Local senior citizens honored for volunteer work & contributions to community

Hundreds came together to honor eleven outstanding senior citizens during the 27th annual Senior Inspiration Awards.

The event took place at the Palm Springs Convention Center this morning. Local senior citizens were recognized for inspiring others through their volunteerism and contributions to the community.

The awards were first established over 35 years ago by then Riverside County 4th District Supervisor Patricia “Corky” Larson.

Palm Springs resident Diane Ross, one of the honorees, told News Channel 3 she believes volunteering takes you outside yourself and gets you thinking more about others.

“It does make a difference in the way you feel about yourself, your community, and the way you feel about your country,” Ross said. “There’s something about volunteering and doing something for someone else that takes you outside yourself so you don’t always think about self, self, self.”

Other honorees included Frank Sardone of Cathedral City, Baudelio Sanchez of Coachella, Nettie Washington of Indio, Larry Buchanan of Desert Hot Springs, Shelly Fraser of Indian Wells, Juan Salas of La Quinta, Margaret “Peggy” Leo of Palm Desert, Claudia Fausett of Rancho Mirage and Cathy Claborn and Rosa Lucas of Riverside County.

The awards are hosted by Supervisor Manuel Perez and the cities of the Coachella Valley and sponsored by the Regional Access Project Foundation. News Channel 3’s Brooke Beare had the honor of being the co-emcee of the event.