‘It takes a village to elevate a city’: The 23rd Gateway Awards
They run the food pantries. They speak at City Council meetings. They fundraise for school choirs. They make sure the city builds more housing and more parks. They host open mics.
They’re called “Gators”: People living in American Canyon whose tireless dedication to the city and its residents has been honored with a Gateway Award. Where there’s a need, Gators fill it.
“What do we do if we don’t have volunteers?” said Joan Bennett, wearing a white sequined cap at Saturday’s sold-out Community Recognition Dinner, where the annual awards are presented. Bennett is a 2004 Gateway Award winner, a Gator.
Saturday’s gala was abuzz with 135 guests ready to celebrate and mingle over glasses of wine. “The feeling of being surrounded by difference makers, positive people — you can’t buy this,” said Kasama Lee, a 2026 award nominee. “It takes a village to elevate a city,” she said.
The name started as a tongue-in-cheek play on American Canyon’s original city motto: Gateway to Napa Valley.
Since the first Gateway Award was given in 2001, a new Gator joins the ranks every year for a ceremony that draws hundreds. On Saturday, a tuxedoed Mayor Pierre Washington introduced the 35th awardee, Heidi Zipay: mother of two, therapist, AHI Swim Team president, church volunteer, Moms Club member and American Canyon Community & Parks Foundation member.
Former mayor Leon Garcia took home the Community Recognition Award, a recent addition to the Gateway Awards roster, and Fran Lemos, who died on April 20 at 96, was given the first ever Lifetime Achievement Award. Memories and stories of Lemos kept spirits up throughout the night.
“The building blocks of the city are the electeds and the schools, but none of that runs without the volunteers,” said Zipay after the ceremony. She moved to American Canyon in 2005 and quickly joined clubs and boards to help with activities around the city. “I’m an administrator at heart,” she said.
Over the years, the Community Recognition Dinner has evolved with the city. Wooden Gateway Award plaques have been swapped for sleek glass trophies, and what started out as a party with drinks and line dancing at the American Canyon Middle School gym is now a black-tie-ish affair in the DoubleTree hotel ballroom.
The night is half party, half tradition, honoring the work of the city’s volunteers, many of whom quite literally built American Canyon. Beth Marcus, a 2013 Gator, recalled going door to door in the 1980s with Lemos and John “Mickey” Mikolajcik, working to get neighbors on board with incorporating the area as a city — an all-volunteer effort.
“Before we incorporated, we were basically isolated physically,” said Mark Joseph, 2007 Gator and vice mayor. Barry Christian, a 2012 Gator, nodded in agreement. “We didn’t get much love from the county,” he said.
So, locals took it upon themselves. Some formed a volunteer fire department, “a bunch of guys and a bulldozer” built Kimberly Park. Eventually, people started their own customs, like the Gateway Awards, to embed a culture of giving into city life.
“That whole mindset of volunteerism was borne out of: nobody else is taking care of us; we’ve got to take care of ourselves,” said Joseph.
Most Gators have been around since before the city was incorporated. Some have moved or passed away, but a new generation is coming up to carry the torch. Keeping the spirit of volunteerism alive in a rapidly growing city is going to take some effort, said Joseph, and this relies on traditions like the Gateway Awards.
“Gators have the role of pursuing volunteerism and community service in American Canyon,” said Joseph. “Gators have an ingredient that makes it work: Every year we get new Gators. We’re always refueling our ranks.”
“And we still have teeth,” laughed Marcus.
