(Joanne Moore, right, holds her Director-of-the-Year award presented to her last Thursday by past-president of the Massachusetts Council on Aging Barbara Farnsworth.)

Ask anyone in town about Joanne Moore and the response is always the same: she’s an angel on earth.

As Duxbury’s Council on Aging director, she’s known in the community for her generous spirit. At Town Hall, she’s held in the highest regard for her many accomplishments. She’s beloved by her colleagues and visitors to the Senior Center for listening well and responding to a multitude of needs with seeming ease. Last Thursday, her peers at the Massachusetts Council on Aging (MCOA) agreed and unanimously chose her to be the MCOA Director-of-the-Year. When asked her thoughts on the honor, what it meant to her after all of her years of hard work, Moore humbly demurred. It was only when asked what such an honor means to the community would Moore respond.

“We have an amazing staff who makes it easy for me to do things at the state level,” said Moore, before leaving for a regional Live your Life Well program she coordinated with nearby COA directors. “It’s a huge accolade for the center as a whole. I don’t have to wor-ry about the house when I’m away because the house takes care of itself.”

Moore also gave her husband and two children credit for enabling her to do her job well and for pitching in every time she needed them.

“They don’t tell you when they hire you that they hire the whole family, but they do,” said Moore, sharing how her husband is quick to man a grill and her kids often help set tables for events at the Senior Center.

But Moore didn’t stop giving credit there. Brushing off questions about her work and accomplishments, Moore said it’s the staff at the center and the legion of volunteers who share in her award.

“The staff is amazing here,” said Moore. “They are so dedicated and care about the people they serve. Everything just works here. Our Friends of the Duxbury Council on Aging organize our volunteers. There are 247 who gave 29,000 hours last year, saving the town $600,000. That’s equal to 14 staff members!”

Past recipient of the MCOA Award, Carolyn Brennan, described working with elders as “the nice person career” in her introduction of Moore at the ceremony last week. Brennan said she spoke with several people in Duxbury when writing her speech and all echoed the same sentiment about Moore. Wrote Brennan, “(Moore) works too hard, takes on more than the average person can handle, but does it with ease and patience.”

Town Manager Richard MacDonald wholeheartedly agreed. When asked about Moore, his face lit up.

“There aren’t enough superlatives to describe the work she does,” said MacDonald, who plans to bring Moore before the Board of Selectmen to honor her in town. “Her big-gest downfall is she doesn’t know when to say ‘no.’ She does a fantastic job and she’s a fantastic person. See? How many times have I said fantastic?”

Donna Ciappina, the outreach manager at the Senior Center added her voice to the chorus of those who respect and value both Moore and the work she does.

“We think it’s great, it’s well-deserved,” said Ciappina. “She has a lot of energy. She’s always willing to try

something new and has a lot of great ideas.”

While Moore might be too humble to accept such praise for herself, she will as part of the whole who serves the elder community.

“It’s the whole package,” said Moore. “It takes a village to get that award and we have a great village.”