Burien City Councilmembers unanimously selected two residents – Maureen Hoffmann and Betty Olson Vacca – along with a local group – Neighbors of Seahurst Park – as Burien’s 2014 ‘Citizens of the Year’ at Monday night’s (March 17) meeting. The Citizen of the Year Award is given annually to a person or organization that makes “a significant contribution to the community.” UPDATE: Awards will be presented at a reception at the start of the April 21 regular council meeting (originally it was set for April 7) to the following:

[caption id="attachment_72053" align="alignleft" width="142"]Maureen-Hoffmann-Web-Portrait Maureen Hoffmann[/caption] Maureen Hoffmann is a Designer & Consultant at Kunstdame, as well as the Founder of WABI Burien, where she created monthly Walk-n-Talks, a local Bike Rack program and much more. She is a graduate of Highline High School and the University of Washington, and is well known in the local arts scene. Betty Olson Vacca is a local Artist who has won many awards for her work, including the Purchase Award for the City of SeaTac and the City of Tukwila. Betty was also commissioned by the Highline Medical Center, where many of her paintings are part of the hospital’s permanent collection. She is a member of Artists United. Neighbors of Seahurst Park is – according to its website – “a loosely knit group of people interested in protecting Seahurst Park and the surrounding area from damage caused by allowing a large development to ignore current regulations. Some of the people involved have been working on this for over 10 years, but now that the development approval process is nearing the final stages a more coordinated effort is required. To help with that NoSP has formed a non-profit corporation and has started a more determined fund raising effort. All the people working on this project are volunteers and do not receive any money for their efforts. However it has become necessary to hire an attorney and we will be hiring some consultants.”
Previous winners include: ]]>

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10 replies on “Council selects 2 residents, neighborhood group as its 2014 'Citizens of the Year'”

  1. So proud of my sister, Maureen! Well deserved recognition for such hard work she has done for WABI and Burien.

  2. We’re so happy to see Maureen honored! She has given so much to our community — and she gives in such a delightful and easy way!

  3. On behalf of the volunteers for Neighbors of Seahurst Park – Thank You for selecting our group for this honor. There are members of our group that have been working to protect Seahurst Park for over 20 years. The link below is to the press release we issued in September 2013 after a settlement was reached between Neighbors of Seahurst Park and Westmark Development. Our group will continue working as a citizen education group to inform and educate all citizens on how to protect Seahurst Park’s environmental health and beauty now and for future generations.
    http://seahurstfriends.org/files/Settlement_Press_Release_091613.pdf

  4. A perfect match…..Maureen and Citizen of the Year! Anyone who is lucky enough to be in her sphere feels blessed.

  5. Maureen is unique in her creativity, passion and commitment to making Burien shine! We are very fortunate!

  6. You couldn’t have chosen a better person for your citizen of the year. I’ve known Betty Olsen Vacca for quite a few years and she is a shining example of how to live a meaningful life. We can all learn life lessons from her. Congratulations Betty!

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