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SUPPORTING THE COMMUNITY

Doreen Vasseur honored with Community Builder Award
By DAVID J. HARDIN
Cove Leader-Press
 
Tuesday night was a special night at the Mt. Hiram Masonic Lodge No. 595 in Copperas Cove. It was an opportunity for the Masons of this lodge to honor Doreen Vasseur.
 
Vasseur was honored with the Community Builder Award. The award was established in 1991 by the Grand Lodge of Texas to recognize outstanding members of the community who are non-Masons. Individuals who receive this award do so because of their service to their community, to their local area, state or national government, or service to their church, synagogue or to humanity. The award is given to an individual despite not having been initiated into masonry, but that individual has followed the same precepts, ideals and standards that have been established for masonic behavior.
 
Vasseur’s family attended the ceremony, including her mother, Dorothy. who flew all the way from Boston to be with her daughter on her special day. Dorothy said she is proud of her daughter because she has been involved with masons for many years. She has relatives who have been masons, and Vasseur was a Rainbow Girl when she was younger.
 
“Doreen is such a great member of our community, and she is so deserving of this award,” said Chuck Downard, a mason with the Mt. Hiram Masonic Lodge No. 595
 
Vasseur said she was really surprised and humbled when she found out about receiving this award. She said she has a lot of family history with the masons, that when she was a Rainbow Girl she would go the Shriners’ Hospitals and visit with the kids.
 
There are many reasons why the masons of Lodge No. 595 chose Vasseur for this high honor. The first is her commitment to children. Vasseur got her start helping and caring for children as a childcare provider, then director at Kinder Care and Brighter Horizons in Massachusetts, combining together for 18 years of work.
 
When her family moved to Texas, Vasseur began working as an aide for children with behavioral difficulties, transitioning to in-house detention aide at Hettie Halstead Elementary School for 12 years.
 
Another reason why Vasseur deserved this award was because of her strong commitment to community service.
 
In Vasseur’s 23 years living in Copperas Cove, she has served on various committees. She served for three years as the Parent Teacher Organization President (PTO) at Hettie Halstead Elementary School and was also a member of the Keep Copperas Cove Beautiful Committee for four years.
 
Vasseur’s commitment did not end there. She also assisted with the Copperas Cove Rabbit Fest for four years and assisted with several events as a member of the Optimist Club for three years. Also, she is committed to helping members of the armed forces, as she assisted the 3/8 Calvary on several occasions. The cavalry honored her with the Volunteer of the Month Award of Fort Hood in 2007 and she earned the “Gallon Pin” for donating a gallon of blood to the Red Cross over the years.
 
Vasseur said her proudest moments came when she was younger. She said she was blessed to have received the Merit Pin from three different Boy Scouts who were receiving their Eagle Scout Awards.
 
Her service to community also extends to her church, Grace United Methodist Church, where she is an active member. She has been the Youth Director there for 11 years, as well as co-director of the Vacation Bible School for five years. She also teaches Sunday School every week. She has taken her youth on 16 mission trips and leads the children into volunteerism in our community each and every day.
 
Professionally, Vasseur has been the Director of the Copperas Cove Armed Services YMCA Family Center for the past eight years.
 
A native of Quincy, Mass., Vasseur and her husband came to Copperas Cove 23 years ago courtesy of the United States Army.
 
Soon she and her husband will be celebrating 30 years of marriage. They have two daughters, Erin and Courtney, and have two grandchildren, Nolan (4) and Teegan (1).
 

 

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