HomeMy WebLinkAboutCC Resolution 15060 (Citizen of the Year 2022)
Resolution 15060
City of San Rafael
Richard P. O’Brien and Mary Ferrario O’Brien
Citizen of the Year Award for 2022
Presented to
Samantha Ramirez
WHEREAS, Samantha Ramirez is committed to uplifting the community in which she resides, both
in her work and her extracurricular activities. As a bilingual and bicultural community
member with family from El Salvador and Honduras, she has worked hard to be a
powerful bridge between the LatinX communities in San Rafael and the bodies that
govern San Rafael. She is a passionate advocate for students and creating a fairer and
more equitable environment for inside and outside of the school system; and
WHEREAS, Samantha is a coordinator of the Marin County Youth Commission, a group of 23 young
people that work with the Board of Supervisors, and she has worked to increase the
number of students of color on the Commission and transformed the group to better
represent Marin County. The Commission is proud to include a variety of races,
cultures and experiences, which was a variety that did not exist previously; and
WHEREAS, In 2020, Samantha worked with students who had a desire to participate and attend
rallies for Black Lives Matter, and built trust and relationships with their families to
assign and coordinate pick-ups and drop-offs for students who desired to attend. The
relationships she built with families, and difficult conversations she facilitated, were
with the purpose of providing experiences to students that could make a difference and
to help introduce them to advocacy; and
WHEREAS, Samantha makers herself available to families who don’t speak English by meeting
with them and helping them maneuver through more complicated processes. One
example of this was her work with a family who desired to find housing but needed
assistance with filling out and submitting applications in English. She met with this
specific family on three occasions until they were able to acquire housing; and
WHEREAS, Samantha spends much of her free time volunteering by serving on the Youth and
Parent Council for Marin Promise Partnership, attending community events, Board of
Supervisors, City Council and School Board meetings; she supported the Marin
Community Fridges Initiative and advocated to eliminate School Resource Officers
from San Rafael schools; and
WHEREAS, Samantha ran for Office for the San Rafael Board of Education in 2020, and while
unsuccessful, she wanted the School Board to represent the community they serve and
to signal to young people that they can also run for office and that their voices would be
heard. Her running for Office provoked discussions among the youth of San Rafael
about the importance of representation, of having someone in leadership who
represented a significant part of the community. Her candidacy demonstrated that the
voice of the youth matter, and the voice of people of color in this community matter;
and
WHEREAS, Samantha has made such an impact to the community that she received a total of nine
nominations for Citizen of the Year. In the opinion of her nominators, she has gone
above and beyond her official role to nurture and mentor kids in our community,
particularly Latino kids who have had very few Latinos in leadership roles to whom
they could look up to and relate. She has served as a bridge builder, which is a
tremendous gift, and which she does without compensation, and she has proven to be
an exemplary citizen of San Rafael.
NOW, THEREFORE LET IT BE RESOLVED, that the San Rafael City Council expresses its appreciation to Samantha
Ramirez on behalf of this community and hereby awards her the Richard O’Brien and the Mary Ferrario O’Brien
Citizen of the Year Award for 2022 on Monday, May 2, 2022.
Mayor