KBS recognizes three employees for excellence with end-of-year awards

The W.K. Kellogg Biological Station community honored three staff members as the 2024 Employees of the Year. The honors included two full-time employees and one part-time employee.

Honorees

The award-winning staffers are:

Sierra Amyx

Sierra (center) is a team member with the W.K. Kellogg Conference Center and Manor House. She has been with KBS for almost three years. Some comments from her nominations:

“She always greets our customers with a smile and goes the extra mile to make sure their experience with KBS is excellent.”

“Sierra goes out of her way to help all of us, no matter what.  We have received emails from guests about how helpful she was during their stay at KBS.”

“She is willing to learn new things and wants to make an impact. Sierra is a true asset to the CCMH and KBS.”

Daniel Gorentz

Daniel (right) is an IT technician with KBS Computer Services. He has been with KBS for around seven years. Some of his nominators said:

“Daniel will drop whatever he is doing to help solve a problem, no matter how small. But what’s most important is that he always seems happy to help and likes to share his knowledge with others.”

“He has spent the last several years bending over backwards to assist people and he always does so with such a patient attitude, often going above and beyond to gather information or to provide assistance. He is a highly valued member of KBS and I would love to see him recognized!”

“He is very clearly dedicated to bringing KBS an excellent IT service and goes out of his way to be helpful.”

Kevin Kahmark

Kevin (left) is a research assistant with the Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center and KBS Long-Term Ecological Research site, based in the Robertson Lab. He’s been at KBS for about 16 years. Earlier this year, Kevin won a mentoring award from the GLBRC.

Some of his nominators said:

“Not only the students and postdocs at KBS but also people from different departments at MSU’s main campus have regularly benefited from Kevin’s scientific wisdom and expertise.”

“Calling him a tech doesn’t do justice to all that he does for those projects. Kevin is a problem-solver you can come to with any kind of issue, and he’ll be willing to try and help you figure out a solution.”

“Kevin cares deeply about KBS and people here being appreciated for what they do. It would be a beautiful thing if we could repay that commitment by showing him just how much he is appreciated for all that he does.”

Join us in congratulating Sierra, Daniel, and Kevin!