Valley Residential Services CEO receives Bert Hall Award

WASILLA — Valley Residential Services CEO John Weaver recently received the Bert Hall Award from the Mat-Su Health Foundation for his commitment to bettering the health of the community.

The Bert Hall Award, also referred to as a “Bertie,” is an annual recognition presented to an individual or organization that consistently exemplifies commitment to working at the systems level to improve the health and wellness of residents across the Mat-Su Valley.

VRS works to provide safe, quality and affordable housing. Weaver’s responsibilities include planning, developing, implementing, controlling and evaluating housing and maintenance programs and operations.

According to a recent press release, VRS has grown substantially under Weaver’s leadership, allowing the organization to serve more people and families by giving them a place to call home.

VRS grew from a modest five employees to over 20 currently on the payroll, and the number of housing units under management has grown from 113 units to 400, with an additional 82 currently under development.

VRS oversaw the construction of 310 housing units in addition to 40 more units recently opened within the Wasilla Area Seniors campus, according to the press release. This has given an estimated 2,000 Alaskan residents the opportunity to settle into safe, stable housing.

“John will say that the success that VRS has is actually a team effort, and he is right, it does take a team, but a team needs a leader to give it direction, to nurture it, and to guide it along a path to success, and John is that leader,” Mat-Su Health Foundation President and CEO Elizabeth Ripley stated in the press release.

According to the press release, Weaver is highly respected for his capacity to foster partnerships to accomplish VRS goals, including the Cook Inlet Housing Authority and Pacific Companies.

He is known for leveraging millions of federal, state, and foundation dollars into the Valley to complete these housing projects, which in turn, create jobs and improve livelihoods across the community.

“In addition to his paid position at VRS, John is a tireless volunteer. He has served as president of the Wasilla Area Seniors and Family Promise boards of directors for more than 10 years and been active with the Mat Su Coalition on Housing and Homelessness and State of Alaska Homeless Coalition,” Ripley stated in the press release. “John also serves as an elder and trustee for First Presbyterian Church in Anchorage, which is providing supportive housing there as well. He makes a mark on housing systems wherever he goes. And that is the hallmark of a Bertie award winner. They make their mark on a system.”

Previous Bert Hall Award recipients include the Mat-Su Borough School District Health Advisory Team (2021), Kimberly Schlosser (2020), Lt. Tom Dunn (2019), Rachel Greenberg (2018), Bill Hogan (2017), Herman Thompson (2016), Margaret Volz (2015), Craig Thorn (2014) and Bert Hall himself (2013).

Contact Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman reporter Jacob at jacob.mann@frontiersman.com