Kathy Swanson Outstanding Service Award Recipients

2023 Recipient

Holly Kostrzewski

Holly Kostrzewski

Holly Kostrzewski joined the TZD effort 20 years ago, representing the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa as the first tribal partner in a TZD Safe Roads coalition. As the first Northeast/Northwest Minnesota TZD regional coordinator, Holly was a true champion of traffic safety in all aspects during her tenure. Her work on the local level resulted in unparalleled and lifesaving changes in driving behavior across the region and state. For example, when Holly first began work as regional coordinator, the seat belt compliance rate in the Northwest TZD region was 68.5 percent. As a result of her positive attitude, drive, leadership, and a great team, the rate climbed to a remarkable 87 percent; when she left, it was over 90 percent. Holly also built and fostered strong partnerships with the tribal nations of Minnesota. Nearly every county she worked with established a Safe Roads coalition—including a first-in-the-nation youth TZD conference that she fostered. In 2022, Holly began her tenure as a highway safety specialist for the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Past Recipients

2022

  • Kristi Sebastian

2021

  • Colonel Matt Langer

2020

  • Howard Preston

2019

  • Lieutenant Don Marose, Minnesota State Patrol
  • Joel Watne

2018

  • Mark Peterson, AAA

2017

  • Judge James Dehn

2016

  • Sue Porter, Minnesota Department of Transportation

2015

  • Nancy Johnson, Minnesotans for Safe Driving 

2014

  • Max Donath, Director, Roadway Safety Institute, and Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Minnesota

2013

  • Nelrae Succio, Minnesota Department of Transportation
  • Jean Ryan, Minnesota Department of Public Safety

2012

  • Major Mike Asleson, Minnesota State Patrol

2011

  • Bob O'Brien, Department of Public Safety
  • Brad Kollman, Department of Public Safety

2010

  • Sharon Gehrman-Driscoll, Minnesotans for Safe Driving

2009

  • Anne Beers, Minnesota State Patrol (retired)
  • Carol Bufton, Minnesota Safety Council

2008

  • Bernie Arseneau, MnDOT