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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Uncommoners

The Spokesman-Review

The first thing to say about the accomplishments listed on this page is that as exemplary as they are, they are not unique.

It takes nothing away from the Uncommoners we are recognizing that others in the community also are worthy of acknowledgement. It’s a subjective undertaking – picking a handful of honorees out of a region with half a million people – and we know that many readers would have chosen differently. I won’t dispute them.

But the family and four individuals featured here today are darned impressive in my view, and if many other area residents deserve similar attention, that’s great.

People such as Girl Scout board chairperson Teri Wessels during a year of transition and planning. Or Dr. Sam Selinger, founder of Project Access, which delivers health care to the needy. Or John Baker, a one-time Spokesman-Review employee who turned the personal tragedy of losing a daughter into a commitment to encourage organ donations. Or Volunteers of America’s Merilee Roloff with her dedication to Spokane’s youth. Or do-it-all citizen activists such as Hobart Jenkins, of Bayview, or John E. Hill of Kettle Falls, Wash. Or …

Well, you get the idea.

This is the third New Year’s Day that we on the editorial board have looked back over the past 12 months and tried to single out contributions of citizens, and the second year we’ve used the five categories you see represented: citizen activists, nonprofit work, government, business and – the only category that represents efforts that span more than the year just ending – lifetime achievement.

The board deliberated over not only our own nominees but also a number that came from readers who, responding to our published invitation, came up with an impressive array of uncommoners of their own.

A brief aside about that name, “uncommoners.”

Civic life doesn’t thrive solely on the efforts of political and other high-visibility figures whose names and faces are widely recognized. Much of what makes a community hum is the uncommon work of common folk. We’ve tried to measure the contributor by the contribution, and all the people identified here – some better known than others – have made uncommon impressions on the Inland Northwest.

In 2008, we plan to keep watching for demonstrations of civic responsibility, whether from a family of activists like the Franchinos profiled above or a lifetime of dedication like Mary Ann Murphy’s. Whether from an earnest civil servant like Gavin Cooley, making government work more smoothly for all, or from a principled business person, such as developer Marshall Chesrown, marrying private enterprise with sound community values.

Or one who, like Breean Beggs, treads the middle ground between the private and government sector, doing the nonprofit work that otherwise falls through the cracks.

From time to time, we’ll post reminders here that this is a yearlong vigil and your contributions are invited. But you don’t have to wait for the invitation. When you become aware of outstanding citizenship, drop us a line with details explaining your recommendation. You can e-mail us at citizencall@spokesman.com.

I’m already eager to see whose stories will grace this page next New Year’s Day.