Los Altos Activist Who Helped Form Big Basin Park Honored

LOS ALTOS, CA -- Los Altos resident Emily ‘Emy’ Thurber, who has devoted more than 50 years to public service and women’s leadership in her community, has been named the 2019 Woman of the Year for the 13th Senate District by state Senator Jerry Hill, (D-San Mateo).

Thurber was honored Monday at the state Capitol in ceremonies conducted by the California Legislative Women’s Caucus to celebrate "Women of the Year" selected by legislative representatives throughout the state. March is Women's History Month.

“Emy embodies the spirit and dedication for which so many citizens of the 13th Senate District are known,” said Hill, who represents Santa Clara and San Mateo counties. “I am proud to name Emy Thurber as the district’s Woman of the Year.”

Leaders of the California Legislative Women’s Caucus welcomed Thurber to the Senate chamber and read a short list of her many accomplishments as Hill escorted her to the Senate floor, an event captured on video.

Thurber served as a staff member for Senator Alan Cranston in Washington, D.C., where she worked on foreign and military affairs, along with developing a strong appreciation for the preservation of the environment. At the time, her late husband, Jim, was working in the nation’s capital as a member of the U.S. Information Agency. She brought her experience to California after her spouse retired.

Therein, Thurber became president of the Sempervirens Fund. The state’s oldest land trust was instrumental in the creation of California’s first state park - Big Basin Redwoods.

Sempervirens joined four other conservation groups and three foundations to acquire the 8,532-acre Cemex Redwoods in the Santa Cruz Mountains, now known as the San Vicente Redwoods. Thurber was a leader in the organizations’ joint vision to create the Great Park, a larger effort uniting 27,000 acres that included the San Vicente Redwoods.

The mover and shaker also served on the board of the Midpeninsula YWCA. She joined the fledgling Los Altos Community Foundation board, and over two decades later, she still serves on its grants committee.

She served as chairwoman for the Santa Clara County Commission on the Status of Women from 2004 to 2005. She received a humanitarian award from the county’s Human Relations Commission in 2005. She's also a founding member of the Los Altos Women’s Caucus.

Accompanying her to the celebration Monday were her son, James Thurber III, and daughter-in-law, Debra McGibbon, of Mountain View and her daughter, Harriette Rasmussen, and grandson, Alex, of Oregon.