For Will Lynn, who grew up in a military family, service was a fact of life.

Will worked more than 30 years as a rehab counselor helping injured employees and currently serves as president of his local food bank and senior center. And he’s a critical member of our Eastern Montana Disaster Action Team.

At the Montana Red Cross annual meeting earlier this summer, Will received the 2025 Tom Wozniak Montana Chapter Excellence Award, given to the Red Cross volunteer who exemplifies the highest level of commitment to Red Cross values while delivering superior service.

Wozniak was a longtime Montana Red Cross board chair and member and played an important role with the organization by securing funding, recruiting leaders to the board and using his influence to raise awareness of its work in Montana. He has been a blood donor for more than 20 years and lives in Missoula.

Will, who lives in Absarokee, Mont., joined Red Cross in 2022 and serves as the Eastern Montana Disaster Action Team coordinator and as a home fire campaign team member and duty officer. And he responds to many home fire calls.

“Every one reminds me why Red Cross is important,” he said.

Will has deployed as a government operations volunteer to large national disaster responses such as the Maui wildfires and Hurricane Helene and also helped here at home during the 2022 Yellowstone flooding.

He was recognized for his leadership and commitment to building volunteer capacity and strong community relationships across Eastern Montana. Will has been a steadfast thought partner to volunteers and paid staff and is a champion for the clients and communities we serve.

“I show up when it’s hard to do so,” he said.