After more than five decades of honoring key individual or individuals for their volunteerism and devotion to the community, local business leaders are giving kudos to the hundreds who helped Sequim get through the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Sequim-Dungeness Valley Chamber of Commerce and a committee of former Citizen of the Year winners named Sequim’s essential workers the recipients of the 2020 Citizen of the Year award.
“It is clear no single person could be singled out in an immeasurably harsh year and therefore for the first time ever, a group award is being issued,” chamber executive director Anji Scalf said in a chamber press release on June 29.
“Whether these people belong to a faith community who made masks, community service clubs and non-profits assisting with a never-before-seen need, people who went to work because their job required on-site presence and the many others who provided essential tasks that kept our community solid, we want to say ‘thank you’,” Scalf said in the release.
The chamber also gave kudos to staff and volunteers working with local entities such as Olympic Medical Center and other health care personnel, Sequim School District, Clallam County Fire District 3, City of Sequim, along with staff at local daycares, restaurants, grocery stores and other essential retail stores, local media, hospitality businesses, the U.S. Postal Service, public transit and members of the Community Emergency Response Team (CERT).
Jamestown Family Health Clinic staff and Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) members help individuals get registered for COVID-19 vaccinations at the tribe’s clinic in January. Those assisting include (in background) Dr. Molly Martin, deputy medical director at the Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe, and CERT member Jim Johnston. Sequim Gazette file photo by Michael Dashiell
In a later interview, Scalf said this year’s honor goes out to everyone who “rolled of their sleeves” to help others get through the pandemic.
“Every time I think about it, I get really teary,” she said. “I literally don’t have the word to express (that gratitude).”
CERT coordinator Blaine Zechenelly said he had about 180 team members involved with the Jamestown Family Clinic’s COVID-19 vaccination events earlier this year that wound up vaccinating about 17,500 people.
In addition, CERT members joined other volunteers in community food drives and picking up personal protection equipment (PPE) supplies and helped out at the emergency operations center. All told, the team saw about 300 people directly participating in volunteer efforts.
Wendy Light of Sequim cuts fabric to be given out to volunteers for the creation of face masks to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in April 2020. Photo by Keith Thorpe/Olympic Peninsula News Group
Some were nervous about helping out initially with COVID numbers rising, Zechenelly said, but after they were vaccinated they felt better about participating in the events.
“It was very positive; they felt they had a purpose in life,” he said.
“People were just excited. It’s just emotional. It touched their hearts because they were fighting back.
The vaccination clinic and food drives in particular “really started to move hearts and minds,” Zechenelly said.
“(They) gave something for people to rally around.”
The Sequim-Dungeness Valley Chamber of Commerce traditionally awards the Citizen of the Year honor — and occasional Humanitarian Awards — in February, but the committee of former award recipients said they wanted to meet in person before they made the choice for 2020, Scalf said.
“I think it’s an excellent path to take,” she said of the committee’s decision.
Zechenelly agreed.
“I think it’s a very appropriate answer; everybody was working everywhere,” he said, adding that volunteering is a key function of healthy communities.
Sendy Alvarez, manager of Hardy’s Market, takes a dinner order outside the Sequim convenience store and deli on Thanksgiving Day 2020. In an annual tradition, the market gave away traditional turkey dinners to people, foregoing inside service in favor of walk-up delivery to adhere to COVID-19 distancing guidelines. FIle photo by Keith Thorpe/Olympic Peninsula News Group
Picnic in the Park
Chamber representatives said they plan to honor essential workers at the organization’s annual Picnic in the Park, set for Aug. 25 at Pioneer Memorial Park, 387 E. Washington St. Scalf said that, as in previous years, local and regional legislators are being invited to attend.
Details will be announced later this summer; see sequimchamber.com for more information and updates.
Scalf said the chamber plans to offer a virtual component for those who are unable to attend in-person.
2021 nominations
Nominations for 2021 Citizen of the Year will open in December 2021. Applications can be found on the Citizen of the Year tab on our website and will be distributed to local media outlets in late November.
Created in 1968, the Citizen of the Year Award was designed to recognize those individuals who contribute to the betterment of the community. Former Sequim mayor Peter Black was the first recipient of the award. The chamber named either one or two recipients since then except for 1973 (none awarded) and 1976 (three individuals honored).
Sequim-Dungeness Valley Chamber of Commerce Citizens of the Year
1968 — Peter Black
1969 — Carl Klint
1970 — Virginia Keeting
1971 — Virginia Peterson
1972 — Tom Groat
1973 — None
1974 — Katie and Bill Merrill
1975 — Jerry Angiuli
1976 — Chuck Southern, Howard Wood and Lorna McInnes
1977 — Nellie Tetrude
1978 — Marcia Welch
1979 — Ruby Trotter
1980 — Iris Marshall
1981 — Howard Herrett
1982 — Guy Shephard
1983 — Don and Vivian Swanson
1984 — Bill and Shirley Keeler
1985 — Ed and Marcia Beggs
1986 — Ruby Mantle
1987 — Jeff Shold
1988 — Annette Kuss
1989 — Jim Haynes
1990 — Bill and Judy Rowland
1991 — Nina Fatherson
1992 — Bud Knapp
1993 — Paul Higgins
1994 — Rand Thomas
1995 — Rochelle McHugh
1996 — Esther Nelson
1997 — Annette Hanson
1998 — Jim and Cathy Carl
1999 — Bill Fatherson
2000 — Robert Clark
2001 — Don Knapp
2002 — Gil Oldenkamp
2003 — John Beitzel
2004 — Emily Westcott
2005 — Lee Lawrence
2006 — Bob and Elaine Caldwell
2007 — Stephen Rosales
2008 — Walt and Sherry Schubert
2009 — Tom Schaafsma
2010 — Jim Pickett
2011 — Dick Hughes
2012 — Kevin Kennedy
2013 — Gary Smith
2014 — Cliff Vining
2015 — Louie Rychlik
2016 — Dave Bekkevar
2017 — Judy Reandeau Stipe
2018 — Don, Clare Manis Hatler
2019 — Deon Kapetan
First grade teacher Pattie Hagan greets James Keehn back to school at Helen Haller Elementary in January after COVID-19 precautions led school leaders to move to distance learning. Sequim Gazette file photo by Matthew Nash
Sendy Alvarez, manager of Hardy’s Market, takes a dinner order outside the Sequim convenience store and deli on Thanksgiving Day 2020. In an annual tradition, the market gave away traditional turkey dinners to people, foregoing inside service in favor of walk-up delivery to adhere to COVID-19 distancing guidelines. FIle photo by Keith Thorpe/Olympic Peninsula News Group
