Roanoke City Council Names Hartman 2021 Citizen of the Year

On Monday, Dec. 20, 2021, at City Council’s 7 p.m. meeting, Roanoke City Council adopted a resolution naming Dr. Cheryl Hartman as the City of Roanoke’s 2021 Citizen of the Year.

Dr. Hartman focused her career on science-driven approaches to the prevention of school dropouts, teen pregnancy, obesity, and substance misuse, and worked primarily with youth, until her shift into the addiction treatment field. As a Junior League volunteer, Dr. Hartman brought a teen pregnancy prevention program to Roanoke and was named the Director of Youth Development at Family Service of Roanoke Valley, where she worked for 15 years. After retiring from Family Service of Roanoke Valley, Dr. Hartman began her work with Carilion Clinic, establishing an adolescent addiction treatment program called “Back on Track.”

As a current faculty member of the Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine, she serves as the school’s grants project director. In addition, Dr. Hartman has led grant projects, including a childhood obesity prevention program that created school gardens in Roanoke City elementary schools. She has also worked directly with her husband, Dr. David Hartman, to develop Carilion’s office-based opioid treatment program and serves as program manager.

Dr. Hartman was also recognized for her work as an active member of the Kiwanis Club of Roanoke. She served as president during the 2019-2020 club year and, under her leadership, Kiwanis adapted many of its programs to aid the community during the COVID-19 pandemic. This included recruiting volunteers for vaccination clinics, allocating grant funds to local charities, and starting a partnership with Roanoke City Public Libraries to make video books available to teachers and the children within the community.

Additionally, from 2018 to 2020, Dr. Hartman successfully led the campaign to raise the funds and construct Centennial Playground, a $400,000 children’s playground in Northwest Roanoke, which Kiwanis gave free and clear to the City of Roanoke upon its completion. She is leading a second phase to this playground that will rehabilitate nearby Horton Branch with natural plantings, a walking trail, and environmental education facilities. Dr. Hartman has also been involved with a number of charities in the Roanoke Valley over the years, and was instrumental in founding the Community Youth Program, based out of St. John’s Episcopal Church.

For inquiries about Dr. Hartman’s selection, please contact Melinda Mayo in the Office of Community Engagement at 853-6457 or [email protected].

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