Russ Diethrick (video still)
Jamestown’s Mr. Baseball, Russell E. Diethrick Jr., has been presented with the 2023 Governor’s Exemplary Service Award.
The award is presented to an individual who is a standout among the nominees for Older New Yorkers’ Day.
A veteran of the U.S. Army reserves, Mr. Diethrick has served on the Chautauqua County Office for the Aging Advisory Board since its creation in 1973. He has received many awards for his professional work and volunteer contributions, including work with the county’s Council on Alcoholism, the Retired Senior Volunteer Program, American Cancer Society, Jamestown Parks, Recreation, & Conservation Commission; March of Dimes, United Way, Boys and Girls Club, and many other organizations.
In a phone call with State Office for the Aging Director Greg Olsen, Mr. Diethrick said he was “fortunate and lucky to be part of this community,” “And it’s not that I do them all. I’m a member of a team. Everything that goes back to baseball for me.. I learned early that baseball is a team effort. And I think what we’re talking about in working in the community, supporting the community… it’s a team effort. There’s many cases of where I’ve worked with things and activities where I did not have the skill to do those individual things. But I was blessed by knowing people that did and would.”
The award was presented during a State Office For The Aging ceremony on November 3 that honored over 90 older adults for their volunteerism.
Awardees were nominated by the state’s 59 county Offices for the Aging and their partners who identified older adults making substantial contributions in their communities through volunteering and civic engagement.
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