York Town News
Dick Filliettaz honored with Marty Ulan award for citizenship and service
By Virginia L. Woodwell
Cape Neddick resident Dick Filliettaz, left, fights back tears as he is awarded the Martin Ulan Citizenship Award by Sen. Mary Black Andrews, R-Maine, at the Rotary Club's most recent meeting on Friday, June 1. Andrews lured Filliettaz to the surprise event by telling him she was working to get funding for his efforts to support military personnel stationed overseas through the Rotary Club.
Photo by Virginia L. Woodwell
Sen. Mary Black Andrews, R-York, made the formal presentation to Filliettaz at the most recent meeting of the Rotary Club, held at the York Harbor Inn on Friday, June 2.
Andrews praised Filliettaz as one who had worked in service to others most of his adult life.
In this region, to which Filliettaz moved in 1981, that service began, Andrews said, as a volunteer member of the Ogunquit Fire Department and included major involvement in the formation of a regional training school for firefighters.
Filliettaz's service has continued, Andrews reported, through activities as a Cub Scout leader, in membership in athletic and music boosters clubs, in committee work for his church and for his church's annual fair and, through the years, in work with the York Community Service Association at Thanksgiving and Christmas, packing and delivering gift baskets.
More recently, however, Andrews stressed that Filliettaz has become widely known and appreciated for the work he has done in support of U.S. servicemen and women overseas. His dedication has taken the form of gift-boxes filled and sent, fund-raisers staged for that effort and concrete support lent to families left behind.
"We may disagree about the war," Andrews said, "but we all agree that our troops deserve our whole-hearted, 100-percent support."
Filliettaz's support in this direction, she said, went initially only to the New Hampshire Air National Guard troops out of Pease, but soon expanded to include all services - plus the service families at home.
Bonnie Rice, family program Coordinator for the New Hampshire Air National Guard echoed Andrews' high praise for Filliettaz's efforts.
Rice reported that Filliettaz has said, "If you ever need anything, call me," and, she stressed, "He really meant it."
She described him as outstanding for coming up with goods and services as varied as food, money - or a crew to repair a home.
"I can't thank him enough," she said.
In a brief acceptance speech, Filliettaz fought back tears of emotion and said that he'd been moved to efforts in support of the troops by his own experience in the service.
Andrews said that she lured him to the Rotary Club meeting, where the award was planned as a surprise, by telling him that the meeting was "to get some money to give you for the troops."
The Ulan Citizenship Award honors the late Martin "Marty" Ulan of York, who died in 1995 at the age of 83, following a lifetime of service to the communities in which he lived.
In York, he served two terms as a selectman and volunteered his time on the Budget Committee and three Charter Commissions. A past president of the York Chamber of Commerce, he also helped found the Rotary Clubs of York, Wells, Ogunquit and Kittery.
Elsewhere, he was appointed by three New Jersey governors and one Maine governor to boards and commissions dealing with health care, served on state and national pharmaceutical committees, for two terms on the President's Committee on Mental Retardation and for nine years in the house of delegates of the American Hospital Association.
Among the previous recipients of the Martin Ulan Citizenship Award present on Friday were Virginia Spiller, Lorraine Moulton and Stacie Kerrigan.
