Skip to main content

Alaska Trooper Wins AFSCME Award, and Governor Takes Notice

Alaska Trooper Wins AFSCME Award, and Governor Takes Notice
By Kevin Brown and Pablo Ros ·
Tags: Our Stories Never Quit Public Safety
Alaska Trooper Wins AFSCME Award, and Governor Takes Notice
Alaska State Trooper Anne Sears

Anne Sears, an Alaska state trooper and member of AFSCME Public Safety Employees Association (Local 803), is a recent winner of the AFSCME Never Quit Service Award for her extraordinary service helping victims of domestic violence and of child abuse.

Her dedication has earned her respect not just from her union but also from the governor of her state.

In villages and cities throughout the state, Sears helps protect the most vulnerable members of our communities.

“You hear about all the horrible things people do,” Sears told AFSCME for a recent article. “It’s exhausting.”

Her job may be emotionally draining, but she can’t imagine doing anything else.

“Somebody’s got to do it,” she says. “It might as well be me. I have the will to take on their tragedy.”

At a recent ceremony to honor Sears for receiving the Never Quit Service Award, elected officials took notice. Fairbanks Mayor Jim Matherly attended in person, and Alaska Gov. Bill Walker sent a letter of congratulations.

(left to right) Fairbanks Mayor Jim Matherly, colleague, husband Jay Sears (with mustache), PSEA Exec. Dir. Jake Metcalfe (blue tie), Anne Sears, two of her colleagues.

Photo by Kevin Brown

“The impact you have made in Alaska over 17 years of service is undeniable,” Walker wrote in his letter to Sears. “On behalf of the many lives you have touched, I am grateful that you have protected and served Alaskans. … You and your law enforcement colleagues are a vital part of our community, standing ready to deal with emergencies and working for justice for the most vulnerable every single day.”

AFSCME members never quit improving their communities. Like Sears, public service workers throughout the country – nurses, teachers, corrections officers, sanitation workers and more – work around the clock (and sometimes behind the scenes) to make our streets and neighborhoods safer, cleaner, and better.

That’s why AFSCME is honoring public service workers with the Never Quit Service Award. And that’s why elected officials are taking notice.

Never Quit Service Awards

Do you know a public service worker who shows extraordinary dedication to his or her job? If so, nominate them for a Never Quit Service Award.

Related Posts