Whether it’s helping create floral beauty in the downtown Chelsea flower beds or teaching visitors about frog calls in Waterloo Recreation Area, Sylvan Township resident Carol Strahler enjoys volunteering in her community.
At the March 5 board meeting, her many different efforts were recognized by the Sylvan Township Board that honored Strahler as 2023 Citizen of the Year.
“Carol Strahler has spent many years volunteering and collaborating with others to uplift our community,” said Township Supervisor Kathleen Kennedy.
“The list of organizations she has volunteered with is long, and the list of those that have benefited from her efforts even longer,” Kennedy said.
“For me, the award for Citizen of the Year was totally unexpected,” Strahler said, who added, “Like many people in the community, I volunteer because I want to make connections with people and provide them with knowledge, comfort, joy, or entertainment.”
Kennedy said, “Be it simply a neighbor in need or volunteering as a founding member of the Waterloo Natural History Association, planting and maintaining Chelsea’s flower beds for the Chelsea Area Garden Club, or being a school program docent for the Waterloo Farm Museum, Carol has given a significant portion of her time and energy to improve the quality of life for those around her.”
“When I plant flowers in the beds downtown,” Strahler said, “I know it will bring joy to those who pass by. When I lead a Night of the Amphibians hike down to the Discovery Center spring pond, I truly enjoy the sense of wonder as visitors hear the cacophony of sound, sometimes for the first time.”
Kennedy said when she was township clerk, she worked with Strahler when she was an election inspector. “I know she can be focused and serious when she needs to be, but also light-hearted and fun to work alongside,” Kennedy said.
“When you volunteer in your community you enrich the lives of the people around you and your own life as well,” Strahler said.
