A veterinary team, a retirement community, and a public servant were awarded during the 2025 Gaithersburg State of the City event.
“We are inspired by their contributions, helping make Gaithersburg the warm, welcoming community that it is,” Gaithersburg Mayor Jud Ashman said last week at Asbury Methodist Village.
The Veterinary Service Team of the county’s Animal Services and Adoption Center received the Distinguished Friend of Gaithersburg Award, which is given to those who make contributions in the Gaithersburg community but who are not within the city’s official boundaries.
The team includes three full-time veterinarians and a group of veterinary technicians and assistants. Over the past year, the team provided care and treatment to more than 100 domestic animals impounded in Gaithersburg, City Councilmember Lisa Henderson said. They gave rabies vaccinations to unvaccinated pets being reclaimed by their owners. They also operate a free weekly rabies vaccination clinic. In Fiscal Year 2024, the clinic administered more than 1,500 rabies vaccines.
The team’s expertise has been essential in investigating animal cruelty cases by providing forensic veterinarian exams to help the Gaithersburg Animal Services Division, Henderson said.
“All of these efforts were carried out while overseeing the care and treatment of more than 8,000 animals that passed through the shelter in the last fiscal year,” she said.
The Carnegie at Washingtonian Center, a retirement community on Washingtonian Boulevard that opened its doors last August, received the Outstanding Organization Award. It has independent living, assisted living, and memory care support, City Councilmember Neil Harris said. They have an annual holiday giving distribution, which MCM attended in the past.
“Providing more senior housing options, The Carnegie offers a safe and welcoming place to live with exceptional services that enhance the quality of life for our senior residents,” Harris said.
John Bauer, Gaithersburg Planning Commission Chair, received the 2025 Distinguished Resident Award. From 1996 to 2000, he served on the Historic Preservation Advisory Committee. In 2000, he started on the planning commission and in 2005, he was elected chair. He has led in the position ever since. Under Bauer’s leadership, the planning commission has overseen several transformative development projects, City Councilmember Robert Wu said, like Crown, Watkins Mill Town Center, Spectrum, and Lakeforest.
“John’s thoughtful decision-making, collaborative approach and deep understanding of the city have made him an integral and defining voice in the city’s growth and development,” Wu said.
Watch the State of the City address and awards ceremony below:
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