The Valley United Way has selected Joe Andreana of Oxford has been selected as the 44th winner of the Charles H. Flynn Humanitarian Award, the Valley’s oldest and most prestigious community service award.
The award is named for the late editor of The Evening Sentinel and has been presented annually since 1971.
The award is presented for a lifetime of service to the community, encompassing more that one town or organization.
The award will be presented at Valley United Way’s 46th Annual Meeting & Recgonition Dinner of April 29.
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Andreana is a perfect example. His involvement with Valley nonprofits is almost legendary in scope, including time spent with Valley United Way, where he was a member of the Board of Directors and the Executive Committee. He also served as Chair of the Annual Community Fundraising campaigns in 2002 and 2003.
He is currently a member of the Board of Directors and Chair of the Strategic Affairs Committee for Griffin Health Services. He is a member, serves on the Board of Directors and is a consultant for the United Methodist Frontier Foundation. He is also a former member of the Board of Directors for the United Methodist Homes Foundation. Joe serves on the Finance Committee for the Great Hill United Methodist Church and is a former Chairman of the Administrative Church Council.
As a supporter of the Boys & Girls Club of the Lower Naugatuck Valley since 1964, he serves on its Board of Directors, was President of the Board and was chair of their Capital Campaign efforts. He has been a member of the Advisory Board to the Katharine Matthies Foundation and the Valley Advisory Committee to the Community Foundation for Greater New Haven.
In the Town of Oxford, Joe was a member of the Oxford Economic Development Commission and also was Co-Chair of the Oxford bicentennial celebration.
He has received numerous awards for his community service including the 1994 Service to Youth Award of the Boys & Girls Club of the Lower Naugatuck Valley, the 2009 Sharon Bryce Holly Award presented by United Way’s Volunteer Center, and the 2002 Secretary of State Volunteer Award presented by the CT Secretary of State. Boys & Girls Club of America presented him with the National Service to Youth Award in 2013 and he was a 2001 recipient of the Greater Valley Chamber of Commerce’s prestigious Gold Seal Award.
In his professional life, Joe held major managerial positions with GTE Service Corporation, Southern New England Telephone and AT&T. He also served as President & CEO of the Oxford Economic Development Corporation and was the Executive Director of the CT Alliance of Boys & Girls Clubs.
Joe also put his talents to work as an Adjunct Professor in the College of Business at Sacred Heart University and as a Senior Associate for Diversified Nonprofit Services LLC. He received a B.A. in Industrial Administration from Union College and an M.B.A. from the University of Connecticut.
He currently resides in Oxford with his wife Patricia. They are the proud parents of two children and four grandchildren.
United Way President & C.O.O. Jack Walsh said, “Joe is a remarkable individual who fits the mold of all the previous winners. In addition to all that he has done in the Valley, Joe has also traveled to other parts of the country to help those who have been victims of natural disasters. He is truly and example of why this award has the word humanitarian in it.”
