Venezie honored with Rotary Club award

As part of celebrating 100 years of service in the Ellwood City area, each month the Rotary Club has chosen local men and women who have exhibited the qualities that emphasize the Rotary motto of 'Service Above Self.'

At a recent meeting, Rotary President Doug Slade presented the citation to Ricky Venezie, the last recipient.

Venezie was honored for being the creator and star of the Ricky V Show that aired on WXED 107.3 FM  five days a week from 7 to 8 a.m. from 2015 until November 2022. As a volunteer, Venezie created the hour-long show of music with his unique wit and was also the biggest fundraiser for the station.

Venezie was also honored as the founder of Kitties Found Home Inc., a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization that cares for cats. Venezie not only provides a safe environment and individual attention, he also has paid for all the medical care and all of the cats are spayed or neutered.

The Rotary Club also gave him a donation to Kitties Found Home.

"We applaud Ricky for his devotion to the radio station and the hundreds of volunteer hours he spent on the air and off. We also recognize his important work in providing a safe haven for cats," Slade said.

After graduating from Lincoln High School in 1978, Venezie was the wrestling coach at Lincoln and Laurel high schools for 20 years and also coached girls and boys track and girls tennis.

For 35 years, Venezie was the distribution manager for the Post-Gazette until it was no longer distributed in the area.

During their year-long celebration, the Rotary Club sponsored many events including the road cleanup, drive safely signs and Earth Day projects.

Slade said getting the road signs and new signs in the park were among the important projects the club accomplished in its 100 years.

"I think the most rewarding were recognizing local men and with the service awards, scholarships, Earth Day celebration, parades, wrapping gifts for YRG, and the Ellwood City Festival, Oktoberfest and Fall Fest, being out in the community with friends, showing Ellwood City what a wonderful organization Rotary is. I think living our motto of Service Above Self is what is most important," Slade said.

This article originally appeared on Ellwood City Ledger: Cat care advocate honored by Ellwood City Rotary Club