4th of July Parade Dignitaries Announced

Posted May 5, 2017 at 5:43 am by

Friday Harbor, WA – The San Juan Island Chamber of Commerce is proud to announce the Grand Marshal and Honored Citizens for the 2017 Independence Day Parade in Friday Harbor. In keeping with the theme “America…All That We Share”, the Grand Marshal will be Carolyn Haugen, a writer, educator, art enthusiast, community activist and volunteer. The 2017 Citizens of Honor will be Dr. John Geyman and Emily Reed Geyman.

Grand Marshal Carolyn Haugen holds an Ed.D. from the University of Southern California and after moving to San Juan Island was the Superintendent / Principal of the Shaw Island School District and the Principal at Friday Harbor Elementary. Ms. Haugen’s history of volunteerism is legendary in the San Juans having served as the President and as Board Member for the San Juan Community Theatre; as a member of CATS, the Theatre’s fundraising organization; as President and as Board Member for the Animal Protection Society of Friday Harbor, as Board Secretary and Treasurer for PADs for Parkinson’s; as Board member and Vice President of the San Juan Preservation Trust, as a member of the Mt. Grant Steering Committee; and in her spare time she served as a Trustee for the San Juan Island Yacht Club, the Friday Harbor Power Squadron and the San Juan Nature Institute. This list merely scratches the surface of Ms. Haugen’s community contributions. Carolyn has “Shared” so much of her time and talent with San Juan County and was the perfect choice to be the Parade’s 2017 Grand Marshal!

The Chamber of Commerce is also proud to announce a special parade tribute, the 2017 “Citizens of Honor”, who are chosen for their outstanding community contributions. This year’s honorees are John Geyman and Emily Reed Geyman. John was the former Chairman of the Department of Family Medicine and is currently Professor Emeritus of Family Medicine at the University of Washington. He was a physician at the Interisland Medical Center from 1990 to 1997 and served on the County Hospital District and Board of Health. A pilot and prodigious author, John has written 18 books and published more than 160 articles in his illustrious career. Emily Geyman is a writer of accord herself, having published Emily’s Guide and Maps to the San Juan Islands and wrote dozens of articles for the Islands Weekly between 1998 and 2005. Emily has served on the San Juan County Arts Council and San Juan Islands Museum of Art. She was a Counselor at Friday Harbor High School for 18 years and is a current member of Soroptimists and the League of Women Voters.

The parade which will start at 10:30 a.m. on July 4th will proceed down historic Spring Street through downtown Friday Harbor. More details will be forthcoming over the next several weeks, and we encourage all of those interested to begin work on their themed entries. For additional information about participating in the 2017 Friday Harbor Independence Day Parade, please email [email protected] or call Traci Wilson, Parade Coordinator at 360-298-7760 or 206-595-5104.

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Categories: Community, Recreation

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