Submitted by The San Juan Island Chamber of Commerce
The San Juan Island Chamber of Commerce is proud to announce the Grand Marshals and Honored Citizens for the 2025 Independence Day Parade in Friday Harbor. The Grand Marshals are Lisa Holt and Nancy Jones. We are fortunate to have 2 sets of Honored Citizens as well, Gary and Susan Sterner and Frank and Barbara Fagan. The 2025 honorees are committed to service and have made so many contributions to our island.
Lisa Holt and Nancy Jones were co-founders of PADs, the first program of its kind anywhere to train dogs for the detection of Parkinson’s Disease. Nancy’s husband, David Jones, passed from Parkinson’s Disease and it was because of his diagnosis that PADs came to be. Nancy has been a Board Member and then an Advisory Board Member for the lifetime of PADs. Lisa, the Board of PADs, and over 30 dedicated canine handlers fulfilled its mission of training dogs to detect an odor associated with Parkinson’s Disease, establish reproducible training protocol, and assist research science in the quest for the cause and cure for Parkinson’s Disease. In 2023, the study was moved to Nosais, a nonprofit research department within the National Veterinary School of Maison-Alfort, France. We thank Lisa and Nancy for their dedication and countless hours to this cause to help so many in the early detection of this disease
Gary and Susan Sterner visited here a few times and, in 2007, made the trek across the United States from Pennsylvania to live here full time. This quiet, unassuming couple has devoted many years volunteering at Lime Kiln State Park and over the years been extremely active with the San Juan Community Theatre, SJI Museum of Art, the SJI Home Trust, Island Stage Left, the Joyce Sobel Family Research Center and Archipelago Collective, to name a few. We thank Gary and Susan for their kindness, compassion, and generosity to these organizations. Their unwavering support has made a meaningful difference, and we are deeply grateful.
Frank and Barbara Fagan came to visit from Rhode Island for many years before retiring here in 1996. The Fagans hit the ground running with their involvement in the community. The couple has traveled the world with their involvement in various organizations. In 2003, Frank and Phil Meyer started the first Rotary Club on the island and the couple has remained involved in Rotary and have been honored in the Rotary Foundation. Barbara has been involved, to name just a few, in community gardens throughout her life, the Rotary’s Dictionary program, enrichment programs at the Elementary School, the Textile Guild, the SJI Community Foundation’s Women’s Fund. Frank has served on many boards, and to name a few – the SJI Golf and Tennis Club, St Francis Church, United Way, the early days of the Village and the Mullis Center. Frank and Barbara’s generous hearts and unwavering kindness have brought meaningful support to these organizations. We are honored by their commitment and care.
We honor these men and women for their commitment to our community and are so fortunate they chose to live here all those years ago.
The parade, which will start at approximately 10:30 a.m.(depending on the ferry arrival) on July 4th will proceed down historic Spring Street through downtown Friday Harbor.
