The award is given each year to someone in our community for their, ‘commitment to environmental sustainability and social equity, and for displaying the courage, care, collaborative spirit, and tenacity to make the world a better place.’ Cathy Strickler received the inaugural award at the 2025 Earth Day Luncheon hosted by Renew Rocktown.
Photo by Daniel Lin / DN-R. 2025
Cathy was an original founder of Climate Action Alliance of the Valley (CAAV) in 2008. She has spent decades collaboratively educating, advocating, and acting on the ecological and social crisis that is climate change. Cathy has been a longstanding member of the Shenandoah Group of the Sierra Club’s Executive Committee, and also proudly remembers advocating for women’s right in the 1970s. Former CAAV Chair Andrew Payton shares, “Cathy is truly the best kind of leader. Not only does she make others feel included, heard, and appreciated. She also makes others more effective. She’s assertive, unwavering. Cathy is a real good troublemaker and we are lucky to have her.”
Cathy accepting her award at the 2025 Earth Day Luncheon hosted by Renew Rocktown. Photo by Andrew DeVier-Scott. 2025.
“Cathy is a real good troublemaker and we are lucky to have her.”
– Andrew Payton Former Board Chair, CAAV Treasurer, Renew Rocktown
Cathy Stickler ‘Good Trouble’ Awardees
2026 – Tom Benevento
Tom has been a driving force for good here in the Valley and around the world, collaborating with others who seek social justice and ecological healing in their communities. He is founder and co-director of New Community Project’s Sustainable Living Center and the Jubilee Climate Farm here in Harrisonburg and Rockingham. Tom’s work has been inspired by living with Guatemalan indigenous farmers for over a decade, and he has extensive experience learning, teaching, and working with village farmers across Latin America. Here in Harrisonburg and Rockingham County Tom was a leading collaborator for a variety of projects around public transportation, clean energy, and environmental justice.
“Tom has been an inspiration to countless people in our community and has been persistent at creatively making our community a better place. His spirit is quiet and gentle, yet incredibly forceful. Tom does not back down from doing what is right. Through his engagement in our community in the last 20 years, Tom has been extremely effective at identifying needs in our community, building relationships, being strategic, and getting shit done. Tom lives out the future that he wants to see in the world and inspires all of us who are willing to open our hearts to his example.“
– Jeff Heie Director, Give Solar
Photo by Jorden McLean
2025 – Joy Loving
Joy Loving has been active in climate work, clean energy development, energy efficiency, and climate policy work for decades. Joy was responsible for leading not one but two major solar cooperatives in Harrisonburg and Rockingham, greatly expanding local clean energy generation. A longtime leader with Climate Action Alliance of the Valley (CAAV), she is a local expert and Valley representative on climate-related state and federal policy. She has led the charge on numerous local climate campaigns, policy initiatives, grant applications, and events.
“Joy is collaborative, tenacious, determined, courageous, and caring. She’s just enough of a pain in everybody’s butt, and especially our elected officials and utility operators, to be more than worthy of an award named for Cathy Strickler and in the spirit of John Lewis.”
– Pete Bsumek Chair, Shenandoah Valley Chapter of the Sierra Club
