Community Awards

The San Carlos Celebration: Building our Community Together

The San Carlos community will come together on April 16th, 2026 to celebrate the outstanding San Carlan and Business of 2025.

This special evening will take place at Hiller Aviation Museum in San Carlos, a non-profit gem right in our backyard. The event will begin at 5:30 PM with a cocktail hour, featuring a no-host bar where you can enjoy a selection of beverages while mingling with fellow community members in the museum. At 6:30 PM, we’ll gather for dinner in the atrium, followed by the highly anticipated awards ceremony.

The event will conclude at 8:30 PM, providing an evening of celebration, camaraderie, and inspiration.

Dress Code: Cocktail Attire

Tickets: Pre-purchased tickets are required for attendance. (Ticket price to be determined soon)

We look forward to sharing this special night with you at Hiller Aviation Museum as we come together to celebrate the spirit of San Carlos!

Call for Nominations

Nominations for the 2025 San Carlan of the year (an individual) and the San Carlos Business of the year (an organization) are now open. Deadline for nominations is February 1, 2026.

Sponsors

Cornerstone Sponsors

Keystone Sponsors

Pillar Sponsors

Supporters

San Carlan of the Year

Recognizing Excellence in Service, Generosity, and Leadership

This award honors individuals who have demonstrated an extraordinary commitment to our community through dedicated service, significant charitable contributions, and catalytic leadership.

If you know an outstanding San Carlos Resident - who through outstanding community service or volunteerism, had a significant impact on the community, please nominate them for San Carlan of the Year 2025.  Nominees will be reviewed by a committee of recent winners and other community leaders.  A nominee's contributions should have been made over the past year or few years.  The 2025 recipient will be honored at The San Carlos Celebration: Building our Community Together event on April 16, 2026. 

To be eligible, nominees must meet the following criteria:

• Residency: The nominee must currently reside in San Carlos or have lived in the city during the 2025 calendar year.

• Nature of Service: nominees must have demonstrated outstanding community service, generosity, and leadership.

• Volunteer Status: Service must be performed on a voluntary basis, falling outside the scope of the nominee's regular, paid professional responsibilities.

• Elected Official Restraint: Current local elected officials (such as City Council or School Board members) are ineligible. They may only be nominated after they have been out of office for at least two years.

• Submission: Nominations are welcome from both individuals and organizations.

Deadline: February 1, 2026

Prior San Carlos Citizens of the Year

From 1974 through 2020, the San Carlos Chamber of Commerce selected the San Carlos Citizen of the Year, an award that recognizes individuals who have made significant contributions to the San Carlos community. Past recipients have demonstrated a strong commitment to volunteerism, civic engagement, and improving the quality of life for everyone who lives, works, learns, and plays in San Carlos. They have been involved in a variety of activities, including serving on city boards and commissions, organizing community events, and supporting local businesses and organizations.

The Community Foundation of San Carlos brought back this annual award starting in 2024. with a new name - San Carlan of the Year - recognizing that many residents do not hold US citizenship.

We honor past recipients of the award:

San Carlos Business of the Year

San Carlos is home to a diverse and dynamic business community that plays a meaningful role in shaping the city’s quality of life and sense of belonging. From historic, family-owned storefronts centered on Laurel Street and San Carlos Avenue, to the East Side specialized cluster of small-scale industrial shops, artisans, and boutique manufacturers that define the city's craft heritage to global life sciences firms in the Innovation District, businesses of all sizes contribute to how residents experience San Carlos as a place to live, work, and thrive.

Starting in 2024, the Community Foundation’s award recognizes San Carlos businesses and organizations that go beyond commerce to serve as anchors of our community, stewards of our environment, and catalysts for civic vitality.

In prior years, the San Carlos Chamber of Commerce selected a business of the year.

Prior San Carlos Business of the Year

2024 Reach & Teach Bookstore

2019 Domenico Winery

2018 Clocktower Music

2017 Recology San Mateo County

2015 The Reading Bug

2014 Devil’s Canyon Brewing Company

2013 Spasso Restaurant

2012 Kelly-Moore Paints

2011 Hiller Aviation Museum

2010 Sparky’s Hot Garage