One of the main tenets of membership in the Lions Club is promoting and recognizing those who serve others.
At the River Grove Lions Club’s annual Humanitarian Night Meeting on Nov. 4 at the River Café, the organization instituted a new award, recognizing a village employee for his or her service on the job. The was presented to River Grove police Det. Damian Villagomez.
It’s a new award for the club. River Grove Lions Club President David Kasprak said it’s for village employees who work in law enforcement and emergency fields. He said police officers need to be recognized for the positive impact they make in light of negative publicity some in the profession have created.
“We wanted to honor one of our guys or girls and give them recognition for the job they do,” he said.
He said Villagomez was the perfect recipient.
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“He’s a leader,” he said. “He’s quite a guy. The chief nominated him and is familiar with Damian’s activities and accomplishments.”
Villagomez, 44, was presented with a framed certificate and the club made a donation to the charity of his choosing. He has been a River Grove police officer since 2003, becoming a detective in 2009.
“It was an honor to get this,” Villagomez said. “I’m not made for getting all of this attention. I was sweating.”
Villagomez requested the donation go toward research on Lou Gehrig’s disease. Also known as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS, the disease attacks nerve cells in the brain and the spinal cord that control muscles. Villagomez said his aunt had the disease.
His parents, wife and family, River Grove police officers were in attendance to congratulate him.
“It was nice to be recognized in this way,” he said.
Twitter: @DavidDPollard