2022

The Fairview School Foundation Board of Directors has named the Fairview Area Historical Society as the 2022 Barbara F. Junker Community Service Award recipient. This prestigious award is presented annually to an individual, group, or organization which shares Mrs. Junker’s commitment to the Fairview School District and embraces the characteristics of dedication, loyalty, and community service.

The Fairview Area Historical Society is a non-profit organization whose mission is to preserve and promote Fairview’s rich history. This year they are celebrating 45 years of service to our community! Over the years they have researched, collected, and displayed countless archives and artifacts. They routinely educate our citizens and school children. We are very fortunate to have this amazing group of volunteers safeguard our heritage for future generations.

We honored this amazing group at the beloved Sturgeon House - a beautiful treasure of our Fairview community!

Please join us in congratulating them!

2021

The Fairview School Foundation Board of Directors has named Dr. Katie Kutterna as the 2021 Barbara F. Junker Community Service Award recipient.  This prestigious award is presented annually to an individual, group, or organization which shares Mrs. Junker’s commitment to the Fairview School District and embraces the characteristics of dedication, loyalty, and community service.

Dr. Katie Kutterna is an active business member of the Fairview community.  She proudly opened Progressive Chiropractic Center in 2008 and continues to operate her chiropractic facility here in Fairview today.

Dr. Katie has served on the Fairview Community Council for 13 years and has been acting president for the last ten.  She has been in charge of the Holiday Food Baskets over the past 10 years, helping numerous Fairview families. She also assists the council in awarding a scholarship to a Fairview High School senior every year.

Dr. Katie is a charter member of the West County Lions Club, a
member of the Kiwanis Club of West Erie County, and a
member of the Flagship Chapter of BNI.

Dr. Katie resides in West Springfield, with her husband Frank and son Frankie.

The Fairview School Foundation Board of Directors has named Laura Symes as the recipient of this year’s Barbara F. Junker Community Service Award.  This prestigious award is presented annually to an individual, group, or organization which shares Mrs. Junker’s commitment to the Fairview School District and embraces the characteristics of dedication, loyalty, and community service.

 Laura Symes is a Fairview parent, volunteer, advocate, leader, and friend of the Fairview community.

Laura served as a Fairview School District Board member for 16 years. During this time, she was President, Vice President, as well as the chair for Education and Policy Committee, Budget and Finance Committee, and Operations and ECA Committee. She negotiated numerous teacher and support staff contracts, set strict budget guidelines, adopted countless Board policies, and hired hundreds of the best teachers and administrators in the state.

 During her time as a Board member, Mrs. Symes spearheaded several initiatives, such as the 1:1 iPad initiative, the elimination of the outdated class ranking system, and the artificial turf at Jack Bestwick Stadium. She was the Boards go-to person with all things curriculum-related, and she served on multiple committees, including Comprehensive Planning, Administrative hiring, and building renovations.  She has spent and continues to spend, countless hours to ensure that the Board of School Directors is made up of high-quality individuals who are committed to the Fairview Public Schools. She has gone above and beyond in many ways to make certain that the Fairview School District is the public education leader in Erie County.

 Additionally, Laura has been actively involved with the Girl Scouts program in Fairview and greater Erie County for the past two decades. She started with Girl Scouts when her own children were young, continued as a day camp assistant director, and even today, with two grown daughters, Laura is a troop leader for Fairview children.  She organizes camping trips, volunteer opportunities, club meetings, and a host of other activities for the young women of our township.

 Laura was also heavily involved with our sports programs, serving as a liaison for our Athletic Boosters and the girls’ tennis team. She assisted in the efforts to bring the Chris Batchelor courts to the Fairview campus so that our student-athletes could honor a former student while having one of the premier tennis facilities in the county.

 Laura was a long-time fixture with parent organizations beginning with the FES PTO as president and later with the Adopt-an-Artist and PATS organizations.  She shared her passion for the Arts by planning field trips for students to museums and musical performances.  She also helped to frame artwork and hang it in our schools so that our students could be recognized for their artistic achievements. As a member of the PATS organization, Laura was an active member of what she referred to as the “Academic Booster Club.”  She was instrumental in organizing the original “Prom to Dawn” celebration in an effort to give students a safe and healthy Prom after-party.  Laura spent many all-nighters with Prom goers, helping to provide memories that will last a lifetime.

