Angel Wings’ Dobbs selected as Horizon’s 2023 Community Hero

 The past year has been a humdinger for Angel Wings Network and Executive Director Mabel Dobbs.

 In 2023, the 501c3 has hit or surpassed donation benchmarks in its mission to provide crucial support services to area cancer patients and their families, and acknowledgement for the effort has been abundant.

 Last week, Angel Wings was selected by Horizon Credit Union as its 2023 Community Hero and was awarded $280 in gift cards to be used as the organization wishes.

 “Angel Wings Board of Directors and volunteers feel so honored and grateful to be recognized by our community as an organization worthy of their support,” Dobbs said. “Without the support and generosity of our businesses, individual donors, friends, and loved ones we would be unable to provide the much-needed, free help to cancer patients and their families in our rural communities.”

 This is the third year that Horizon has named a Community Hero, past recipients including the Washington County Sheriff’s Office and the Weiser Fire District.

 “The money goes to local heroes and Angel Wings is a great organization that helps our local people with cancer and thought they were a good choice,” said Horizon’s Brittany Phillips.

 So far this year, Dobbs was named Beta Sigma Phi sorority’s First Lady of Weiser and, last spring, she was chosen as the 2023 Weiser Valley Roundup Grand Marshal. More recently, she was awarded the Idaho Philanthropy Day Talented Volunteer Award through the Idaho Philanthropy Day program directed by the Idaho Nonprofit Center, which is supported by Serve Idaho and the Governor’s Commission on Service and Volunteerism, among other sponsors.

 Dobbs said she hopes to keep the momentum going through 2024.

 “That’s our prayer; we feel that we have been so blessed in 2023 from our donors and our supporters,” she said. “Our biggest blessing has been our ability to help the cancer patients in our rural area and we keep praying because we are going to increase our budget by at least $20,000 next year. With that said, we can increase our budget all we want, but unless we’ve got the support of a giving community, we don’t make it, so we have been so blessed.”

 She added that the momentum seemed to begin with a story broadcast by KBOI Channel 2 in Boise. News anchor Brent Hunsaker interviewed Dobbs, which received $500 through Mountain America Credit Union’s Pay It Forward program. The segment aired in August 2022, reaching viewers all over southwest Idaho.

 “It seems like from that point in time on, it got out to a bigger base,” she said.

 Dobbs also mentioned her appreciation for the local media in Weiser.

 “And what you guys have done for us as far as the press and as far as always being there to tell the story when we do get nice acknowledgements, there aren’t words to express how important that is to have,” she told the Signal American. “It breaks my heart that newspapers across the country are struggling, but people do read the newspaper and what you guys have done for us this year, I don’t know how to express my gratitude.”

 In the end, however, Dobbs said Angel Wings’ mission could not be realized without the help of her board and the many volunteers who make the organization what it is.

 “We have been so blessed and could not do it without a group of volunteers that works as diligently as they do, and as committed as they are,” she said. “I don’t know of too many volunteers that are as committed as the group I have at Angel Wings. And that doesn’t just come randomly; I mean it takes work to put those people together who work so well together, so if I take any credit for anything, it’s my ability to pull a team together.”