When you think about animals, particularly lost, abandoned or discarded house pets in Seal Beach, most residents and many visitors will envision the Seal Beach Animal Care Center.
Almost superimposed on this image of the Center is the calm, kind, relentless effort of Dee Carey.
This year’s Cypress College Seal Beach Citizen of the year is Dee Carey, board member and fundraising coordinator for the Seal Beach Animal Care Center.
Carey exemplifies support for not only the Animal Care Center, but also the entire community by representing the voice of those animals, who can’t speak for themselves at so many other organizations – the Seal Beach Chamber of Commerce, the City of Seal Beach, the Helen Saunder’s CatPaws organization and even the Lions.
Last year, Carey was the Grand Marshal of the Christmas Parade and she joins a select number of recipients who have won both awards. Carey said of this year, “Seal Beach has been my home for 29 years, and I love living here. I worked in downtown Los Angeles my entire career, and coming home to Seal Beach at the end of every working day for 20 of those years was the perfect stress reliever, an oasis from the big city.”
Seal Beach
has been named one of America’s friendliest cities, and it’s true. Carey exemplifies the small town atmosphere, civic pride, service and dedication to help Seal Beach stay not only people, but also animal friendly and kind.
According to one member of the selection committee, Carey initially was hesitant to accept the award, thinking that some one else likely deserved it more than she. She did finally accept with great humility.
Regarding her service at the shelter, Carey said, “after my retirement I started volunteering with the Seal Beach Animal Care Center, which has been my focus since 2007. If I could wish for just one thing that would make Seal Beach an even better place, it would be that every family would be sure their cats and dogs are spayed or neutered and kept safely at home so that someday there would be no more lost or abandoned pets in Seal Beach.”
During this past weekend’s Wag n’ Walk event, which benefits the SBACC, Scott Newton, chairman of the Americana Awards committee saw an opportunity to announce Carey as the new Citizen of the Year.
Chairman Newton said, “our parks were filled with the very people she has served the most – pets and pet owners. Also present were with dozens of Animal Care center volunteers and most of the shelter’s board members. At the peak of the event, I took the stage, gathered a large crowd, and spoke about the woman who has done so much for the shelter.”
He continued: “When I announced her name throughout both parks, people who knew her came from all parts of the event to congratulate her. It really was the right place to make the announcement and again we could all see her humbleness.”
As a further testament to her dedication, several people observed Carey at the very end of the Wag n’ Walk. It spoke volumes about Carey’s character and her selection as Seal Beach Citizen of the Year.
After nearly everyone had gone home and the park was empty, there stood Carey as the very last person to finish working. Dee Carey will represent us well during Seal Beach’s Centennial year of 2015. She and her husband, Mike Carey, have been married for 29 years.
He has a daughter, Tricia, who also lives in Seal Beach with her husband Darrell and their 6-year-old granddaughter Paige, who is a first grader at McGaugh.
