Dr. Florence Seldin honored with 2022 OneCape Award

The Cape Cod Commission is honored to recognize Dr. Florence Seldin with the 2022 OneCape Award.

The award is presented annually during the OneCape Summit to a person or organization exemplifying outstanding leadership and dedication to Cape Cod.

Dr. Seldin made many remarkable contributions to the community. Not only did she serve on and hold leadership roles on many boards and committees in the Town of Chatham, she also served as Chatham's representative to the Cape Cod Commission from 2006 to 2009. In that role, she chaired the Planning Committee, which worked with staff to develop the 2009 Regional Policy Plan.

Dr. Seldin served as a stakeholder during the planning process to develop the Cape Cod 208 Plan and as Chatham’s representative on the Cape Cod Water Protection Collaborative from 2010 to 2017. She was engaged in numerous local and regional comprehensive planning projects and was even participating in and leading meetings remotely during the pandemic.

"I was always so appreciative of Florence's collaborative spirit, the way she asked the tough but essential questions," said Cape Cod Commission Executive Director Kristy Senatori. "As we embark on new planning initiatives around freshwater and housing and begin the stakeholder processes, I think we will still hear Florence's voice in the room making sure we make the best decisions for Cape Cod."

“We all know that Florence was a force of nature,” said Chatham Town Manager Jill Goldsmith, who accepted the award at the Summit. “When the Chatham Selectboard embarked on an initiative to maintain a vibrant year-round community, she was one of the first people from whom we sought input. With that, we developed a family support program named in her honor.”

In May 2022, Chatham Town Meeting funded the Dr. Florence Seldin Family Support Program, which aims to increase access to preschool programs by providing funding to Chatham families with children aged 3 and 4.

While Florence is no longer with us, she has left a lasting impact on the Town of Chatham, where she lived, and on the broader Cape Cod region.