Dykema Attorney Honored by United Way

Detroit – April 24, 2015 — Dykema, a leading national law firm, announced today that Gina Torielli has received United Way of Washtenaw County’s Volunteer of the Year award. She was honored during the United Way of Washtenaw County’s 2015 Annual Meeting & Volunteer Luncheon on Tuesday, April 21^st at the Washtenaw Community College in Ann Arbor, Mich.

The Volunteer of the Year award is given to an altruist who has made a significant difference in the community through his or her involvement with the United Way. The recipient exemplifies a coalition builder who fosters partnerships to drive solutions to address our community's health and human service priorities.

Torielli has been influential in the past four years as the founding member of the United Way of Washtenaw County’s IRS sanctioned Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program. Under her guidance the program reached more than 300 families this year. This free assistance brought almost $375,000 back to Washtenaw County families. She also devoted many hours to training a team of 50 volunteer tax preparers to assist with the program.

“She possesses a great deal of tax expertise, but her true gift is giving other volunteers the confidence to learn and stretch and serve,” said Amanda Reel, United Way of Washtenaw County’s Community Impact & Volunteer Center Manager. “It's not always easy to tackle the training needed to be a volunteer tax preparer, but with her support and guidance, our VITA volunteers became comfortable with their role and were better able to serve our clients. Without her vision and many hours of volunteer work, this VITA program would not exist.”

Torielli is a Senior Counsel in Dykema’s Ann Arbor office. Her practice focuses on taxation and public finance, and in that capacity she has advised many nonprofit organizations and governmental entities on issues relating to tax exemption, tax-exempt financing and state and federal tax issues.

United Way Worldwide is the leadership and support organization for the network of nearly 1,800 community-based United Ways in 41 countries and territories. The organization envisions a world where all individuals and families achieve their human potential through education, income stability and healthy lives.

About Dykema

Dykema serves business entities worldwide on a wide range of complex legal issues. Dykema lawyers and other professionals in 12 U.S. offices work in close partnership with clients — from startups to Fortune 100 companies — to deliver outstanding results, unparalleled service and exceptional value in every engagement. To learn more, visit http://www.dykema.com and follow Dykema on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/Dykema.