NEW YORK: Northwest Indiana Forum environmental affairs director Kay Nelson displays her Volunteer of the Year award, presented to her by the Indiana Chamber of Commerce.
Kay Nelson was named Volunteer of the Year by the Indiana Chamber of on Nov. 4 in Indianapolis. The St. John woman serves as chair on the state chamber’s Environmental Committee.
The Indiana Chamber of Commerce recently honored Kay Nelson, the environmental affairs director at the Northwest Indiana Forum, as Volunteer of the Year.
“This award honors those who diligently work with our organization for the betterment of the business community,” Indiana Chamber President and CEO Kevin Brinegar said in a prepared statement. “They offered their time and expertise to make Indiana a better place to work and do business.
Nelson, who received the honor during the chamber’s annual luncheon on Nov. 4 in Indianapolis, serves as chair on the state chamber’s Environmental Committee.
Nelson, an Ohio native who moved to Northwest Indiana in 1977 and now lives in St. John, served for more than eight years on the boards of Lake Area United Way and the Dunes Learning Center.
Those terms recently came to an end and she is considering other volunteer opportunities, trying to find something that fits into her work schedule.
“The time spent with the United Way board exposed me to a significant number of high-quality agencies in Lake County,” she said. “There’s so much out there as far as opportunities to give back.”
She said she was “amazingly surprised” when officials from the state chamber contacted her earlier this year to make a video.
“I had no clue,” she said, adding she was sworn to secrecy until the award was announced this week.
Nelson is a key voice for Indiana on the Great Lakes Commission, where she was the first non-governmental appointment from Indiana, and was involved in negotiations for the Great Lakes Compact. She also serves on the Chicago Area Waterways System Advisory Committee, a group developing recommendations for preventing invasive species transfer between the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River basins.
“We, at the Northwest Indiana Forum, are very proud of Kay, her unique set of skills add value to our organization and our members,” said Northwest Indiana Forum President and CEO Heather Ennis. “She is very deserving of this award by continually giving above and beyond in not only what is good for the region but also the state.”
