Mongaup Valley resident and educator June Lombardi, center, was presented with the Distinguished Citizen Award on June 14, 2018 by the Sullivan County Legislature. Standing with her are, from the left, Deputy County Manager Dan Depew, District 3 Legislator Mark McCarthy, District 9 Legislator Alan Sorensen, Legislature Chairman Luis Alvarez, District 7 Legislator Joe Perrello, District 8 Legislator Ira Steingart, District 2 Legislator Nadia Rajsz, District 5 Legislator Terri Ward, District 1 Legislator Scott Samuelson, District 4 Legislator Cathy Owens and County Manager Josh Potosek.
Monticello, NY – You can thank June Lombardi’s parents for bringing her can-do attitude and volunteer spirit to Sullivan County. Immigrants from Germany & Hungary and residents of Long Island, the couple sought a vacation home where they could take their family.
“Eventually, they settled on Swinging Bridge in Mongaup Valley,” recalled June. “My father would commute to work and college every day in New York while we stayed there. They always loved the water and decided to move up here full-time.”
June adored it, and at 59, she continues to reside in Mongaup Valley, from where she travelled today to accept the Sullivan County Legislature’s Distinguished Citizen Award.
To several generations, she’s been a memorable teacher and mentor, sharing her love of place, of life and of the world with hundreds of youngsters over the course of a 37-year career – first at Head Start and a local yeshiva, then at her alma mater of Monticello Central School, currently as a beloved kindergarten teacher at Eldred’s Mackenzie Elementary School in Glen Spey.
She’s always been an elementary teacher, enjoying “the power that I have to make a difference in a child’s life.”
This from a woman whose own kindergarten teacher once wrote on her report card: “June is a nice girl, but she’ll always struggle.”
That’s a message June will never, ever, ever give to her charges.
“Teachers have tremendous influence in empowering them,” she explained. “I let them know at a young age that they can make a difference.”
She accomplishes that not only by teaching, but by doing. June herself can be found at Catskill Regional Medical Center in Harris every Sunday, making the rounds with a certified therapy dog.
“My former colleague, Jessica Davis-Olson, and I started a ‘Selfless Kindergartner’ program,” she said of an annual effort to encourage her students to do something that helps others. “The first year, we did the ‘Paws Cause’ for the Rock Hill SPCA, raising $250 in cash and bringing $200 worth of food to the animals. The next year, we launched ‘Have a Heart, Give a Can’ for the Federation for the Homeless.”
This year, June and teaching partner Cierra Regan created the “Blue Lunch Special,” a chance for more than 20 police officers to be honored by and interact with the kids through a luncheon at Mackenzie.
“They need to know they’re appreciated,” June affirmed. “We decorated the room with blue and black and weaved paper placemats for them. Peck’s in Eldred and ShopRite in Monticello donated food. It was a huge success – and the children won’t forget it.”
“We also teach random acts of kindness,” she added. “For example, we’ll buy a plant and give it to someone to express to them why they are important to us. We encourage families to join us in honoring veterans at the Town of Highland’s Veterans Day service. We also have children and their families help the Monticello ShopRite with various campaigns to honor veterans and aid food pantries.”
One little boy, now a first-grader at Mackenzie, raised more than $800 for a warming station, while a second-grader got the community to donate $500 to a woman fighting breast cancer – then followed that up the next year with $3,400 for the Port Jervis Soap Box Derby.
The lessons extended to June’s own now-grown children.
“Marina would play the violin and Anthony percussion at nursing homes,” she related, crediting her own folks with instilling in her the importance of giving to others.
“I witnessed my parents never taking for granted the kindness of others. It was always about showing appreciation and taking the time to help others. You can’t internalize that if a parent doesn’t take the time to teach it.”
“June has been a parent to so many kids, far beyond her own, and she has taught them the most important skill in life: caring for others,” noted Legislature Vice Chair Nadia Rajsz in bestowing the Distinguished Citizen Award on June. “We are so very blessed to have her in our community, passing on the compassion and selflessness she continues to exemplify every day.”
“Teachers accomplish many amazing things each and every day, but June and her colleagues take it a notch further with their incredible success in encouraging kindergartners – kindergartners! – to raise money and give back to their communities,” remarked District 1 Legislator Scott Samuelson, in whose district June lives. “I am so impressed and so pleased to recognize her as a truly distinguished citizen.”