PORT ANGELES — The Port Angeles Chamber of Commerce will honor finalists and announce awards on Saturday night in the Fourth Annual Port Angeles Community Awards.
More than 100 nominations were received this year. The top three finalists in each category were selected by a panel of judges from the community.
The awards will be presented online at 7 p.m. Saturday. To view it, go to PortAngeles.org or the Port Angeles Chamber of Commerce Facebook page. The Peninsula Daily News is the award sponsor.
The finalists being honored this year are, in alphabetical order:
Organization of the Year
• Clallam County Economic Development Council — The county EDC stepped up to provide information and resources to help businesses impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic health, said nominators Dawnya Scarano and John Brewer.
The EDC started the Choose Clallam First website with local resources for business and community members and weekly Coffee with Colleen Zoom chats with the executive director.
It brought in five grant programs for over $2.1 million impacting 346 businesses to Clallam County, made sure businesses and residents were aware of all funding available and disperses the money quickly
• Habitat for Humanity — During a pandemic, Habitat for Humanity of Clallam County completed three houses, with has two more under construction and two more ready to start, said nominators Paul Arndt and Don Brown last fall.
The organization has sponsored Rally in the Alley community cleanup, fosters relationships among 10 local churches and provides affordable building materials and house ware in both Port Angeles and Sequim and collaborated with Peninsula Housing Authority to get a family into a home in Forks.
• Port Angeles Police Department — The year of 2020 was “a year of heightened scrutiny of policing practices and standards, and the Port Angeles Police Department responded with increased community engagement and a high level of professionalism,” said Mike French, who nominated the organization for the award.
He cited the REdisCOVERY program and accreditation by the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs,along with its commitment to community policing.
“The PAPD’s focus on engagement and community policing, its innovative partnerships finding upstream diversions to prevent crime and get people into treatment and other appropriate services, and its high standards of conduct and transparency is notable and deserves our recognition,” French said.
Citizen of the Year
• Dr. Allison Berry (Unthank) — The Clallam County Health Officer, who led efforts to contain COVID-19 took a part-time job which turned into a 24/7 duty during the pandemic, provided regular community updates on the pandemic and created and installed a contact-tracing network, said nominators Christopher Thomsen, Jessica Grello, Navarra Carr and Trisha Hoagland,
“Clallam County has consistently done better than other counties in the state through her leadership. She has displayed leadership during a time when many communities suffered greatly due to a lack of foresight,” they said.
She “does a job that nobody wants and she’s faced intense criticism and backlash, with grace and poise.”
• Steve Deutermann — Deutermann is involved in a variety of nonprofit ventures, including serving as Clallam Toys for Tots coordinator, board president of the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Olympic Peninsula and serving as a CASA volunteer to advocate for foster youth.
He served on the committee for the capital campaign for the new Boys & Girls Clubs Port Angeles Clubhouse, has assumed several leadership positions at St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church, is a member of Mt Olympus Detachment 897 Marine Corps League and is in uniform at veteran funerals, serves on the Clallam County Civil Service Commission and actively promotes the Navy JROTC program at Port Angeles High School, said nominators Gail Wheatley, Mary Budke, Bill Benedict and Norma Turner.
“Through his huge heart and community-based work, he makes Clallam County a better place to live,” they said.
• Patty Pastore — Pastore received eight nominations for her work in cleaning up abandoned homeless camps and other areas of Port Angeles.
Pastore “every day loads up her car and heads out to make a difference. I can’t even imagine what our community would look like if Patty hadn’t been cleaning up for over five years,” said Karen Rogers who nominated Pastore along with Amie Woods, Leslie Babbitt, Margie Mirabella, Marie Mosley Elisa Simonsen, Michaelle Barnard and Stephanie Melnick.
She cleans up Port Angeles Veterans Park every day and has a regular routine of cleaning up the estuary, Waterfront Trail, under the Eighth Street Bridges, the Rayonier site, and creeks and ravines, nominators siad.
