By SARAH SHMERLING | Editor-in-Chief
The deadline for nominations for Pacific Palisades Community Council 2025 Citizen of the Year and Golden Sparkplug awards is approaching Friday, October 17.
“We continue to encourage Palisadians to submit nominations of worthy community members for these special honors,” PPCC wrote on Tuesday, October 14.
Nominations must be submitted by email to info@pacpalicc.org by Friday, October 17, at 5 p.m. The awards will be presented at the organization’s annual Awards Gala on December 11 at Spruzzo Restaurant & Bar, with “plans for the special evening” underway.
“The Citizen of the Year Award honors long-term, steady, reliable and continuing outstanding volunteer service, as well as a recent extraordinary accomplishment by an individual that resulted in a substantial benefit to the Palisades community at large,” according to information from PPCC. “The recipient must be an adult resident of the Palisades at the time the accomplishment and long-term services were rendered.”
Nominations must “state the nature of the extraordinary recent accomplishment” of the candidate and also summarize their “steady, reliable, long-term service within the community.”
Golden Sparkplug Awards are designed to honor citizens who “ignite original ideas and projects into community action that benefit Palisadians throughout the community.”
“The project must have been initiated, in progress or completed during the current or prior calendar year,” according to PPCC. “Adults and youth are both eligible, and must either reside in, own real property in or operate a business in the Palisades at the time the services were rendered.”
Nominations should include the nature of the original idea, effort or project, how it benefitted the community at-large, and how it was initiated, in progress or completed during the current or prior calendar year.
PPCC explained that the requirements for residency and/or business or property ownership in the Palisades will apply to those who have been temporarily displaced by the Palisades fire but “who, with the intent of returning to Pacific Palisades, are either involved in planning or in the process of rebuilding their home/business or of remediating their standing home/business.”
For both awards, the services, accomplishment or project must have been voluntary and “not related to nor a beneficial outcome of the nominee’s business, professional or occupation.”
“Any organization or individual in the community may nominate a candidate,” according to PPCC. “There is no limit on the number of nominations an individual or organization may submit.”
In some years, PPCC also awards the Pride of the Palisades, a distinction that is discretionary and bestowed from “time to time only in exceptional circumstances,” which is determined by the Awards Selection Committee.
This year’s committee includes Chair Daphne Gronich, Chris Spitz and Cindi Young (past Citizens of the Year), as well as Richard Blumenberg and Karen Ridgley.
The Awards Event Committee includes Chair Lorie Cudzil, Kimberly Bloom, Beth Holden-Garland and Lee Anne Sanderson.
In 2024, Young was named Citizen of the Year, while Leslie Campbell and Carlos Rodriguez received Golden Sparkplugs. Thomas Hathaway was selected as Pride of the Palisades.
