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06/29/2021 03:30 PMFour women connected with the Clinton Human Services Department were recognized by the Women & Family Life Center through the annual SHEro Awards. Erin Gaudet, Jane Scully Welch, Jill Paglino, and Bianca Arias all received their awards in early June.
According to the center’s website, A SHEro is described as “A woman or girl who inspires others through her actions. She is a person who leads with kindness, has a desire to help others and is someone who is making a positive change in herself or for others in a community. She could be your friend, neighbor, a teacher, healthcare worker or business owner. “
Each woman was presented with a certificate from the center as well as certificates from the state’s General Assembly as well as U.S. senators Chris Murphy and Richard Blumenthal.
Clinton Human Services Director David Melillo said that the award given out is an annual award and that he was proud that women associated with Clinton were recognized.
“It’s a great feeling and it’s great agency,” Melillo said. “I want the townspeople to know how lucky they are to have these four great women here working for them.”
Melillo described Gaudet, who is the chairperson of the town’s Human Services Advisory Board (HSAB), as someone who “has done a lot of work for community service” in Clinton. Melillo said that in particular, Gaudet was responsible for the adopt a senior program that started last year. As the COVID-19 pandemic hit and seniors were forced to isolate to protect themselves, Melillo said Gaudet looked for a way to keep that population connected to the community.
“She wanted to do something to let seniors know they weren’t forgotten about,” Melillo said. This was accomplished by pairing each senior with someone who communicated with them and gave them tokens of their appreciation.
“As the chairperson of HSAB, I am extremely touched I was nominated. The fact that board member [Scully Welch], employee [Paglino], and student rep [Arias] were also nominated is just amazing! [It] shows that Human Services is filled with amazingly strong and talented women who are working hard making changes to better the department and community,” Gaudet said.
Scully Welch is a resident who has been involved in a multitude of positions and organizations around town that have made her extremely well known.
“Just about everyone in Clinton knows who Jane is,” Melillo said.
Melillo said that Scully Welch was recognized as a person who has worked on everything from town beautification to assisting with social services projects.
“She’s an unfailing supporter of the town,” said Melillo.
“I was really honored to be awarded this and the citations we got from Senators Murphy and Blumenthal and [State Senator Norm] Needleman were wonderful,” said Scully Welch.
“I think, those of us who were awarded the SHEro award are just your average women who contribute what they can to Clinton and its people, our town, and our neighbors! Be it a love for both or just wanting to make a difference. Anyone can make a difference. They just have to try,” she added.
Paglino is an employee of the department who Melillo said is the creator of the group Shoreline Girls United. The group is dedicated to uplifting girls and promoting healthy body images.
“She’s been a bundle of energy and continues to work on behalf of Clinton’s young people,” Melillo said.
“Thanks to the Women & Family Life Center for their hard work recognizing all the great women along the shoreline,” said Paglino.
Arias is a new graduate from Morgan who was the president of the REACT club and a force for encouraging healthy behavior with her classmates.
“She’s worked on countless projects from teaching younger students on the dangers of vaping to peer advocates,” said Melillo. “She’s as amazing a student as I’ve seen in my 40 years working with students.”
For more information on all the winners, visit womenandfamilylife.org/shero-awards.