Camp Fire is built upon a community of people who believe in creating a safe space and a bright future for youth. No organization could survive without incredible people who devote their time and their voices to support the cause they believe in. Today, we would like to shift our focus to one extraordinary person who has poured her heart and soul into the organization: Camp Fire Patuxent CEO Rosemary Pezzuto.
Rosemary has been officially identified as the recipient of this year’s Alec Dickson Servant Leader Award. This award is presented by the National Youth Leadership Council to honor Rosemary for her effects on the positive futures of young people in the field of national service and service-learning.
From NYLC:
This award honors exemplary leaders who have inspired the
service-learning field, positively impacting the lives of young people, and
motivating others to take up the banner of service. Dickson worked with young
people in his native England and abroad and founded Overseas Voluntary Service
and Community Service Volunteers which have — in turn — inspired service
programs worldwide.
Her award will be presented on Tuesday, April 4th, 2023, in Nashville, TN as part of the 2023 National Service-Learning Conference.
About Rosemary:
Rosemary has been in Camp Fire since she was a child. Her mom, grandmother, children, and now her grandchildren are all part of the Camp Fire family. In Camp Fire she learned through their motto–“Give Service” the meaning of intentional service and how to make it a part of who you are. She took those skills and to this day has been a woman of service.
Rosemary has served as a Servant Leader for over 30 years. During that time she has mentored youth and adults in the area of Service Learning providing them with opportunities to excel. She has inspired young people to become people of service providing opportunities for service in multiple communities on the east coast. Many of these young people have become leaders at the national level impacting a broad range of agencies and programs. Her work with adults has included university interns, agency and school professionals, and parents.
She has led youth programs in driving safety, public health, and bridging the achievement gap through student-led service projects, some of which have received national recognition. She has encouraged youth living in homeless programs to serve and engaged them in national service projects which allowed them to lead. In the Latino community, she worked alongside partners to create public health responses to Covid. Through university programs, she engaged university interns in creating service learning projects that both supported their learning but also modeled service learning for K-12 youth.
She leads by example and takes others on a journey of service that has a lifelong impact. Many of the youth she mentored attribute their love of service to her love and support.
