She answers the phone and is the first smiling face many people see when they visit the Ironton Senior Center.

Edna Dean was honored as the senior center’s Volunteer of the Year last month. Sponsored by the Area Agency on Aging District 7, one volunteer is chosen for recognition each year at each senior center and Senior Center Director Carol Horner said Dean is a good choice.

“She is always here to help us. She’s dependable, knows what she’s doing. And she’s good at what she does,” Horner said. “This means I don’t have to worry. Otherwise, if I had someone else, they may not know the seniors as well as she does.”

Dean said she was pleased with the honor, though surprised.

“I didn’t know what to think,” she said. “I never dreamed I’d get it.”

Dean handles front desk duties from 8:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Monday-Friday. She also helps out in the kitchen, serving meals when needed and even playing the piano for center events.

But her volunteer work doesn’t stop when Dean walks out the door. She also volunteers at First Church of the Nazarene

“I do a little bit of everything,” she explained. She is volunteer pianist at First Tabernacle. In the past she also has volunteered at Rock Hill Elementary.

For her honor, Dean got a gold watch and a certificate.