The Rev. Joe Harvard, pastor at Durham's First Presbyterian Church, received the Durham Downtown Rotary Club's annual Community Service Award this week.

City Councilman Mike Woodard, who nominated Harvard for the award, said Harvard has been a leader in Durham's civic and religious life since arriving at First Presbyterian in 1980. He was a founder of Habitat for Humanity in the city, served two terms as president of Durham Congregations in Action and is a former board member of Durham Regional Hospital and the Forest at Duke retirement community.

In 2005, Harvard organized a task force to aid people moving to Durham after hurricanes struck the Gulf Coast. Presently, he is on the boards of Duke University's health systems community advisors and Kenan Institute for Ethics.

Chamber official passes leadership program

Danielle N. Kaspar, program director with the Greater Durham Chamber of Commerce, has graduated from Institute for Organization Management, a nonprofit leadership program of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

The institute consists of four one-week, once-a-year sessions that total 96 hours of instruction, and graduation counts toward designation as a Certified Chamber Executive or Certified Association Executive.

Kaspar has worked for the Durham chamber since 2004.