Hiscock & Barclay, LLP, Partner Sheila A. Gaddis has been selected as the recipient of the Urban League of Rochester's 2009 Community Leadership Award for Outstanding Volunteer, in recognition of her outstanding contributions to the Rochester community. Gaddis will be presented with the award at the League's 44th Annual Meeting and Reception at the Rochester Museum and Science Center on Tuesday, April 28, 2009.
Gaddis is Hiscock & Barclay's Firm Diversity Partner and has an extensive background in the area of non-profit law and administration. She serves as Executive Director of the Volunteer Legal Services Project of Monroe County, Inc. and has been widely involved with the New York State Bar Association committees on Minorities in the Profession, Funding for Civil Legal Services and President's Access to Justice initiative. She has also been co-chair of the state-wide Pro Bono Coordinator's Network. Gaddis actively participates in the Monroe County Bar Association's Minority Clerkship Program and the President's Commission on Access to Justice. In addition, she is a member of the John Marshall High School Law and Government Advisory Committee, which is instrumental in assisting urban students obtain real-world experience through legal internships.
The mission of the Urban League of Rochester, New York is to enable African-Americans, Latinos, the poor and other disadvantaged to secure economic self-reliance, parity and power and civil rights. The League's three-pronged strategy for pursuing its mission includes: ensuring that children are well educated and equipped for economic self-reliance in the 21st century; helping adults attain economic self-sufficiency through good jobs, home ownership, entrepreneurship and wealth accumulation; and ensuring our civil rights by eradicating all barriers to equal participating in the economic and social mainstream of America.