I usually reserve this space for commentary on some major campaign or government related issue, but in the spirit of the holiday season, I want to use this time to talk about those who give back to the community.
This week, we unveiled the winners of our 2019 Pioneer of the Year awards. We honored one individual, one business, and one community organization selected by our readers for having the biggest positive impact on Amarillo over the past year. Our readers nominated plenty of deserving candidates and selected the winners from a pool of finalists.
For Pioneer of the Year, we have in the past named three individuals to this honor, all chosen by the readers of the Pioneer. In 2016, our readers selected then-Amarillo City Councilman Randy Burkett. In 2017, our readers honored former mayoral candidate Renea Dauntes, and in 2018, our readers honored Amarillo Brown Bag Runs founder Kip Billups. This year, we are delighted to honor PETS Clinic of Amarillo executive director Dacia Anderson for her tireless work for responsible pet ownership in the community.
In our new categories this year, our readers decided to honor Polk Street Nutrition as Business of the Year and Gracie’s Project as Community Organization of the Year. Both entities are certainly deserving of their honors.
While we have three winners to honor (and they will receive their award plaques next week), I think it is also worth recognizing the finalists who also received the support of our readers. For Pioneer of the Year, I don’t think anyone can argue that our field of finalists did not have a substantial impact on Amarillo in 2019, in a variety of ways. We are truly lucky to live in a city with individuals such as the ones who were nominated for their hard work with the goal of making Amarillo a better place to live.
I do not know what 2020 will have in store, but I am hopeful that there will be even more individuals, businesses, and organizations to recognize next year for positive work in the community.
-Thomas Warren III, Editor-in-Chief