Madison's Second #TeamCity Recognition Ceremony

On September 17, I had the opportunity to recognize fifteen exceptional City employees during our #TeamCity Recognition awards. During these unprecedented months, City staff have done an outstanding job maintaining uninterrupted services available to all, and these fifteen employees have gone above and beyond. Residents, their coworkers, supervisors, colleagues in different departments, have recognized their work.

These ceremonies were intended to be held on a bimonthly basis. However, due to the many events that have evolved during the year, the ceremony was postponed. This time around, we celebrated three employees per category to account for the three ceremonies missed. I am proud to present the winners of the #TeamCity award!

Tracy Lomax is one of the Administration #TeamCity Recognition Winner for September. Tracy is an Affirmative Action Specialist at Civil Rights. One of her many responsibilities is creating a welcoming and inclusive workplace environment at all agencies. Due to her passion for public service and recognition from customers when she facilitates new curriculum, she was nominated by Affirmative Action Manager, Melissa Gombar.

Amanda Lythjohan is one of the Administration #TeamCity Recognition Winner for September. Amanda is an Administrative Service Manager at Information Technology (IT) and recently led the creation of the end-user license agreement system in SharePoint. This has facilitated software acquisition while following applicable City policies and ordinances. For her great work and leadership, Lara Mainella, Assistant City Attorney, nominated her.

George Reistad is one of the Administration #TeamCity Recognition Winner for September. George is Food Policy Coordinator in the Mayor’s Office where he facilitates a wide array of ventures in food quality and accessibility citywide. Through all of these ventures, he always shows leadership and courage to speak the truth and stand for what he believes. For this, he was nominated by Cameron McLay, former Deputy Mayor.

Thubden Sangha is one of the Community Service & Support Winner for September. Thubden is a Guest Services Attendant at Monona Terrace. His exceptional customer service and stewardship are noticeable by all since 1997. Recently, he personally re-painted 150 waste and recycling containers instead of a vendor, saving around $100,000. Thubden was nominated by Connie Thompson, Director of Monona Terrace.

Jennifer Stoiber is one of the Community Services & Support Winner for September. Jennifer is a Community Development Technician at Community Development Division (CDD). Amongst her many tasks, she is responsible with training, which she does with great commitment and deep subject matter knowledge. She is a great resource for everyone at CDD. For these reasons, she was nominated by Ben Doing, Program Assistant.

Drake Salerno is one of the Community Services & Support Winner for September. Drake is a Maintenance Worker at Parking Utility. During one of his shifts, he found an academic notebook on the UW campus. Drake tracked the owner and was able to promptly return the lost item. The resident was so grateful that sent out a note to the Mayor and used as a nomination for Drake.

Ercan Dzelil is one of the Public Health & Safety Winner for September. Ercan is a Police Officer assigned to the Community Outreach and Resource Education (CORE) Team. He always carries CORE’s mission, even outside of work. He has worked with Dane County Big Brothers Big Sisters (BBBS) as a big brother for 5 years and working on running a summer youth leadership camp in partnership with BBBS. Captain Matt Tye nominated Ercan.

Allison Langer is one of the Public Health & Safety Winner for September. Allison is a Training Officer at Madison Fire. Her dedication to the research of relevant firefighting techniques is the best. Because of her dedication, the Fire Department is able to provide the very best service every time they are called into duty. Patrick Howe, Apparatus Engineer, nominated Allison.

Millicent Hutchinson is one of the Public Health & Safety Winner for September. Millicent is a Supervisor of Budget & Finance at Public Health. Overseeing all the finances for Public Health is a big task. It is even a bigger task doing so after most of your staff resigned. Millicent work countless extra hours to ensure the department functioned as normal. The entire department recognized this effort, and she was nominated by Anasthasia Vakunta, LTE Program Coordinator.

Elizabeth Levy is one of the Public Works & Land Use Winner for September. “Liz” is an Administrative Clerk at Parks. Since the Parks Engagement Team rolled out their recognition award in August 2019, her co-workers have nominated Liz six times. A few of her many accomplishments are improving/fixing the online scholarship registration process, volunteering for an after work assignment, and improving the process for customers who use the Parks boat storage program. With all her hard work, it is no surprise that the Parks Engagement Team nominated her.

Brent Pauba is one of the Public Works & Land Use Winner for September. Brent is an Architect at Engineering responsible for coordinating City of Madison building design and architecture. During the Request for Proposal (RFP) for design and architecture services for the Reindahl Library, he was notified that equity was not incorporated. He quickly made sure that it equity was taken into account and after only 48 hours, he made equity commitments and practices 10% of the RFP project. Brent was nominated by Melissa Gombar, Affirmative Action Manager.

Tim Sobota is one of the Public Works & Land Use Winner for September. Tim is a Planner at Madison Metro. With his extensive contact with residents, property owners, and passengers, he is also a voice for them in Metro’s planning activities. During his 22 years of service, he has shown dedication towards improving transit service. This includes demonstrating a new method of using transit data to the developers at Google, which is now used by other transit system across the country. Planning and Scheduling Manager, Drew Beck nominated Tim.

Joe Schraven is one of the Mayor’s Choice Winner for September. Joe is a Digital Media Specialist in the IT City Channel unit. When the pandemic started, the City had to adjust very quickly. He was part of the team that ensured that employees had access and training for video conference tools. The transition was smooth and smooth. Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway nominated Joe.

Matthew Parks is one of the Mayor’s Choice Winner for September. Matt is a Master Electrician at Engineering. He heads the GreenPower training program, a leader in the City’s renewable energy program, and expert on electric vehicle charging and solar power installations. Above all, he has traveled to Puerto Rico to train and share his knowledge on multiple occasions. Because of his knowledge and willingness to assist, Matt was nominated by Deputy Division Manager Kathy Cryan, Professional Aide Valerie Draves, and Fleet Superintendent Mahanth Joishy.

Gretchen M. Aviles-Pineiro is one of the Mayor’s Choice Winner for September. Gretchen is an Engineer at Traffic Engineering. For four years, she has volunteered eagerly for racial and economic equity programs, and to enhance the connectivity and safety of those who walk, run, bike, ride, or drive Madison’s lanes. Her work has directly impacts residents and some have noticed. A specific interaction with a resident where an update on traffic light timing was suggested and completed. Traffic Engineer Yang Tao nominated Gretchen.

You can watch the presentations here.

​​​​​Congratulations to all employees for their dedication!