The final Better Neighborhoods Award was presented to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 7. The EPA’s Region 7 has been a crucial partner in DeSales’ effort to clean a severely contaminated long-vacant property in Fox Park. They cleaned up more than 10,000 gallons of hazardous liquid from a site in the middle of the neighborhood, paving the way for DeSales to continue working to clean up and revitalize this property. Representatives from the EPA Region 7 were not able to attend in person, but DeSales Ex Director Tom Pickel presented this award to this amazing partner.
Finally, while we had officially passed the DeSales leadership torch from Tom Pickel to Becky Reinhart at our recent Success & Succession event, we could not pass up the opportunity to honor Tom for his transformative 35 years as DeSales Executive Director. Becky awarded Tom with the first ever Better Neighborhoods Lifetime Achievement Award. Not to be outdone, Aldermen Ingrassia, Rice, and Guenther presented Tom with a resolution from the St. Louis Board of Aldermen honoring Tom’s legacy at DeSales. Nothing we could give Tom could fully sum up his impact on DeSales, our neighborhoods, and the city of St. Louis over the past 35 years, but we were proud to share a token of our gratitude.
