Bryan Rourke has won MCCC’s Enriching Lives Performance Award.
“I was surprised, I didn’t know anything about it,” said Rourke, who is a maintenance worker at MCCC.
He found out about the award after his email inbox was flooded with messages of congratulations.
“I was humbly encouraged – I had no idea it was coming,” he said.
Rourke has served on numerous task forces and committees, such as the Governance Evaluation Committee, the Diversity Committee, the Insurance Task Force, and the Presidental Search Advisory Committee to select a new MCCC president.
He said he was glad to be a part of the process.
“The committee had a large, well rounded base. It was students, employees, and community members,” Rourke said.
“It was a nice open process where everyone was on a level playing field. It was employee empowerment.”
Suzanne Wetzel, vice president of Administration, said she was pleased to learn of Rourke’s selection for the award.
“In addition to his outstanding work on our grounds crew, he has taken a leadership role on many college committees and task forces, including playing a major role in the development of the college’s new governance structure,” Wetzel said.
“He is concerned about his co-workers and our students, and demonstrates the true meaning of a team player.”
In addition to all of the extracurricular work he does, his foreman, Jeff VanSlambrouck also praised his maintenance abilities.
“Bryan is a valuable part of our maintenance team… All you have to do is look around at the campus grounds and you can tell that no matter what he does, he gives one hundred percent. He certainly deserves this award,” VanSlambrouch said in an email.
“In the last year, he has obtained his pesticide licenses, which means we no longer have to hire a contractor to fertilize the lawn or treat the trees. He also has an underground storage tank certification, which covers our gasoline tank.”
Rourke said he appreciates the award.
“I would like to thank the committee,” he said. “I’m happy to be here to serve the students and the staff.”