Each fall The Community Foundation presents NOVA Awards at the Community Stars luncheon. Given in the categories of Arts, Civic, Environment, Education and Health and Human Services, these awards are designed to recognize and honor some of the outstanding nonprofit organizations in our county. Each of the NOVA award winners is presented with a beautiful plaque designed by local artist John Haertling, accompanied by a $1,000 cash award.

The 2003 winners are:

• ARTS: Old Firehouse Art Center – Geese Galore Project
  For 13 years, the Old Firehouse Art Center has been the visual arts center for the St. Vrain Valley. They offer 6 different exhibitions a year, featuring local, regional and national visual artists, along with a free Saturday Art Experience for children. For the last couple of years, they have helped create a tremendously successful public art project through their sponsorship of "Geese Galore." Geese Galore began in 2002, as a community group that produced another version of the public art projects that have been happening all over the country. Artists were chosen to decorate large geese decoys that were displayed all over Longmont last summer. School children, adults, everyone jazzed up smaller decoys. The large decoys and some of the smaller ones were auctioned off at a gala and the proceeds were distributed back to the collaborating arts organizations, the St. Vrain Valley School District, and used to create a postcard book for further fundraising.
  
  
• CIVIC: LEVI (Longmont Ending Violence Initiative)
  Co-workers, family, friends, and relatives are the first to know when domestic violence is present. Because of this fact, LEVI is enlisting the entire community in an effort to reduce and control domestic violence. This is a multi-agency collaborative response. More than 20 agencies are working in unison, providing public information, prevention/education, and one stop access to domestic violence services. They are the best example of agencies coming together to collaborate and address a serious community issue.
  
  
• EDUCATION: Boulder Prep Charter High School – The Turn-Around Project
  The Turn-Around Project, sponsored by Boulder Prep High School, is an intensive Arts and Wilderness based intervention for at-risk and adjudicated teens. This unique summer program involves 20-30 youth in a powerful wilderness experience and contemporary arts classes; all provided to them by a young staff that they can easily connect with. With classes such as Hip Hop Dance, Photography, and a "Rite of Passage" wilderness experience, these at-risk youth are kept out of trouble and gain new life skills.
  
  
• ENVIRONMENT: Alexander Dawson School – ENO (Environment Online)
  Students at Dawson are able to participate in the ENO Program, an online environmental education program, with a new environmental topic studied every 4-6 weeks, used by schools all over the world. And now they have made it possible for students in Kenya to participate as well. Through a lot of hard work Dawson’s ENO students equipped CATEK (Caretakers of the Environment, Kenya) with donated computers and provided for the electricity, phone lines and internet connection to power them. They now have a new sister school in CATEK/Bonge and have developed friendships and an understanding of life in Kenya. They will continue to take on the responsibility of paying the monthly internet and electricity charges, and build their relationship for many years to come.
  
  
• HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES: Boulder Change
  Boulder Change is serving the basic needs of those who are without. They have created a unique and resourceful voucher program in which citizens, faith communities, and local service organizations can exchange dollars for vouchers and then give the vouchers out to people in need. These vouchers can be used just like money at over 15 local businesses including the bus station, gas stations, grocery stores and restaurants, but cannot be used for alcohol, tobacco, or drugs. Boulder Change provides people a way to give generously to those in need without the worry or guilt of thinking they are supporting self-destructive behavior.