 Laura Symes has been a full-time volunteer and philanthropist in the Fairview School District for the past 20 years.  Her willingness to serve in a variety of roles, from Academics to Athletics to the Arts, shows her true commitment to the students in the District.   She has served as a mentor to dozens of new School Board members while helping to cultivate positive relationships with parents, community members, and district employees. Laura embodies all that the Barbara F. Junker Award stands for.  She loves Fairview Township and the Fairview School District.  She has helped, along with the contributions of many others especially her family, husband Phil, and daughters Hilary and Emily, to make our community the very best place to live and learn.

The Fairview School Foundation Board of Directors has named Barbara K. Wingerter as the recipient of this year’s Barbara F. Junker Community Service Award. This prestigious award is presented annually to an individual, group, or organization which shares Mrs. Junker’s commitment to the Fairview School District and embraces the characteristics of dedication, loyalty, and community service.

Barbara K. Wingerter spent her adult life as a Fairview resident and volunteered for countless organizations in our community. She and late her husband, Daniel, owner of Paragon Packaging Products, raised their family here and sent four children to school in the Fairview School District.

Like many women of her generation, Barbara became deeply involved in her community. She was a member of the American Association of University Women for many years. She was very active in the Fairview Presbyterian Church, serving in different capacities. She served on a number of boards, including the Friends of the Library, where she worked (successfully) to bring a library branch to Fairview Township (known as Lincoln Community Center Library). She was also a founding member of the Fairview Historical Society.

Additionally, she served on the Fairview School Board for almost 15 years alongside Barbara Junker. She took her role as a school board member very seriously and spent many hours reading the copious documents that were sent to their home and covered the dining room table. She attended endless committee and board meetings as well as meeting with fellow school board members. All for the betterment of the District and its students.

We are so proud and honored to recognize this outstanding Fairview citizen!

2017

The Fairview School Foundation Board of Directors has named Amy and Jeff Brinling as the recipients of this year’s Barbara F. Junker Community Service Award. This prestigious award is presented annually to an individual, group, or organization which shares Mrs. Junker’s commitment to the Fairview School District and embraces the characteristics of dedication, loyalty, and community service.

Amy and Jeff have served the Fairview School District and community in all of these ways. Together they spearheaded the Tiger Turf fundraising campaign and were responsible for bringing artificial turf to Fairview’s Jack Bestwick Stadium. They served as Presidents of the Fairview Athletic Boosters for 3 years and were coordinators of Tiger Casino Night, the Tip-Off Tournament, Athlete of the Week, and several Senior Recognition ceremonies and annual banquets. They also coordinated the outfitting of equipment and supplies for the concession stand upon completion of its construction.

Amy served for more than 10 years on the Fairview School Foundation board and was President for 6 of those years. She annually coordinated the Homecoming Fair and created the Foundation’s annual report. Amy was an active participant on all Foundation committees. She was often called upon and met with other school districts in the area and offered guidance as they sought to establish their own foundations.

Amy worked for the district as the Public Relations Coordinator from 2004-2013. She created the annual calendar and quarterly newsletters and coordinated numerous district events. She could always be found with a camera in her hands. She also participated in the district’s strategic planning efforts and served on several administrator hiring committees.

Jeff and Amy are active members at Wayside Presbyterian Church where Jeff currently serves as an Elder and Amy is a former Deacon. Jeff currently chairs the strategic planning committee and Amy is working as part of the Public Relations crew.

Jeff works at Erie Insurance and is Sr. Vice President of Corporate Services. He serves on numerous boards in the city including the Port Authority, Perry Square Alliance, and BEST – Bayfront Eastside Taskforce. Jeff additionally served on the fundraising cabinet for the Erie City Mission.

Amy and Jeff are proud Fairview alums, as are their three children, Nathan, Jeremy, and Jessy.