City Council Member Joan House was awarded the Jake Kuredjian Citizenship Award during the Monday, Feb. 22, City Council meeting, for her decades-long commitment to recreation in the City of Malibu.
“She’s been a huge advocate for both active and passive recreation in the Malibu community,” Parks and Recreation Commissioner Carl Randall said as he presented the award to House.
“I’m very honored to receive the award. It’s very difficult to get an award doing something you love doing,” House said.
She went on to extol the virtues of recreation.
“Physical exercise is good for the mind, the body and the spirit. Sports are good for learning accountability, education and leadership, to name a few of the benefits,” House said. “Since my dad was in the Navy and we moved every two to three years, it was through organized sports that I made friends and integrated into the school community.”
Randall listed many of House’s achievements in the 37 years of her involvement in the City of Malibu, including helping the city sign a lease for use of ball fields and the swimming pool at Malibu High School, creating the Malibu Senior Center and supporting the Bluffs Parkland Project.
The Jake Kuredjian Citizenship Award was established in 2002 as an annual award to recognize community members dedicated to recreation in Malibu, according to the City of Malibu website.
“The Jake Kuredjian Citizenship Award is presented annually to recognize those outstanding individuals who give their time and resources to enhance the quality of recreation programs within the Malibu community,” the website reads.
The award is named in honor of Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Deputy Hagop “Jake” Kuredjian, who was killed in the line of duty in 2001 during a shootout in Stevenson Ranch.