Washington Coalition for Open Government: Andersen Award

Awards

Andersen Award

WCOG Honors 2010 Madison/Andersen Award Honorees
Frank Blethen & The Seattle Times Company – 2010 Madison Award Honorees
Duane Swinton & Witherspoon Kelley Davenport & Toole – 2010 Andersen Award Honorees

Click here to read the Press Release.

Criteria
The Andersen Award - Given to an individual or organization that has done something extraordinary to advance the efforts of the Washington Coalition for Open Government. Download the Nomination Form (.pdf).

To view the WCOG Annual Awards Program honoring the 2009 James Madison Award winners Denny Heck & Stan Marshburn (Co-Founders of TVW) and the 2009 James Andersen Award winner State Auditor Brian Sonntag, Click here

Recipients

2009 - Brian Sonntag	Since his first election as State Auditor in 1992, Brian Sonntag has been a passionate, leading advocate for citizens of the State of Washington. Now in his fifth term as Auditor, Brian remains committed to ensuring state and local governments are accountable, accessible, and responsive to citizens.Brian has a distinguished career in public service. He was elected Pierce County Clerk when he was 26 years old and served eight years in that office. Brian was also elected twice to the office of Pierce County Auditor (an office his father also held for 22 years), before being elected State Auditor.Brian serves as a board member of the Washington Coalition for Open Government. His advocacy for open government earned him the Washington Newspaper Publishers Association’s Freedom’s Light Award in 1999. And his efforts to improve local government operations earned him the Warren G. Magnuson Award from the Seattle Municipal League in 1999.Brian is also a member of the State Productivity Board and co-chairs Public Service Recognition Week, an annual event showcasing the achievements of state employees. Professionally, Brian holds designation as a Certified Government Financial Manager from the National Association of Government Accountants. He also serves as a trustee on the Association of Government Accountants’ Academy of Government Accountability.
2008 - Kris Passey	Kris Passey is a founding member of the WCOG organization and a strong voice for government openness and accountability for decades in Washington state. A Marysville resident, Kris retired last year from publishing the Marysville Globe and Arlington Times. During his career as a journalist and publisher, Kris was an outstanding advocate for open government and the coalition. He advanced the work of WCOG by providing the printing of the coalition’s brochures and producing a series of eye-catching posters, as well as providing public service announcements and producing a video explaining the mission of WCOG. Kris Passey’s efforts in outreach have also extended beyond the borders of the United States. In October 2005, Kris traveled to Santiago, Chile to participate in Pro Acceso under a U.S. Department of State U.S. Speaker and Specialist grant. There he met with journalists from Chile, Peru, Mexico, and Britain and discussed access to public information and the work of WCOG.
2007 - Frank W. Garred	Frank W. Garred is a retired newspaper publisher, owning and operating community newspapers on the Olympic Peninsula since 1967. He has served as president of the Port Townsend Chamber of Commerce, Washington Newspaper Publishers Association, the National Newspaper Association (NNA), National Newspaper Association Foundation, and the International Society of Weekly Newspaper Editors. He served seven years as NNA’s representative to the national Accrediting Council for Education in Journalism and Mass Communications. A 1958 graduate of the University of Washington with a degree in Journalism, he served in the army (infantry) with duty in Korea prior to joining the news staff of the Aberdeen Daily World in 1960. He was a newspaper reporter and editor from 1960 until 1967 when he purchased the newspaper at Port Townsend. He served as executive director of the Washington Coalition for Open Government from its creation in 2002 until June 2004, and as Vice President in 2006. He has taught Journalism courses at Western Washington University and Peninsula College (Port Angeles).

2009 - Brian Sonntag

Since his first election as State Auditor in 1992, Brian Sonntag has been a passionate, leading advocate for citizens of the State of Washington. Now in his fifth term as Auditor, Brian remains committed to ensuring state and local governments are accountable, accessible, and responsive to citizens.Brian has a distinguished career in public service. He was elected Pierce County Clerk when he was 26 years old and served eight years in that office. Brian was also elected twice to the office of Pierce County Auditor (an office his father also held for 22 years), before being elected State Auditor.Brian serves as a board member of the Washington Coalition for Open Government. His advocacy for open government earned him the Washington Newspaper Publishers Association’s Freedom’s Light Award in 1999. And his efforts to improve local government operations earned him the Warren G. Magnuson Award from the Seattle Municipal League in 1999.Brian is also a member of the State Productivity Board and co-chairs Public Service Recognition Week, an annual event showcasing the achievements of state employees.

Professionally, Brian holds designation as a Certified Government Financial Manager from the National Association of Government Accountants. He also serves as a trustee on the Association of Government Accountants’ Academy of Government Accountability.

2008 - Kris Passey

Kris Passey is a founding member of the WCOG organization and a strong voice for government openness and accountability for decades in Washington state. A Marysville resident, Kris retired last year from publishing the Marysville Globe and Arlington Times. During his career as a journalist and publisher, Kris was an outstanding advocate for open government and the coalition. He advanced the work of WCOG by providing the printing of the coalition’s brochures and producing a series of eye-catching posters, as well as providing public service announcements and producing a video explaining the mission of WCOG. Kris Passey’s efforts in outreach have also extended beyond the borders of the United States. In October 2005, Kris traveled to Santiago, Chile to participate in Pro Acceso under a U.S. Department of State U.S. Speaker and Specialist grant. There he met with journalists from Chile, Peru, Mexico, and Britain and discussed access to public information and the work of WCOG.

2007 - Frank W. Garred

Frank W. Garred is a retired newspaper publisher, owning and operating community newspapers on the Olympic Peninsula since 1967. He has served as president of the Port Townsend Chamber of Commerce, Washington Newspaper Publishers Association, the National Newspaper Association (NNA), National Newspaper Association Foundation, and the International Society of Weekly Newspaper Editors. He served seven years as NNA’s representative to the national Accrediting Council for Education in Journalism and Mass Communications. A 1958 graduate of the University of Washington with a degree in Journalism, he served in the army (infantry) with duty in Korea prior to joining the news staff of the Aberdeen Daily World in 1960. He was a newspaper reporter and editor from 1960 until 1967 when he purchased the newspaper at Port Townsend. He served as executive director of the Washington Coalition for Open Government from its creation in 2002 until June 2004, and as Vice President in 2006. He has taught Journalism courses at Western Washington University and Peninsula College (Port Angeles).

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