WELLS — The Town of Wells will be celebrating the contributions of nearly 400 volunteers at the 5th Annual Volunteer Appreciation Breakfast on Tuesday. This year’s event will be held at the newly renovated Johnson Hall Museum, 2713 Post Road. In addition to a program that includes department heads who will be touting all the benefits of volunteers, Selectman Karl Eckstedt will be announcing the recipient of the Volunteer of the Year award, Charles “Chuck” Millian.

Millian started as a volunteer on several committees in the mid-1980s and became a member of the Site Review Board. The Site Review Board merged with the Planning Board in November 1993; Millian has been on the board ever since, including approximately 17 to 18 years as the chairman. When asked what he liked most about his volunteer experience, Millian said, “I enjoy trying to make the town a better place to live in and a better place to be.”

During the fiscal year that ended in June, members of the Wells Volunteer Force contributed nearly 9,000 hours to the Town of Wells on a myriad of boards, committees, and programs. This equates to more than $200,000 (based on 2015 average dollar value of volunteer time) of savings to the town.

The contribution of knowledge, skills, and abilities donated to the town goes well beyond a dollar figure. The feeling of doing something good for residents and the environment is truly why volunteers are out and about in town almost daily in one capacity or another. Whether it’s on a board, like the members of the Personnel Advisory Board, or a committee, like the members of the Harbor Advisory Committee, or one of the town programs such as the piping plovers, town volunteers are committed to making Wells the best place to live, work and play.