Honoring the Heroes Among Us

Volunteer Lawyers Program Presents Annual Awards

By Stacy Rupprecht Butler

Southern Arizona Legal Aid’s Volunteer Lawyers’ Program (VLP) held its

Annual Awards Luncheon at the University Marriott on November 20.  The

luncheon is an annual event celebrating the attorneys, legal staff, law students

and others who volunteer with and support the Volunteer Lawyers’ Program.

Now in its 27^th year, the VLP’s mission is to foster hope, self-sufficiency and

equal access to the justice system by matching volunteer lawyers with low-

income Arizonans who have nowhere else to turn.  This year’s luncheon

celebrated the fact that in 2008, volunteers came forward in record numbers

to meet the increased demand for indigent client legal services brought about

by the current economic downturn.  In 2008, over 1240 attorneys and 113 

students volunteered with the VLP, donating 4,637 hours of legal service. 

The theme of this year’s

luncheon, “Moments of

Heroism,” highlighted the fact

that VLP volunteers are truly

heroes to the clients that

they serve.  From the

perspective of the VLP

and its clients, simple

legal tasks such as filing

a brief, scheduling a hearing

or settling a case are heroic achievements.  The graphic design featured on the

luncheon program and community report cleverly incorporated an attorney

wearing a super-hero cape.  Attendees received coffee mugs filled with M&Ms

and imprinted with the same super-hero graphic.  Master of Ceremonies Elliot

Glicksman (pictured above, right) praised the hard work of the VLP and

delighted attendees with a humorous photo-tour of Tucson’s lesser-known

tourist attractions.   Following a moving power-point presentation highlighting

some of the many accomplishments of the VLP volunteers, Arizona Supreme

Court Justice W. Scott Bales (pictured below, right with Elliott Glicksman, left,

and John McDonald, middle) thanked the volunteers for their efforts and spoke

about the importance of pursuing social equality within the justice system.

Twelve attorneys were honored as VLP’s Attorneys of the Month in 2008: Sandy

Hansen (January); Darren Clausen

(February); Ben Smith (March); Mo

Goldman (April); Rudy Valenzuela

(May); Dan Montgomery (June);

Peter Akmajian (July); John Barrett

(August); Sarah Crotty (September);

Michael Hornisher (October); Joubert

Davenport (November) and Heather

Strickland (December, pictured

at right).

In addition, the VLP extended special

awards to individuals, law firms and organizations who made extraordinary

contributions to the VLP in 2008: Max Wedel (Undergraduate Student of the

Year); Joseph Smith (Law Student of the Year, pictured below); Olivia Sanders

   (Translation Services Award); Bernice

   Sandoval (Millie Crawford Legal Assistant

   Award); Ben Smith (Award of

   Appreciation); Ron Allen & Cheryl

   Copperstone (Consumer/Bankruptcy

   Attorneys of the Year); Dean Christoffel

   & Edina Strum (Lifesaver Award); Dean

   Toni Massaro (Distinguished Service

   Award); Lisa Schriner Lewis (Attorney of

   the Year Award, pictured at left) and

DeConcini McDonald Yetwin & Lacy, PC (Firm of the Year).

The VLP extends its appreciation

to all who attended the luncheon

and to all the heroes who donated

their time and talent to the VLP

and its clients in 2008.

View the 2008 Annual Report

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