Esmeralda Martinez And Jack Gardner Honored By Nantucket Civic League

Esmeralda Martinez and the late Jack Gardner were awarded the annual “Civic Salute” by the Nantucket Civic League today at its annual meeting at the Sconset Casino.

“Our ‘Civic Salute’ publicly acknowledges extraordinary individuals whose activities have furthered the Civic League’s broad objectives and bettered our entire island community,” said Co-President Charles Stott in presenting the awards to Martinez and Gardner's family members.

The award presented to Martinez honors her as an exemplar for all who make Nantucket their home.

“A young woman of Salvadoran descent, you arrived on Nantucket in your teens," Stott said. "Upon graduating high school, you went to work in 2005 for the Steamship Authority. You also answered a call to assist fellow community members as language translator and confidant. You lent a hand to others who would navigate the possibilities a welcoming community can offer and the attendant hurdles one might encounter. That calling fostered a broader mission over the years. You became a notary public; and you are a Justice of the Peace who performs weddings in Spanish.

"Last year, Nantucket voters entrusted you--a mother of three and the translator for all--as their favorite choice to serve on the Nantucket School Committee. They had good reason to believe in you."

The award to Gardner recognized his lifelong iconic service to the people and town of Nantucket.

“We honor his years of service on the Select Board and efforts on our behalf to Inaugurate Nantucket’s first zoning bylaws in the 1970s; strengthen the Parks and Recreation Commission and Department; create Nantucket’s Planning and Economic Development Commission; ;promote land conservation along with other island leaders; secure funding for the network of bike paths we enjoy today," Stott said. "We honor his service on many other committees, advisory boards, and work groups, including the Contract Review Committee; the Nantucket Rotary Club; and his efforts to launch the Nantucket Boys and Girls Club.”