Livingston County United Way Celebrates Past Year, Recognizes Special Volunteers

March 17, 2026
 
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
 
Brighton, Michigan – Livingston County United Way Celebrates Past Year, Recognizes Special Volunteers
 
Livingston County United Way held its annual “Spirit of the Community” annual meeting breakfast this morning at Chemung Hills Banquet Center. Over 200 local leaders and residents attended the event that celebrated the accomplishments of the organization and impact to the community over the past year.
            Jim Johnston, Board President, presided over the meeting. Election of the 2026 Board of Directors took place. New Board members include Andrea Banfield from Banfield Couling Law & mediation, Kate Aulette from Livingston County Community Mental Health, and Steve MacDermaid from Edward Jones in Fowlerville.
During the program, recognition was given to committee members and  partners that provided support to Livingston County United Way over the past year, either through monetary donations, volunteerism and/or in-kind support.
           
            Several key volunteer and business recognitions were made during the program. (See attached bio information.) They included:

• Young Person of Distinction – Penelope Taylor
• Youth Organization of the Year – Pinckney Community Schools Leadership Class
• Charles W. Itsell Volunteer of the Year – Heather Aeschliman
• Donald Epley Lifetime Community Service Award – Donna Gehringer
• Harry Griffith Spirit of the Community Award- WHMI Cares Radiothon
• Randy Rudisill Business of the Year – Bredernitz, Wagner & Co
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• Young Person of Distinction
• This year’s award winner is Penelope Taylor. Penelope is a Howell High School Student who is Co-President of Model UN, President of the Howell Interact Club, A member of Student Council, she was an 8^th grade student survivor, and very active in Drama.  She has Volunteered at numerous events including Unted Way Day of Caring and Community Connect.  Penelope hopes to enroll as a civil engineering major at U of M. We are confident this young lady is going to do many great things in her future.
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  2025 Youth Organization of the Year
  We’re honored to share the winner as “Pinckney Community Schools Leadership Class”. This amazing group of young people raised over $13,000.00 for Operation Christmas Wishes, which included the students doing Christmas Caroling in the community, hosting several “Parents Nigh Out” events, selling baked goods at home football games, along with other activities. This class is also known as the “Link Crew” as they serve as mentors to underclassmen, meeting with them on a regular basis to ensure they feel connected, empowered and prepared.  Equally important, they are the leaders within their school.    
   
  2025 Charles W. Itsell Volunteer of the Year
  We are honored to award Heather Aeschliman, is a Financial Advisor at 7 Pillars in Brighton.  She is an active volunteer in our community; she serves on numerous non-profits boards and attends many community events.  When Heather commits to a cause she goes all out for them.  She is a proud Howell Rotarian. Just this past year Heather served as a panelist on our Community Investment Council, Day of Caring, and part of Women United.  On top of all that Heather volunteered to serve as Chair of our Purse committee for an upcoming fundraiser, Power of the Purse.  When it came time to recognize a volunteer who went above and beyond for this year, Heather’s name was top of mind.  We can’t thank Heather enough for all your support to Livingston County United Way.
   
  
  Donald Epley Lifetime Community Service Award
  Donna Gehringer is a retiree, however, that hasn’t stopped her from supporting Livingston County United Way. Prior to her retirement, Donna worked as the Community Impact Coordinator for Livingston County United Way.  During that time Donna took two years of certification classes to help start Livingston Great Start Collaboration.  She also was part of the development of Livingston County Hunger Council, and Community Connect.  Our community would not be what it is today without Donna’s leadership.  She is a very active Livingston Sunrise Rotarian and always puts service above self.Donna is the last person that seeks recognition and someone who deserves a lot of it.Donna is a true hero for our community.
   
  We presented our first ever Harry Griffith Spirit of the Community Award.  Harry Griffith was instrumental in helping create the United Way almost 50 years ago and left a lasting impact on the community.It is fitting that the first ever WHMI Radiothon is the recipient.The whole team at WHMI worked so hard to make this special day happen.Months of planning, months of prepping, and months of hard work.Every person in the building played a key part in the success of the day.The Morning Drive with Chuck and Madison was on air from 6am to 7pm and barely left the studio.The whole team at WHMI made all four beneficiaries feel like family.What they did for the community was way more than just raising almost $54,000.00, they connected those in need with resources.We know firsthand at the United Way that this helped our community, we saw a large increase in calls to 2-1-1 which was spotlighted during the Radiothon.Rich Renko, General Manager for WHMI shared that they are proud to announce that this year’s WHMI Cares Radiothon will be on October 8^th, 2026.We can’t thank WHMI enough for the lasting impact of bringing the whole community together on that special day.
   
   
  Randy Rudisill Business of the Year. Randy Rudisill worked tirelessly to make a better quality of life for Livingston County residents. He is remembered for his leadership, his community-building, his sharp business expertise. He was passionate about Livingston County United Way and recruited some of our strong board leadership. When looking for the recipient of this award, we look at who might reflect what Randy and his team established as their core values: continuous improvement, hard work, ethics, customer service, profitability; with accountability to shareholders, customers, suppliers, employees and community. This year’s recipient of the Randy Rudisill Business of the Year Award exemplifies these values in all they do in and for the community. We’re honored to recognize Bredernitz, Wagner & Co as this year’s recipient. Greg Clum has been integral part of Livingston County United Way for decades.  Greg is Board Treasurer, Chair of our finance committee, and has been a huge help to the organization with his historical knowledge.  He is patient, kind, and always willing to help.  This award is way overdue and we can’t thank Bredernitz, Wagner & Co and Greg Clum for all they do for our community.