REM Award Honorees (2012) — Jean Sawyer (REM)
REM is proud to present its 2012 REM Award to Jean Sawyer. Few people have Jean’s capacity to build and attain their goals. Jean is smart. Jean is kind. Jean is focused. Jean measures things. Put these skills all together in one person and you have a winner . . . but not just any winner . . . one who is fun to work with and for. If you are on Jean’s team, you’re on the winning team.
REM is built on The REM Agreements, a set of standards of working together developed over REM’s 17 year history by all of the people who came to work in REM. Jean perfectly follows every REM Agreement in everything she does, especially the first and last. The first, “Keep our eye on the vision,” is Jean’s strongest trait. She is never distracted from the vision. The last agreement, “Have fun! Keep a sense of humor,” is what makes it so easy to stick to her while she helps you stick to the vision.
Often exemplary people do not see in the mirror what you see when you look at them. Jean is very much like that. Perhaps it’s best that way: if she saw what we see, she just might be intolerable!
Jean has impacted REM in many ways. She has made us keep our eye on our pocketbooks and at the same time enlarged our treasury with projects she has brought to REM. One of the community’s most cherished events was the Colby Craft Fair. When Colby could no longer provide the venue for the fair, Jean brought the fair to REM. REM has now had two prosperous REM Craft Fairs — prosperous for both REM and the crafters.
Jean serves on the Board of REM as its treasurer and also chairs the Financial Development Team. She helps with membership development and team building and helps out in the kitchen for most events. Jean is also valued by other organizations, some them REM Partners. She is an all around good sport and pitches in whenever needed. We in REM cherish Jean and are proud to name her as our 2012 REM Award honoree.