The Star - News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area

Glo Carroll has been selected as The Star newspaper's "Volunteer of the Year."

She topped the voting total of 171 people who took the time to vote for Carroll and for Archie Dennis, who came in second in the balloting.

Glo is the kind of person you can't say no to.

She rose to prominence locally during the huge North Star wildfire last summer as she recruited the help of local people and of residents throughout the state to help the brave firefighters who were being stretched thin across fire lines that traversed North Central Washington.

She was nominated by Diane Babler, who stated that, while she didn't know Carroll personally, she was struck by the endless efforts that went into the local response to the fires.

It started with Glo recruiting the help of local residents who baked and delivered over 100 dozen cookies for firefighters. The bakers, Ashley Duclos, Ashley Landeros and their daughters Kaylee Landeros and Kylie Duclos, Rita Grittner, Lacey Ward, Jana Myers, Tiffany Maldonado, Linda Wood, Clarissa Cawston, Tonya Duclos and Heather Irvine, called themselves "The Baking Warriors." Duclos also whipped up some 45 or 50 pounds of homemade macaroni and cheese for firefighters.

Other Coulee Dam residents pitched in, like mother and daughter Cindy and Amanda Hoke, and Susan Haydock, who organized, and kept stocked with supplies collected by Glo and her husband Rob, a store for firefighters who were staying at Coulee Dam town hall.

As if that wasn't enough, the Carrolls attracted the attention of "12s Helping 12s," whose Seattle Seahawks fans poured money and items into the effort, delivering loads of goods from across the state. (The Carrolls, on Stevens Avenue in Coulee Dam, raise the "12th Man" flag the day of Sea-hawk games.)

Glo organized baking periods where the cookies just rolled out of the ovens.

Personal items were also gathered, like socks, toiletries, etc., and firefighters and locals welcomed the vehicles making it to places like the Tunk Valley Grange and even to the firelines.

Medical unit leader trainee Wayne Hare was amazed at Glo's ability to get things done. He said he would give her a list of hard-to-find items and be amazed at her quick response during a time when unprecedented wildfires depleted government warehouses across the American West.

"I gave (the list) to her this morning," he said as the smoke grew thicker outside the Nespelem Community Center, which was serving as the command center for hundreds of fire-fighters. "She brought it back to me tonight. I think it's cool that private citizens did what the government couldn't do."

She didn't stop there. She helped organize a drive to raise money for supplies needed by firefighters and collected several thousands of dollars. Money came in from all over the state and beyond.

All of this and more is proof that you can't say "no" to Glo.

One person, writing from Alaska, said she had just read a post by the Carrolls about the need for a barbecue. One of the commanders on the fire line had said if he had one it, would help lift the spirits of his crews. Coulee Hardware gave one of their BBQs off the sales floor. The Alaska writer, Karen Cashen, said the area will always be home to her and that her thoughts were with all the people grappling with the fire.

Willie Womer and daughter, Tauni Marchand, picked up, paid for, and delivered a number of items to the firefighters.

Notes of appreciation show the gratitude of firefighters staying at Coulee Dam Town Hall.

And this was the tip of the iceberg in efforts generated by the selflessness and organizing skills of Glo Carroll. During the height of the fires, first-aid supplies became scarce. Carroll came to the rescue, asking people to give, and they did.

You can find Glo on Facebook, routinely offering up good comments about people doing good things. She has a steady and relentless group of friends.

She has an eye out for helping other people. She devoted many hours helping a 10-year-old neighbor, Kaylee Landeros, learn how to cook and bake, providing weekly classes in her home.

Check her Facebook page for a regular offering of good comments about good people.

Always being willing to help, to share, and to organize for a cause is the reason Glo Carroll was elected as The Star's "Volunteer of the Year."