The City of Virginia Beach Spotlights its “Very Best” During PSRW

In an email sent to City of Virginia Beach employees to kick off Public Service Recognition Week (PSRW), Virginia Beach City Manager Patrick A. Duhaney wanted to make sure these workers understood they were appreciated.

“You represent the very best of Virginia Beach, plain and simple,” Duhaney wrote in a May 5 message to the City’s roughly 7,500 staff members. “For me, this is undeniable. So, it’s always a proud moment when others see what I do and take time to recognize it.”

Duhaney’s email was just the beginning of the City’s celebration of Public Service Recognition Week. As Monica Kopin, the City’s director of human resources – talent acquisition and workforce development, recently explained to PSHRA, each City department is engaging in PSRW-related activities throughout the week.

The human resources department, for example, is hosting a citywide event at the City’s Princess Anne Recreation Center, where attendees can try their hand at axe throwing, enjoy lunch, receive mindfulness tips and enter a raffle for a number of prizes.

In addition, the City’s communications department is spotlighting employees across social media channels and the City’s blog throughout the week. Each day of PSRW will also include a themed lunch for City employees. Monday’s menu features chicken and waffles, followed by Pizza Tuesday and Chinese food on Wednesday, for instance.

These highlights are just a few of the “small ways” in which the City of Virginia Beach will mark Public Service Recognition Week 2025, Duhaney wrote in his May 5 email, adding that every City employee “makes a difference and heightens our overall success.

“Herbert Henry Lehman once said, ‘You can’t run a government solely on a business basis. Government should be human. It should have a heart.’ You are the heart of Virginia Beach. And you are what sets us apart.”