Give, listen, share: Cheryl Hicks’ winning formula

Our U.S. winner, Cheryl Hicks, touched the hearts of the jury by her innate kindness.

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In a recent post, we reported on our own “Socio-Hero“, Johanne Fournier. You may be thinking, socio-what now? But yes, Cascades recognizes and rewards employees who demonstrate strong social and community skills. In 2012, three individuals from three geographical areas won this coveted award, including Johanne (in Quebec) and two others. Now let us introduce you to USA winner Cheryl Hicks!

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When it comes naturally

Our U.S. winner, Cheryl Hicks, touched the judges’ hearts by her innate kindness. She is always there for others, helping in any way she can. Cheryl is described by colleague Lisa-Marie Chabot as a woman dedicated to her community, with a constant desire to make a difference in the lives of those in need. She adds that even with her numerous responsibilities at work, Cheryl really values team spirit. She is always there to lend an attentive ear to her colleagues.

Cheryl has generously volunteered her time with various organizations over the past nine years. In addition to her position as bookkeeper at Cascades Auburn Fiber Inc. and her responsabilities at her church, Cheryl still spends much of her time volunteering with four organizations in particular.

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Four privileged partners

She sits on the advisory committee of the Central Maine Community College Culinary Arts Department. The committee works to promote and raise awareness of the importance of offering the program at the college level. The committee works to promote and raise awareness of the importance of offering culinary arts courses at the college level.

Cheryl also devotes a significant amount of time to delivering food collected by her local church. The food donations from the Good Shepherd Food Bank are distributed to families in the area who are unable to meet all their basic needs.

Cheryl has also been actively involved for the past year with Safe Voices. The organization is dedicated to providing support to women affected by domestic violence and preventing all acts of violence in the community. Cheryl and the rest of the team collect old phones to help increase the helpline capacity for those in need.

As if that wasn’t enough, The Root Cellar is very lucky to have Cheryl collecting donations for them. The organization offers a variety of services to children after school hours to keep them off the streets. It also feeds the hungry, and does anything else it can to help those in need.

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Socio-Hero one day, living generously every day

As a ‘’Socio-hero’’ winner, Cheryl Hicks received from Cascades $1,000 for the organization of her choice. She decided to divide the prize evenly amongst the four organizations: Good Shepherd Food Bank, Hope Haven Gospel Mission, Safe Voices and The Root Cellar. The Cascades family also recognizes the value of having this incredibly generous woman on their team, with all she has to offer, promoting the core values of the company in the community. Congratulations, Cheryl!

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