GOLD BAR — You may not know Ray Coleman, but if you live in Sky Valley you ought to thank him.
He spends his free time picking up litter, cleaning off graffiti and hanging out with area kids after school.
He advocates for a safer U.S. 2 and keeps neighborhoods safer by helping organize a block watch program.
Coleman, a 72-year-old retiree, does it all for free. That’s why community leaders named him Sky Valley Citizen of the Year. His picture will hang in the Sultan and Gold Bar city halls permanently.
At an award ceremony, he received kind words from mayors, a plaque and the surprise of his life when his name was announced. Coleman didn’t know he had been nominated for the award. He also received an award from the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office for Public Safety Volunteer of the Year.
“There are so many people who are equally deserving or more so than me,” he said.
Coleman moved to Gold Bar with his wife Sharon in 1994 after retiring from his job at Boeing as an engineering aide in the scientific research department. After retirement, he turned to volunteer work as a way to stay active, he said.
In an application for the award, sheriff’s officers credited his advocacy for swaying state lawmakers and leading to improvements along U.S. 2 between Gold Bar and Monroe.
He created an e-mail distribution list that lets everyone know what’s happening around town.
Ten people were nominated for the Citizen of the Year Award, said Debbie Copple of the Sky Valley Chamber of Commerce. The winner is chosen by secret ballot by both towns’ city council members. The result is a big secret until the winner is revealed at an awards dinner, she said.
Coleman doesn’t know exactly how many hours he spends volunteering, but his wife probably does.
“My wife thinks it’s all the time,” he said. “I don’t think it’s that bad.”
Debra Smith: 425-339-3197, dsmith@heraldnet.com.
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