Now in its sixth year, The Morris & Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation Awards for Distinguished DC Government Employees were created to honor the best in public service by the District’s municipal workers. This year’s winners were selected from over 150 nominations.

     “As we honor this year’s finalists and winners, we are mindful of the dedicated municipal employees who serve nearly 575,000 DC residents and all who live and work in the metropolitan area. We are proud, too, that the District is a destination for millions who travel from around the world to visit our nation’s capital. Although we may sometimes take for granted many of the services we are provided, this year’s ceremony reminds us of all those who make the District a connected community and a welcoming place for us to live, play and work,” said Calvin Cafritz, President and CEO.

          The 2005 winners are:

          Patrick Burke, Inspector, DC Metropolitan Police Department, has directly overseen the development of DC’s automated traffic enforcement program, which now serves as a national model.

          Dr. Tedla Giorgis, Program Manager, Department of Mental Health, established the Multicultural Services Division within the Department of Mental Health to provide mental health services to ethnic and linguistic minority communities of the District of Columbia.

          Veronica Lipscombe, Director, Citywide Technical Services, Office of the Chief Technology Officer, created the DC Wide Area Network (DCWAN). The network connects over 30,000 DC-government users in 660 locations throughout the city.

          John McGaw, Special Assistant, Executive Office of the Mayor, has worked to improve the economic health of the District through reSTORE DC and the DC Main Streets programs. His efforts have led to the revitalization of commercial areas, such as Georgia Avenue, 14th Street, H Street NE, Good Hope Road and Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue.

          Mehr Moradi, Health Services Management Officer, Department of Health, restructured health care programs, standards and procedures and two community health centers to improve access and delivery of services to underserved DC residents.

     In addition to the five winners above, this year, Dr. Natwar Gandhi, Chief Financial Officer for the District of Columbia received the inaugural Meritorious Leadership Award. The award was created to recognize the outstanding contributions of senior leaders within the DC government. Dr. Gandhi is responsible for the city’s finances, including its approximately $6 billion operating budget and its bond obligations. Under Dr. Gandhi’s leadership the city ended the congressionally mandated control period and has achieved balanced budgets for the last seven years.

     The awards program is administered by the Center for Excellence in Municipal Management at George Washington University. For more information about program history, selection criteria and nomination process go to www.cafritzawards.org.