Wicomico County Commission for Women Honors Dashield

SALISBURY, MD---The Wicomico County Commission for Women (WCCW) recently honored Alexis Dashield of the Salisbury University Copy Center during the Commission’s annual Women’s Recognition Day. Dashield’s 17 year work with the Fruitland Community Center was highlighted in the mid 1980’s when she received news that the Wicomico County Public School System was considering holding her son back in kindergarten and first grade, she went to the center for help.  In five months, volunteers with its after-school Ivy AKAdemy helped her son catch up with his classmates. Today he is a senior engineering student at Morgan State University and his mother is president of the community center. When not working at SU, Dashield is usually spending time at the center, making plans for upcoming activities or working to gain more program funding with John Fields, chair of the center’s board of directors and assistant vice president of student affairs at SU. The WCCW is a 12-member citizen board appointed by the Wicomico County Council which honors female leaders who have opened doors for today’s young women in ways that are often overlooked. “The women who will be recognized are local community leaders who have made a significant contribution to Wicomico County through employment, education, civic activities, public service or family” said Cynthia Brubaker MacDonald, treasurer of the WCCW. In January 2005 the Fruitland Community Center will celebrate 20 years of providing free tutoring after-school and Saturday mornings. The center also offers programs during the summer for area children. The programs at the center are free. Officials would like to open the center two days a week with volunteers from 4-5:30p.m. College students in the area requiring volunteer hours or internships, teachers and law enforcement officers interested in volunteering may call Mary Gladys Jones (410-742-2791) or Alexis Dashield (410-749-5526) All volunteers must have background checks, which the center does not fund.