Faces

As the director of the Community Agencies Corporation, a New Jersey charity, Tony Peele founded the state's first shelter for homeless crack babies. With over $100,000 worth of church-donated supplies, he transformed an abandoned home into a nursery for newborns suffering from drug withdrawals. Live-in volunteers at the shelter, called Project B.A.B.I.E.S., provide 24-hour care for five babies at a time and offer year-long rehabilitation programs for drug-addicted mothers. Retired engineer Robert "Papaw" Keeling, 76, is the full-time "resident grandfather" at the Houston-area Katy Elementary school. For the last 20 years, Mr. Keeling has volunteered 40 hours a week mentoring the school's at-risk students, tutoring custodians for their GEDs, and using his technical skills as an in-house maintenance man. He also plays piano for the students during lunch. "He brings a spirit of service without expecting anything in return," said the school's principal, Leslie Smuts.