She does with a team of volunteers she has attracted. From January to September last year, the group collected 1,160 bags of trash and 1,468 needles during 505 hours of volunteer work.
”Patty is one the humblest and most passionate people I have been blessed to cross my life,” Rogers said.
Business of the Year
• Little Devil’s Lunchbox — As of 2020, the business has won The Best of Peninsula’s-Best Lunch Special 2013-20, Best Takeout 2019-20- and finalist and wins in the best Chili and BBQ, said nominator Jennifer Ward.
On short notice, co-owner Jon Unruh opened his restaurant after a huge snowfall in 2019 to provide food for a volunteer party at the Winter Village, she said.
The business recently began operating a food truck in Sequim, “finding a way to expand his business even during a pandemic.
“He is a great employer who provides a fun, supportive, work environment, and has managed to keep his employees working during covid with expanded takeout and catering,” Ward said.
• LumberTraders Inc., parent company of Angeles Millwork & Lumber Co. and Hartnagel Building Supply — Lumber Traders is an employee-owned company that provides community services, said nominator Paul Collins.
Community First Saturdays, where each month they supported a local nonprofit with the portion of their sales from the day, has raised thousands of dollars for local organization, he said. The business has worked with Habitat for Humanity, to sponsor the annual Summer Build Class and gathered PPE for area hospitals.
• PNW Mobile Detailing — PNW Detailing has helped the community in many ways, said nominator James Murray.
The business helped to coordinate the Trunk and Treat at Extreme Sports Park for Halloween; took over the route when the Port Angeles Fire Department canceled Operation Candy Cane because of COVID-19 and collected 4,846 pounds of food for the Port Angeles Food Bank
The business also supported and helped with local demonstrations calling to fight against racial inequality and uses its social media accounts to promote the Shop Local movement as well as to support COVID precautions encouraging people to wear masks and practice social distancing.
Emerging Business of the Year
• Fogtown Coffee Bar — Since opening in 2017, Fogtown has “smartly and steadily built their business while showing extreme generosity and dedication to our community during the time of a global pandemic,” as well as providing community services, said nominator Kayla Oakes.
The owners, Rose and Jason Thompson, have donated coffee service for several nonprofit events, gift cards for fundraisers for multiple organizations and candy and staff member to hand out for Halloween; handed out free brown bag lunches for children at their drive-through, no questions asked; started a fund to feed unemployed service workers during the pandemic in collaboration with Sergio’s; among other services.
• Ridgeline Homecare Cooperative — This employee-owned agency, which opened in January 2020, provides in-home care to elders and people with disabilities.
Some 10 caregivers discussed the need of a cooperative business to deliver home health care in a different way a couple of years ago and opened their doors to provide the service, said Mary Reynolds, who nominated the business along with Deborah Craig, cooperative director with Northwest Cooperative Development Center.
“Covid hit immediately after the business was started and they managed to pivot their business to keep their employees and clients safe,” said nominators. “They built a solid client base and excellent staff during the pandemic.”
The business “provides good paying jobs, a democratic workplace and excellent care to our more vulnerable community members,” nominators said.
• Sasquatch Bakery — The bakery makes donuts and fritters and has “shown ingenuity, i.e. the gingerbread shaped long john donuts.” said nominator MarySue French.
“This business not only involves their whole family, but they have employees as well. The service is quick and friendly and they follow all the COVID guidelines,” she said.
Young Leader of the Year
• Jeremy Gilchrist — As chief operating officer of the Olympic Medical Foundation, Gilchrist oversees six major fundraisers each year.
He “works with all phases from organizational, to technical, communications and roll up your sleeves work,” said nominator Julie Hatch.
He also assists the Port Angeles Chamber of Commerce with events and donates time to other nonprofits.
“He is a great example of what a leader should be,” according to Hatch.
• Dylan Godsey — As director of coordinated entry at Serenity House of Clallam County, Godsey manages millions of dollars in funding for rent assistance, homelessness prevention, diversion, family shelter and essential needs, said nominators Anthony Alcantar, Tami Williams, Lacey Fry and Karin Welch.
