Sterling Heights community relations staff receives awards

STERLING HEIGHTS — The Sterling Heights community relations staff recently received several regional and national awards for communication excellence.

Staff members were recognized in a variety of categories.

“While we celebrate these awards, I also want to highlight the work that our team does is about celebrating the stories that matter, the voices we amplify and the audiences we connect with every day,” Community Relations Director Melanie Davis said. “In our department — and with our partners at the Police Department and across the organization — we believe in the power of storytelling to inspire, to inform and to transform.”

Sterling Heights Marketing and Communications Manager Marissa Russo was named “Young Professional of the Year” by mParks, an organization that supports Michigan’s parks and recreation community in a number of ways. Russo’s award recognized leaders in the parks and recreation field for their contributions to their agency, community and the profession statewide. Russo is scheduled to receive the award in person at the mParks annual conference March 5.

The city’s Community Relation Department, in partnership with the agency Identity, received two honorable mentions from the National PR News Platinum Awards for work on the “Look No Further” campaign. “Look No Further” is designed to bring the experiences and perspectives of Sterling Heights residents to the forefront, focusing on cultural, historical and innovative destinations. To view “Look No Further” videos, visit youtube.com/@shtv and search for “Look No Further” to see the videos.

Sterling Heights Broadcast Services Coordinator Dan Rizek also was recognized, receiving a national Hometown Media Award in Audio Programming-Access Center Professional category for the “Talk’n the Beat” podcast. The Hometown awards program was established to honor and promote community media, community radio and local cable programs distributed on Public, Educational and Governmental access cable television channels. The award was shared with Sterling Heights police officers Larry Reynolds and Kevin Coates from the Community Services Bureau for their role in hosting the podcast. The podcast can be streamed on spotify.com or Apple Podcasts by searching for the Talk’n the Beat podcast.                                                                                                                                     

Additionally, Broadcast Services Specialist Bob Sergott earned three regional Philo Awards: the George C. Stoney Community Activism Award for the “Legally Speaking: Food Insecurity” program produced in collaboration with Lakeshore Legal Aid and the Macomb County Bar Foundation; a Philo T. Farnsworth Award in the Performing Arts-Professional Category for the “Sterlingfest: Steven Adler” video; and a Philo T. Farnsworth Award in the Comedy/Humor-Professional Category for the On Scene web series “Float Institute” episode shared with host police officers Reynolds and Coates.

“I’m incredibly proud of our Community Relations Department for their dedication, creativity, and excellence in communication. Winning numerous local, regional, and national awards reinforces Sterling Heights’ position as a leader in public communication across the nation,” Sterling Heights Mayor Michael Taylor said. “Their commitment to innovation and transparency sets the standard for how cities connect with their communities, and I couldn’t be more grateful for their passion and talent.”

Legally Speaking videos can be viewed at youtube.com/@lakeshorelegalaid528. Search “Food Insecurity and Poverty.”

To experience the Steven Adler concert, visit youtube.com/@shtv and then search for “Sterlingfest 2023: Steven Adler.”

For On Scene, residents can go to youtube.com/@shtv and search “On Scene,” where all of the On Scene episodes will appear.