Annual Meeting-1-10Volunteers of the Year winners Richard and Bernadette Waystack of Harwich. 

Housing Assistance is a special place. We make dreams come true.” Those words were spoken by Housing Assistance Corporation (HAC) CEO Alisa Galazzi at HAC’s 44th Annual Dinner and Volunteer Recognition. Telling the stories of several of HAC’s clients, Galazzi kicked off the event with heartwarming examples of success.

As it is every year, the event was an opportunity to celebrate the hundreds of volunteers and donors who support the agency on an annual basis. More than 250 people turned out to the event on May 3 at the Cape Codder Resort & Spa in Hyannis, which was once again sponsored by Shepley Wood Products. Tony Shepley, founder and CEO, was on hand to greet those gathered for the Annual Dinner.

This year’s honorees for Volunteer of the Year were Bernadette and Richard Waystack of Harwich. The couple have participated in the Bob Murray Housing With Love Walk, walking the entire Cape, from Provincetown to Falmouth, for many years to raise funds for HAC.

Three awards all honored participants in the Big Fix. Ninety Nine Restaurant & Pub earned the Business Partner Award for their annual efforts providing lunch for the hundreds of volunteers at the annual Big Fix over the past five years. 

Annual Meeting-2-9Mashpee Boy Scout Troop 36 received this year’s Human Service Partner Award. 
Mashpee Boy Scout Troop 36 received the Human Service Partner Award for volunteering at the Big Fix for the past several years. Assistant Troop Leader John Cotton also participates in HAC’s annual Shelter Cape Cod Telethon. This year, he also participated in HAC’s new initiative, the Cape Housing Institute.

The Making A Difference Award went to Home Depot, which supported the Falmouth Big Fix by providing more than $20,000 in supplies to use at the homes of senior citizens, disabled people, and veterans. Home Depot also sent a large volunteer team to the Big Fix. In addition, the company has hired a number of clients from HAC’s Angel House shelter who are recovering from substance abuse.

HAC gave a special posthumous award, the Lifetime Benefactor Award, to Barton Tomlinson, who passed away last year. Mr. Tomlinson supported the Angel House shelter for many years with generous donations. The classroom space at Angel House where the clients heal from the trauma of addiction will be named the Barton Tomlinson Clinical and Classroom Space in his honor.