The award, which will be presented at the Biennial Meeting of the ABCUSA June 26-28 in Pasadena, CA, honors American Baptists who have made outstanding contributions to the life of the American Baptist Churches USA, to their own church, and to their own lives and those in their community.
The Phares are leading lives that make a difference.
Until her retirement, Margene was a counselor and co-owner of Professional Christian Counseling Services, which had a sliding fee scale that made counseling available for those who could not afford it otherwise.
She has also been instrumental in helping to raise funds for two major projects: The Connection, a homeless shelter now under construction in the community; and a functional, child-friendly facility for the North Platte Community Day Care Center, which she helped found.
Margene has served on numerous boards, including those of the Rape and Domestic Abuse Program, the Community Domestic Violence Intervention center, the Salvation Army, and the Scholarship Committee for the Mid-Nebraska Community Foundation.
She has served as the President of the American Baptist Churches of Nebraska, and on the boards of Central Baptist Seminary, KS, and the University of Sioux Falls, SD.
In their church, Margene has chaired the Mission Committee and the Board of Christian Education, as well as serving as a deaconess, Sunday school teacher, and small group leader.
Together, the Phares lead Marriage Enrichment seminars and lay ministry training weekends, as well as annual mission work with Child Evangelism Fellowship.
When he was 28 years old, Robert Phares was elected mayor of North Platte, the youngest mayor of a first-class city in the state at that time. Thus began a lifetime of service to his community.
During his tenure as mayor, Robert engineered the merger of a protestant and Catholic hospital into a single hospital owned and operated by a nonprofit corporation. He then served on its board for 24 years, and led a 7.1 million dollar expansion during his time as the board's chair.
In addition to running Phares Financial Services, an independent financial services and planning firm, he has been active in North Platte's Rotary Club and Chamber of Commerce, the North Platte Development Corporation, and the League of Nebraska Municipalities.
He has served on numerous boards, including the Board of Regents of the University of Nebraska and the board of American Baptist Homes of the Midwest, which operates continuous care communities for the elderly, group homes for teens, and low income housing projects in several states.
With all of his activities, Robert has always had time for their church, serving as a Sunday school teacher, youth sponsor, deacon, lay speaker, and congregational president.
The Phares have three children and five grandchildren.
American Baptist Churches USA is one of the most diverse Christian denominations today, with 5,500 local congregations comprised of 1.3 million members across the United States and Puerto Rico, all engaged in God’s mission around the world.