Kacie Paxton, Ketchikan’s Borough Clerk and the spokesperson for the island’s Emergency Operations Center, received the Ketchikan Chamber of Commerce’s Citizen of the Year Award at their “Celebration of the Stars” gala. In recent years, Paxton was on the front lines of the island’s COVID response and tense 2020 election, but the award comes after Paxton was a voice of solidarity for residents in a year marked by a devastating landslide and another turbulent election cycle.
“It’s very humbling. I am just just part of a team, so I was surprised that I was nominated, but it is humbling, very grateful, and it means a lot coming from the community and from the Chamber,” Paxton said about the award, adding that it was a team effort.
“I worked hard, but there were a lot of people working hard along with me. So they deserve the award just just as much as I do. So I’m honored. I’m thankful for the award, but I share it with so many, so many people throughout the year,” she said.
Paxton began working with the Ketchikan Borough government over 20 years ago and has been the Borough Clerk since 2009. She said this year though, she and other officials with the Borough and City governments were busy preparing for a state and national election year that required additional security and accessibility at the polls on top of more public communication on the election’s integrity.
“So we were doing a lot of preparation, lot of preparedness, getting ready for the three elections this year: the August primary, the local election and the general election,” said Paxton. “We anticipated that it would be busier than usual this year. We did not anticipate the landslides.”
In late August, a large landslide occurred in Ketchikan’s White Cliff neighborhood. The slide killed one person and demolished multiple homes. Paxton, along with her City of Ketchikan counterpart, Kim Simpson, provided updates to the community throughout the disaster. Sean Griffin, the man who died in the slide, and his co-worker Chris Riley were also honored at the event with the ‘In Service to Others’ legacy awards, a pair of ceremonial quilts. Griffin and Riley were City employees who were clearing storm drains when the slide came down over them. Riley recovered from his injuries.
Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski also addressed attendees at the event via a pre-recorded video. She said Paxton and other nominees faced extraordinary circumstances following the landslide.
For Paxton, it’s in difficult times like these that the work of local government shines.
“It’s nice that the community recognizes and is appreciative of the work of government. I think that it hasn’t always been that way,” she said.
Paxton accepted the award alongside other City and Borough staff that she said worked alongside her through everything this year threw at them.
Other awardees included:
- Bess Clark who won the “Excellence in Customer Experience” award for her work as the Director of Community Connections.
- The Landing Hotel and Restaurant won the “Business of the Year” award. The now-retired longtime owners Terry Wanzer and Kay Sims announced earlier this year that the business had been sold to a Utah-based investment firm. Wanzer and Sims came up to the podium to accept the award though and thanked their staff and the community.
- The “Exemplary Community Service” award was given to the linemen of the Ketchikan Public Utilities Electric Division. The four linemen have faced a heavy workload this year, with critical understaffing at KPU and an aging electric grid. The linemen accepted the award alongside their manager Jeremy Bynum.
- Ty Rettke received the “Emerging Leader” award for his work as the Director of local homeless shelter Park Avenue Temporary Housing. The shelter has become the only overnight resource for the island’s homeless population following the closure of the larger First City Homeless Services earlier this year.
- The “Entrepreneur of the Year” award went to Dock Street Yard, a food truck park in downtown Ketchikan that first opened in 2022.
