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She’s half of Ashland’s dynamic duo and she’s about to receive a significant honor.

Tomorrow, Lorie Foley will join in celebrating her volunteer service by being named the recipient of a Commonwealth Catholic Charities Service Award.

She was nominated by her sidekick, Sue Forbes Watson.

If it’s an event taking place in the Ashland community, Lorie and Sue are sure to be involved.

While she is a member of St. Ann’s Catholic Church in Ashland, being a Catholic is not a requirement to receive the honor. The individual recipients must be a person:

With tireless dedication to organizations serving the most vulnerable in the Richmond and Central Virginia community.
Who has demonstrated leadership as a volunteer with a long history of community service.
Who often works behind the scenes to ad-vance the mission of a community service organization and help assure its success.

Lorie’s sister, Kathy Abbott, helped Sue write the nomination. Her husband, Jim, also assisted by doing some “research in my office.”

In her nomination of her friend, Sue described Lorie as being “dedicated, talented and tireless.”

“Honored with the Virginia Chapter of Arthritis Foundation’s ‘Hero of the Year’ Award in 2003, she not only worked fiercely to raise money and awareness of this crippling disease, she was the second highest individual fundraiser in the entire country that year. And she managed that extraordinary feat while struggling with arthritis herself,” the nomination stated.

Additional volunteer projects include: the Ashland Foundation, which Lorie help found, to channel money to programs “that bridge diversity in the community and enhance the quality of life of all Ashland residents.”

She works with the Ashland Christian Emergency Services and the Ashland 150 Web site. She also has a hand in TownHound.com, a Web site with a “mission to keep the community informed about what is going on in the Ashland/Hanover area.”

Her involvements are many and diverse, and include school and sporting events.

“The Center of the Universe” became home to Lorie, Jim and their children, Jimmy and Nora, in 1995. They came to the Richmond area to be close to her stepdaughter Amanda.

“We ended up in Ashland because we had a big chocolate lab (labrador retriever) and we needed a yard. We found a house along the (railroad) tracks that accepted dogs — and here we are.”

She wasted no time in getting involved in her new home. “I got involved almost right away,” she said last week while enjoying a cup of coffee at the Ashland Tea and Coffeehouse.

Lorie and Sue formed a bond through the Ashland Musical Variety Show, which Sue founded in 1982. A seamstress, Lorie “helped out with costumes” in 1999. Slowly she gained momentum in her responsibilities.

“I think it was in 2001 that I directed one number. In 2003, I directed several — now she (Sue) considers me co-director, which is amazing. This is her baby. Sue is sort of the soul,” Lorie said.

‘This has been a particularly busy year — from the 150th (the Town of Ashland’s birthday celebration) to the variety show,” she said. “Hundreds of people came out to volunteer for both events.”

Kathy lives next door to Lorie and their brother, Sean Kennedy, also lives in Ashland.

Looking ahead to the awards program, Lorie said, “I’ll be surrounded by family.”

The presentation will not be a surprise though. She learned she would be honored for her volunteerism during last month’s variety show. “They had to find out my availability on the 30th,” she said with a grin.

“I’ve been fortunate in my life — including my parents, Carol Kennedy of Tappahannock and the late Frank Kennedy, and Sue Watson.”

“It’s a lot of work, but I enjoy any project I get involved in. I do things that I want to do,” Lorie added. “There’s a lot of satisfaction in getting to know people.”

Lorie was raised in Maryland and is a graduate of the University of Maryland (bachelor’s and master’s degrees.

Lorie will receive her award during the program, which is scheduled from 5:30 to 8 p.m. at Lewis Ginter Botanical Gardens at 1800 Lakeside Ave. in Richmond.

For more information on the Commonwealth Catholic Charities, or tomorrow’s awards program, visit http://www.cccofva.org/defaultHome.aspx.