John Clark, a 75-year-old Navy veteran who has spent 25 years volunteering with Everett's emergency response teams, won Serve Washington's 2026 Volunteer Service Award for the North Puget Sound Region.

The award covers Snohomish, Whatcom and San Juan counties. Clark has volunteered with Everett's Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) program since 2001 and for nearly as long with the local Red Cross, Snohomish County Tribune first reported.

Jim Sande, director of Everett's Office of Emergency Management, called Clark "a dedicated volunteer" whose service supports the community during difficult moments.

Clark's recent work tells the story. During Snohomish River flooding in fall 2025, he led a CERT team that built sandbag berms to protect Everett's pollution control and water treatment facilities.

He then spent 18 days supporting disaster mass care at a Red Cross distribution warehouse.

Between January and April, Clark built a 100-foot boardwalk over protected wetlands at Loganberry Lane Park. He then planted hundreds of native aquatic plants.

"CERT training kind of crosses over into everyday life," Clark said. "I wanted to give back to my community in a way I thought would help."

Clark's volunteer record stretches well beyond Snohomish County. He has deployed with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for eight hurricanes. During Hurricane Katrina, he handed out supplies at a shelter housing 5,000 people.

He also worked at a shelter during the 2014 Oso mudslide, helping families find and sort their belongings.

A retired tech worker, Clark did two tours in Vietnam. His wife died 14 years ago, and he said he volunteers in part to honor her and those who didn't come home from Vietnam.

Clark lives in Shoreline, in King County. When CERT classes first caught his eye, they were offered in Snohomish County, so he enrolled and has commuted to Everett ever since.

He also teaches urban search and rescue and CERT classes for Everett and helped start CERT classes in Shoreline.

The city of Everett recognized Clark in a press release. Clark plans to keep volunteering as long as he can, according to Snohomish County Tribune.