SFC issued the September 2014 Golden Trowel Award to Simone Benz, Community Outreach Coordinator. Simone also serves as Food Sector Manager with the GO! Austin / VAMOS! Austin(GAVA) place-based health initiative, of which SFC is a primary partner and leadership team member.

We recognize Simone daily for her contribution of a positive attitude and a strong work ethic, but she is being recognized for this “digging deep” award to honor her pursuit of new knowledge and skills, her boldness in taking on new assignments, her creativity in addressing unique challenges, and her dedication to building strong and meaningful relationships with community members we work with. Simone recently stepped up to represent SFC on the GAVA initiative leadership team. As part of that project, she is working to refine her community organizing skills through formal and informal learning opportunities. She is not daunted by the complexities of the GAVA project in the Dove Springs and the 78745 areas, and has worked to ensure positive impact and advancement of SFC’s mission through GAVA. Her exemplary work is inspirational to all of SFC and to the broader community.