Karen
Chizek, a longtime Nevada County educator and an original member of the
Famous Marching Presidents of Nevada City, is the 2009 recipient of the
annual Col. Bill Lambert Award.
The
Lambert Award award is presented annually by the Marching Presidents to
recognize outstanding contributions to Nevada City and the annual
Constitution Day Parade. The award is named in honor of the late Col.
William H. Lambert, founder of the parade.
This
year's 43rd Annual Constitution Day Parade rolls through the downtown
historic district beginning at 2 p.m. on Sunday, Sept. 13.
"Karen
has been with us since Day One. She has brought a great deal of grace
and elegance to our group," said Marching Presidents founder David
Parker, who will present the award to Chizek at the group's post-parade
party at Miners Foundry.
"She
has been our inspiration in bringing the First Ladies in to march with
the Presidents, and now she is on our committee and heading up our
educational outreach program. She is a special person and she truly
deserves this special community award."
Chizek
resides in Nevada City with her husband, Frank. She retired two years
ago from a 33-year career in education, in which she rose from teaching
into administrative positions including principal of Pleasant Valley
and Williams Ranch schools, superintendent/principal of Clear Creek
School, assistant superintendent of schools for Nevada County and
program director for the Placer County Office of Education.
As
they have for the past 22 years, Karen and Frank Chizek will portray
Frances and Grover Cleveland in this year's Constitution Day Parade.
"I'm honored to be selected for this award," said Chizek, who also
volunteers for the Nevada City Chamber of Commerce and Miners Foundry.
"There are a lot of people who do amazing things for this community.
To have your efforts acknowledged, it makes you want to do more."
Under
Chizek's educational outreach leadership, the Marching Presidents will
hand out 1500 copies of the U.S. Constitution along this year's parade
route. The copies were obtained with financial assistance from Nevada
City Rotary and Gold Country Kiwanis. Next year, Chizek is planning to
arrange Marching President educational visits to area schools. She
asks interested schools to contact her.
Past
recipients of the prestigious Lambert Award are retired city manager
Beryl P. Robinson Jr., former mayor and city clerk Cathy Wilcox-Barnes,
parade organizers George and Pat Harper, city councilman and former
mayor Pat Dyer, the late real estate broker Jim Mackey, writer Dave
Carter, Chamber of Commerce executive manager Cathy Whittlesey, former
city councilman and mayor Steve Cottrell, businessman Bob Buhlis,
retired Nevada County general services director Dennis Cassella, John
Christensen, leader of community efforts to establish the Nevada County
Narrow Gauge Railroad Museum, cartoonist R.L. "Crabman" Crabb,
business owners Lee and Susan Thurston, Nevada City public works
director Verne Taylor, historian Edwin Tyson, the late
folksinger/activist U. Utah Phillips, city engineer Bill Falconi and
organizer Patti Foster. Marching Presidents founder David Parker was
presented the award in 2007 to mark the group's 20th anniversary.
The
Marching Presidents of Nevada City is a fun-loving and educational
group that portrays all 44 U.S. Presidents with reverence, good humor
and varying degrees of historical accuracy. For reliable information
on U.S. Presidents, see www.americanpresident.org.