; and Hannah Shannon, who volunteers with Butler Downtown, Butler County Chamber of Commerce and Butler County Young Professionals, suggest the proverb is true.

In recognition of their volunteer work, Andree and Shannon will be presented with Distinguished Service Awards from the Butler Rotary Club PM and the Butler Eagle.

Andree won the senior division award and Shannon won the junior division award. The awards will be presented May 14 at the 74th annual Distinguished Service Awards dinner at Butler Country Club.

Attend the awards dinner

---

Wednesday, May 14, 2015

Butler Country Club, 310 Country Club Road, Butler

Reception is from 5:15 to 5:45 p.m. Program starts at 6 p.m.

Tickets: $50 each, children $12 each

Questions? Contact Millie Pinkerton at 724-287-3395.

More on tickets: http://pdf.butlereagle.com/Landing/Distinguished_Awards_1575134.pdf

Cranberry Township saw tremendous growth during the 30 years Andree worked as township manager. That growth has continued since he retired in 2021, and he hasn’t stopped working for the community and region.

He said he became familiar with the Cranberry Township Community Chest and Regional Learning Alliance while he worked for the township, and he was happy to help lead the organizations after he retired.

“I made a lot of connections with those groups while I was working. When I retired, they asked if I could serve so I was happy to do so. I feel strongly about the missions of the groups,” Andree, 71, said.

The community chest helps raise money and encourages people to volunteer for nonprofits and civic groups, and the alliance provides facilities and services for learning and collaborative experiences.

“I just believe a lot in giving back to organizations that I believe are doing good work. I like to help them. Given the opportunity, it’s hard to say no,” he said.

Andree continues to serve on the Cranberry Township General Authority board as vice president. The authority helps plan and fund stormwater management projects. He also remains a member of the Rotary Club of Cranberry Township — Sunrise.

His nomination for the Distinguished Service Award, which was submitted by township Supervisor Bruce Mazzoni, lists organizations he served in the past including the Keystone Municipal Insurance Trust, Community Development Corporation of Butler County, Butler County Housing and Redevelopment Authority, Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development and the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. He also taught local government classes to future municipal leaders through a government education and training program.

“I studied communities as a career. I know what makes a community thrive. I couldn’t very well work for a community without giving to that community,” Andree said.

He said his wife, Jan; their adult children, Jennifer, Josh and Jared; and Jared’s wife Faith, will join him at the awards dinner.

Andree said Mazzoni was one of many amazing people he worked with and described him as a role model who gives to the community and a friend, but said he didn’t know Mazzoni nominated him for the award. He said he appreciates the nomination and is humbled by being honored with the award.

“It’s embarrassing. Of all the wonderful things going on in Butler County, why me?” Andree said.

Mazzoni said Andree deserves the award.

“Jerry is a very modest guy who does a lot of great things, not just for Cranberry, but for Butler County,” Mazzoni said. “The committee that voted to give him the award agreed.”

He said Andree works with a vision to continue making the township a great place for future generations.

Many municipalities would like to have Andree working for them, and he earned the respect of many people over the years, Mazzoni said.

“People who know him still come to him for his advice and expertise,” Mazzoni said.

Shannon, who has worked for NexTier Bank since 2012, said she likes giving back to the community.

“I like being involved in the community. I think Butler is a strong community. The best way to show it is by giving back to it whenever I can,” Shannon said.

In the four years she has served on the Butler Downtown board, she revived Foodie Fridays, helps out at the Butler City Farmers’ Market, staffs the organization’s promotions table at the annual Bantam Jeep Heritage Festival and helps organize Sips in the City.

Foodie Fridays was being reorganized when she joined the board, but someone was needed to step up and take charge of the weekly Main Street events, she said. She leaned on her experience organizing the former Saxonburg Festival for the Arts to breathe new life into Foodie Fridays.

“I find the food trucks, make sure it runs smoothly. I’m there at every event,” Shannon said. “I wanted to bring it to its fullest potential. Butler Downtown gave me free rein.”

For Sips in the City, she finds vendors, coordinates with Main Street businesses and sells tickets.

In her role as a member of the Butler County Young Professionals board, Shannon helps run the annual Ghouls of Good Costume Shop that gives free Halloween costumes to children.

A mentor in the Butler County Chamber of Commerce Leadership Butler County program, Shannon is an alumni of the Class of 2020 which raised over $50,000 for an accessible kayak launch at Moraine State Park and helped install it.

She and her class raised money through a murder-mystery dinner, asking businesses for donations and sponsorships, and holding many raffles that included two kayaks.

“I got to help piece it all together and install it and make sure it was safe and functional,” Shannon said.

She also volunteers to assemble bicycles for the United Way’s annual Build A Bike event.

Jordan Grady, chamber president, kept his nomination of Shannon a secret.

“I didn’t know anything about it until I got the phone call that I was picked. I was very surprised and very honored, but it was a huge surprise for me,” she said.

She said she is excited about the dinner, and will attend with her husband, John.

“Hannah is the type of person that helps and does anything that’s asked of her, including going the extra mile. She doesn’t care about credit and avoids the limelight. She just wants to work hard and do good for her community and those are the type of people who are supposed to win the service award,” Grady said.

He said he met Shannon during the 2020 leadership program.

Grady said the class started with a full complement of 30, but COVID-19 forced the class to step away for two or three months. When the class was able to reconvene, only 12 people from the original group returned, he said.

“They still managed to raise over $50,000 and install what was, at the time, only the second handicap-accessible kayak launch in Western Pennsylvania,” Grady said. “It was one of the best projects in leadership history.”