He has prevented evictions for over 220 families, paying nearly $500,00 in past due, current due, and some future rent directly to their landlords, nominators said. He also went door-to-door to make sure that as many people as possible knew about the assistance available through Serenity House, they said.
“A program of this magnitude would not have been possible without Dylan’s passion and commitment to serving this community,” they said.
“He really goes above and beyond every single day to bring services to low income and homeless people Clallam County and we are all so proud of him,” said Williams.
• Chelsea Winfield — As the owner of Amma’s Umma in downtown Port Angeles, Winfield supports ethical global economies while also providing jobs to individuals within our community amid a global pandemic, said nominator Lauren Bailey.
Bailey said that Winfield donates 50 percent of her profits toward adoption assistance and gave more than 2,500 organic fair trade cotton masks to Olympic Medical Center during the height of the mask shortage locally.
She “is a hardworking, dedicated, and inspiring individual and more than deserving of being awarded Young Leader of the Year,” Bailey said.
Amma’s Umma also won the $5,000 Community edg3 Award in Kitsap Bank’s annual edg3 small business competition in December. The prize is awarded to the business that the judges felt best embodies the spirit of community.
Educator of the Year
• Dan Cobb — Cobb goes above and beyond as Hamilton Elementary music teacher, according to fellow educators Lisa Martinez, Teresa Bjornes, Julie Smith, Erica Quesnel and Krista Winn, who nominated him for an award.
He motivates students through music, and inspire his students to share his passion with music, they said. Cobb has an alter-ego called Garbanzo the Monkey that attends school assemblies and brightens up distance learning.
The veteran of 20 years of teaching also has worked hard to find funding for musical instruments for his students, including building them in his own garage.
“He is an inspiring and entertaining teacher whose lessons are always the first completed,” they said.
• Tiffany Gillespie — The principal of the small, private Olympic Christian School, worked with the county health officer to maintain in-person learning for students, said nominators Amanda Sandoval, a teacher at the school; and Janine Smith and Kristin Rowland.
“She knows each student by name and goes out of her way to greet them each morning while making sure they’re symptom free. She has almost single-handedly grown a small, private school while handling many other duties in an excellent way, they said.
She also teaches math, does bus duty, recess duty, or any other job that needs to be done.
• Kasey Ulin — The Port Angeles High School boys basketball head coach “provides an unique support system for all of his players from the C Team to Varsity,” said nominator Donya Alward.
In addition to his job as a corrections officer, he focuses on developing the players athletically, educationally and emotionally,”Alward said.
”Since COVID has drastically changed the ability to play and practice, he has set forth many challenges and goals for the boys to achieve, keeping them active both physically and mentally.
“The amount of care and effort he puts into me is something I aspire to hold and implement into my future self. I can wholeheartedly say my coach is not just someone I look up too, but someone I call family for the rest of my life.,” said Chase Cobb.
Ulin was inducted into the Forks Spartan Hall of Fame in 2018.
Judges for this year’s community awards program were Jennifer Burkhardt, chief human resources officer at OMC; Paul Collins, owner of EnviroClean Northwest and Port Angeles Food Bank board member; Corey Delikat, city Parks and Recreation director; Kristin Helberg, project manager for Vanir Construction; LaTrisha Ollum-Suggs, Jamestown S’Klallam Tribal member and Port Angeles City Council member; Tami Rose, customer relations manager for Wilder Auto; and Salina Treider, owner of Dance Studio 360.
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NOTE: More than half of the origianl story could not fit into the print edition. To read all of the story, go to peninsuladailynews.com.
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Executive Editor Leah Leach can be reached at 360-417-3530 or at lleach@peninsuladailynews.com.
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Terry Ward, publisher of the Peninsula Daily News, Sequim Gazette and Forks Forum,serves on the Port Angeles Chamber of Commerce board of directors. and is vice chair of the Economic Development Corp. board of directors.
