[caption id="attachment_2725" align="alignleft" width="199"]Beth Rosenblum receives award.[/caption]

When Beth Rosenblum got the call that she’d been selected to receive this year’s Sudbury Valley Trustees’ Distinguished Public Service Award, she could hardly believe it. “My first thought was ‘why am I being recognized?’ I’ve always worked as part of a team.”

Rosenblum, who works as the conservation administrator for the town of Southborough, was recognized for the 12 years she has served on the Ashland Open Space committee. Rosenblum also helps to coordinate Green Up Ashland, the town’s annual Earth Day celebration that features a town-wide clean up. The Distinguished Public Service award honors an individual who has demonstrated exceptional leadership in local, state or national government service.

In addition to her environmental activism, Rosenblum is also an active union member. She has been a member of the Local 888 Executive Board for the past year and a half, and serves as vice-chapter chair of her unit in Southborough. Rosenblum says that a belief in the power of collective action inspires her. “What- ever the issue, we have so much more strength when we’re unified,” says Rosenblum.