Vinfen Program Director Elizabeth Friary Receives Patriot Award From Defense Department
August 1st, 2011
(l-r: Hubert Kobu, Elizabeth Friary, John Pelosi, National Guard)
Vinfen employee Elizabeth Friary has been awarded the Patriot Award by the Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve (ESGR), an agency of the Department of Defense.
The Patriot Award was created to publicly recognize individuals and their employers who provide outstanding patriotic support and cooperation to their employees.
Residential Counselor Hubert Kobu nominated his supervisor Elizabeth Friary for the Patriot Award because of her extraordinary support of Kobu, a member of the National Guard, who recently returned from Kuwait where he was deployed for 13 months.
“I nominated Elizabeth because of the support she showed as a supervisor. It’s not easy to ask for a year off. I was so grateful to Elizabeth, not many employers would be so flexible,” said Kobu.
“I was surprised and flattered to be nominated for the Patriot Employee Award,” said Friary.
Elizabeth Friary has been a member of the Vinfen family for nine years. She began has career at Vinfen in the Psychiatric Rehabilitation Division as a site manager. Friary is now the Program Director at the Jefferson House program in Roslindale.
“Support for the men and women in the National Guard is not automatic by employers, but it’s very much appreciated,” said John Pelosi ESGR Area Chairman.