Variety the Children's Charity of St. Louis - Three selfless St. Louisans recognized Tuesday 11/16/06

St. Louis, MO – November 16, 2006 – Volunteers are everywhere in St. Louis, a community that prides itself on its philanthropic efforts. But sometimes, a few stand out above the others, and become shining stars for the organizations they serve.

Variety the Children’s Charity of St. Louis recognized three such volunteers on Tuesday at its 40th annual Allocations Luncheon, held at Chase Park Plaza. The organization presented “Have a Heart, Lend a Hand” awards to Dianne Berns of South City, Mike Stroot of Wildwood and Debby Hollingsworth of Manchester.

Each has taken on a distinct role with Variety over the past several years, and the organization recognizes that without such volunteers, it would not have the opportunity to serve 200,000 children in the Greater St. Louis region.

Berns became involved about 11 years ago, when her friend Jan Albus took the position of Variety’s executive director. Berns has always been very active in the community, volunteering at her children’s schools, assisting with the LPGA, and helping with fundraising efforts of organizations like the Baseball Writers Association and the St. Louis Pinch-Hitters.

Variety holds a special place in her heart, however, because it gives her an opportunity to directly impact the lives of children. “You’ve got to give back and help the kids, knowing how lucky you are,” Berns said. She has volunteered at Dinner with the Stars and is currently coordinating Variety Women’s 2007 fashion show, which will take place during Variety Week in April. Berns said she has moved around in her Variety duties. “When Jan has asked me, I’ve always been there to help,” she said.

Berns has passed her heart for volunteerism on to her four children. “I’ve always told my children they should give back to the community,” she said. In fact, her son Dan Berns serves on the board of Young Variety. Berns does not expect recognition for her service, however. “I really appreciate the thoughtfulness,” she said, “but there are so many people to acknowledge. It’s such a wide group of people helping Variety.”

Mike Stroot is owner of Technisonic, which has donated a wide array of production resources to Variety. When Variety asked Stroot if his company would be interested in helping the organization with production elements, he thought it was an opportunity to involve numerous people at Technisonic. “It gives my employees a chance to contribute in a very special way,” Stroot said. “My people have the opportunity to use their skills to hopefully improve the lives of others. Not everyone has that opportunity.”

He said that in the television production business, Technisonic and Variety are frequently traveling in the same circles. “We end up bumping into people on a regular basis who are involved in Variety,” Stroot said. “When a friend calls and asks for a favor for a good cause, it’s very easy to say yes.”

Stroot has been involved with Variety since he purchased Technisonic in 1997. He attends production planning meetings and acts as project coordinator. He takes information from Variety meetings and collaborates with his employees. The volunteer award is truly for Technisonic as a whole, Stroot said. He simply accepted it on behalf of himself and all of his employees.

Hollingsworth values the work of Variety from a personal perspective, as she has a nephew with cerebral palsy. “The opportunities (Variety) gives these children are just phenomenal,” she said.

She became involved with Variety about six years ago, and has “done all sorts of things,” Hollingsworth said. She has assisted with allocations, recruited volunteers for the telethon, helped with Variety’s technology needs, led a team for last year’s Race to the Chase event and coordinated a group of at&t employees who have served Variety in numerous ways.

“You name it, we’ve done it,” Hollingsworth said. The employees come up with ideas and execute them on behalf of Variety. For instance, they collected Christmas presents to give Variety Children’s Chorus members. The at&t employees also hosted an Arbor Day event at the Dennis and Judith Jones Variety Wonderland in Forest Park for Variety children.

Hollingsworth said that when she learned she was to receive a “Have a Heart, Lend a Hand” honor, she was humbled. Like Berns, she feels she is simply one of many people helping Variety. Plus, Hollingsworth said, “people who volunteer don’t need awards. We get our award just by helping other people.”

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