SEQUIM — Emily Westcott — who some have joked is the Susan Lucci of Sequim — finally got her moment in the spotlight Tuesday.
Westcott was awarded 2004 Citizen of the Year by the Sequim-Dungeness Chamber of Commerce.
Like Lucci, who waited years for a much-anticipated Emmy for her work on TV’s “All My Children,” Westcott had been nominated for Citizen of the Year several times.
She was honored this year for her involvement in several projects, including beautification efforts in downtown Sequim and her fund-raising on behalf of Olympic Theater Arts, the Boys & Girls Club and the Irrigation Festival.
She also works at the Boys & Girls Club, where the kids know her as the lady who always has a line of sequins — or “diamonds” — next to her right eye.
“When you want something done in this town, no one is more committed to a project than Emily,” said Bill Littlejohn, one of the people who nominated her for the award.
“Emily makes a big contribution to Sequim — not just this year, but for several years, and I’m sure for many years to come.”
Past recipients select
A committee made up of former Citizens of the Year picked Westcott, Dave Blake and Bob and Evelyn Hough as finalists from a pool of nominations submitted by community members. They were chosen based on their history of volunteer service in the Sequim area.
Westcott moved to the area in 1979 to be vice principal of Port Angeles High School. She moved to Sequim in 1980.
Her husband owned the Red Ranch Restaurant, and she took it over after his death.
That’s when she started getting more involved in the community, she said — an involvement that increased after she retired from the public school system in 1998.
“It’s been an entirely new experience for me, because I was an educator for so many years and [I didn’t] have the time,” she said.
“It’s been a lot of fun.”
