LUDLOW, Vt. – Ludlow Rotary surprised Ludlow Elementary School Principal Karen Trimboli with their 2021 Community Service Award.
The club’s criteria for the award is that it be given to a non-Rotarian, the person or group must be in our service area, and the nominee must exemplify the true meaning of community service.
Past recipients include Jean Eggleston, George Thomson, Craig and Jess Goodman, Joe Gurdak, Sylvia Witalec, Peggy Svec, Mount Holly Guild, Ludlow Garden Club, FOLA, Loren Greenslet, and Mark and Beth Lombard.
Karen presently is the principal at Ludlow Elementary School and has been in that position for the last 17 years. She also was principal to both Ludlow Elementary and Black River High School for two years while the high school closed. That was a big commitment on her part to do both schools, but she found it rewarding as many of the high school students had been with her since elementary school. Knowing the schools so well, she made sure the closure was done fairly and properly.
She has decided to retire at the end of this school year. Prior to joining the school system, she was a school board member then she taught fourth grade at LES from 1992 to 2004 when she moved into the principal’s office. As a board member, teacher, and principal, she always put the kids under her care first – no matter what! She was an outstanding teacher, mentor, and is a well-loved principal. Always aware of new ideas in education, she was well informed about all the school funding and reorganizational issues the town and our state have faced over the last 29 years.
This past winter Karen was nominated for the award and the club unanimously approved it a couple months ago. Then the wheels started to turn on how we could make the presentation extra special during this year of Covid. The club is still meeting via Zoom so the staff at the school helped set the presentation up including escorting a couple of Rotarians to her office while she was speaking to the rest of the club via Zoom as she was led to believe she was the club’s speaker for the day. Karen was presented with a plaque by Club President Kevin Barnes and a bouquet of flowers and heartfelt words of appreciation from Frank Heald, former Ludlow Town Manager and still a Ludlow Rotarian.
Then as all students and staff were cheering and clapping in the hallways, “Mrs. T,” as she is affectionately known, left her office with the plaque in hand and walked through the halls to the excitement of the children she cares so deeply about.
We know she will be missed and the Ludlow Rotary Club thought the Community Service Award for 2021 would be a great public recognition of her service to our community.