Will County Gazette

The Village of Monee puts a high value on CREW, which stands for Credibility, Respect, Equality/fellowship/indentity, and Work/commitment/personal performance – so much so that it hands out CREW awards every six months.

“CREW defines respect in that a respectful person is not one who always agrees with everyone, but rather someone who values the opinions of their coworkers, even when they don't agree with them,” Village Trustee Scott Youdris said during the Jan. 25 village board meeting where the awards were given to those who earned them in the last half of 2022.  “Someone with a high level of respect makes a constant effort not to discriminate or offend others for their decisions or lifestyle.” 

The recipients this time included administration worker Michelle Powell Johnson, public works worker Justin Fleck, and Detectives Evie Lazzaroni, Dan DePaolo.

Anyone can nominate an employee for a CREW award, sending nominations through the human resources department. Those nominations are evaluated by department heads and winners are chosen by vote. Winners are recognized by a presentation and a letter with excerpts from their nomination forms.

Of the law enforcement officers, the nomination form said, “These officers handle some of the most extreme cases in the department: everything from domestic battery, theft, armed robbery, assaults, and homicides. They are on call 24/7 for the department. Despite dealing with a lot of difficult people on a daily basis, these detectives are always polite and respectful, continuing this dignity when they represent the department to other organizations like schools, attorneys, and other law enforcements.”

The presenter summed it up, saying: “They’re always appreciative, polite, considerate and recognize the value in other people's points of view. Yes, yes. Yes and yes. This defines detectives DePaolo and Lazzaroni.”

The board was told, in the administration department, Johnson has been a loyal employee to the city for 20 years, and greets every single employee, citizen, and guest respectfully and kindly when they walk in the door. “She exemplifies the equality/fellowship/identity by always stepping up to the plate for anyone who needs some help,” the nomination said. 

Fleck is with the Public Works Department. Fleck was nominated because he “is always on time to work and ready to tackle whatever new task is being given to him that day. He is respectful to his coworkers and is always ready to help them with whatever they need. He is the go-to guy when employees have a problem, as he can fix any issue. He has a constant positive attitude which helps him take care of the whole city fleet and all village holiday decorations throughout the year.”