Good Neighbor Awards
Goddard Riverside’s Good Neighbor Awards celebrate uncompensated community members’ outstanding efforts to help improve the community. The Good Neighbor Award aims to recognize people who voluntarily build a better community.
Who should apply?
- Nominate upstanding uncompensated community members.
- Nominate community members from the following neighborhoods: Upper West Side, Harlem, East Harlem, Yorkville (neighborhood on the Upper East Side), and other Goddard Riverside program communities.
You can nominate yourself or someone else on your behalf. Award recipients will be contacted and invited to the celebratory event by the Good Neighbor Awards committee.
2026 Good Neighbors Award Celebration
Reserve your spot at the celebration award ceremony on June 15th at 5:30 PM. The celebration will take place at the Goddard Riverside headquarters/Older Adult Center at 593 Columbus Ave, NY, NY 10024.
Since 2001, Goddard Riverside’s Good Neighbor Awards honors extraordinary uncompensated community members’ valuable contributions and outstanding efforts to serve, co-create and help build a better community.
Congratulations to our selected recipients of this year’s awards:
- Patrice Solomon-Ortiz
- Erica DePiero
- Brianna Marina Emily Aird
- David McKenna
- Je’Jae Cleopatra Daniels
- Billy Council
Thank you to everyone who’ve submitted their nominations for the 2026 Good Neighbors Awards!
Blog & News
Goddard Blog: A Celebration of Good Neighbors (2022), Celebrating Good Neighbors (2023), Good Neighbor Awards Honor Volunteers who Make our Communities Stronger (2024)
West Side Spirit: How to Be a Good Neighbor
West Side Rag: You’re Never Too Young to be a Good Neighbor
Harlem World: Goddard Riverside Presents Good Neighbor Award To Six Good Manhattan Volunteer Efforts In West Harlem
Blog & News
Previous Good Neighbor Awardees
2001
- Kamilah Austin and
- Shaytel Gustave
- Kathryn Clark
- Anne Cunningham
- DOROT’s Friendly Visiting Program
- Katherine Falk
- David Goldstick
- Bobbie Maniece-Harrison
- Julio Melendez
- Dan Rich
- Robert Woolis
2002
- Aledra Floyd
- National Council of Jewish Women – N.Y. Section
- Mary Alice Osborne
- Maria Reyes
- Julio Rodriguez
- Murray Rothman
- Nancy Stein
2003
- Richard Barr
- Mig Boyle and Bob Hoyt
- Carrie Fair
- Mercedes Gomez
- Victor Gonzalez
- Jay Kranis
- Michael Paradis
- Yusimir Ramirez
- Temple Ansche Chesed Shelter Committee
- Letasha Waiters
2004
- Elena Cruz
- Clare Dockery
- Lauren Flanigan
- Dorothy Holohan
- Norma Lindo
- REACH Returning Volunteers
2005
- Margaret Brown
- Maria Fabian
- Edith Marks
- Ethel Morgan
- Charles Stevens
- Trinity Middle School Community Program
2006
- Patricia Craddick
- Betty Dickstein
- Esther Gross
- Morris Levine
- Joseph Meezan
- Betty Sellers
- Veteran Reach Volunteers
- Edmundo Yearwood
2007
- James C. Freund
- Milagros Lopez
- Bruce Nichols
- Carole Singleton
- Softball Coaches and Umpires
- Susan Susman
- The Guardians of the
- Temple of the Lord
2008
- Victoria Acosta
- Cynthia Doty
- Oliver Fisher
- Rina Garst
- Felicia Lemus
2009
- Marina Araujo
- Namely Holguin
- Milagros Stanley
- Westside Community Garden
- Vonnie Young
2010
- Winifred Armstrong
- Ed Baker
- Beacon Community Service Project
- Book Fair Hospitality Hostesses
- Lucille Michele Donte
- Wade Hampton
2011
- Zoila Estrella
- The Orfeo Duo
- Helen Rosenthal
- Pura Torres
- Evelyn Trowell
- Jane Wisdom
2012
- Sheldon Barasch
- Jackie Gardner
- Harold Jones
- Ana Mercedes Lizardi
- Eric Rosenfeld
- Maria Valdes
2013
- Hudson Warehouse
- Latoya Mitchell
- Lizabeth Sostre
- Francisca Urena
2014
- Lino Alvarez
- Otasimbo Fowors
- Van L. Harriman
- Interfaith Assembly on Homelessness & Housing, Panim El Panim – Life Skills Empowerment Program
- Lynne Sheehan
- Nicholas Steele
- Sharon Wilson
2015
- Amber Batchelor
- Anthony Cooper
- Rosa M. Flores
- The volunteers of the Judith Bernstein Lunch Program hosted by B’nai Jeshurun
- Samantha Katel
- Lenore Richter
- Robin West
2022
- Linda Carter Cooper
- Mark Diller
- LaDreamer Lark (& 8 yr. old daughter Dreamer Daisy)
- “One Block” founded by Ann Cutbill Lenane & Jake Russell
- LeVera Sutton
- Alan Winson
2023
- Emma Justus
- Melissa Elstein
- Dorothy Reiss
- Carolyn Breidenback
- Wilma Lorraine Johnson
- Margarita Curet Osorio
2024
- Geraldine “Gerri” Collins
- Jameka Collins
- Johnny Grima
- Valerie Padilla
- Rob Sweren
- Honorable Daniel J. O’Donnell, Community Champion Award
2025
- Shaen Begleiter
- Roberta Bessey
- Cheri Leon
- John Mudd
- Sharon Tyson
- Altagracia Hiraldo Valdez