The recipient of the Lompoc Woman of the Year Award remains shocked about the surprise honor recognizing her 25 years advocating for sexual assault survivors and other volunteer work in the community.

“I couldn’t believe it and I still can’t,” said Ann McCarty of her selection. “What an honor. I’m just completely humbled by the entire experience. It just really is a beautiful moment in my life.”

The award came as McCarty gets ready to start her 25th year with the North County Rape Crisis and Child Protection Center, where she now serves as executive director. 

“Ann was always easy to work with, developed important relationships and acted as the tireless voice and advocate for her clients at the North County Rape Crisis & Child Protection Center,” said Ashley Costa, executive director for the Lompoc Valley Community Healthcare Organization and a former council member. 

“She played a huge role as part of the safety net for our most vulnerable community members; and she did it with a smile,” Costa added.

Other awards announced earlier in July at an event organized by the Lompoc Valley Chamber of Commerce went to Sandy Skinner as Chamber Volunteer of the Year, Scratch Kitchen for Small Business Excellence, and the late Linual White as Man of the Year. 

Over the years, McCarty has served as a public safety commissioner, a judge for Cabrillo High School senior projects, and interviewer for recipients of awards given by the Scholarship Foundation of Santa Barbara.

The wife, mother of two and grandmother also has been active in the Every 15 Minutes program to show high schoolers the dangers of drunken driving, and belongs to the Vandenberg Village Lions Club.

In 1994, McCarty joined the staff of the North County Rape Crisis Center as hotline coordinator and gained more responsibilities through the years before taking the top job in 2015.

The North County Rape Crisis Center, which was founded in 1974, has a staff of 14 working in Lompoc and Santa Maria offices working on intervention services for survivors of sexual assault and child molestation. Other programs center on education, focused on all ages including telling youngsters about “good touch and bad touch.”

“We will go and talk to anyone who will listen because we recognize that education really is the key to prevention …,” McCarty said.

Two years ago, the organization saw a 26 percent jump in the need for crisis intervention services. This year, it rose another 20 percent, a sign more people are finding their voice, in part due to the #MeToo movement, she said. 

A newer program uses art to help under-served youths dealing with trauma in their lives with a goal of helping them develop resiliency and learn ways to control their fear, anger and pain. 

“That trauma gets in the way. They can’t learn. They can’t focus. They can’t concentrate. They can’t behave,” she said. “That is something that we’re really proud of that we just started because we know that art is healing.”

North County Rape Crisis Center representatives also have started outreach to people living in the Santa Ynez Riverbed near Lompoc, to ensure victims of human trafficking and sexual assault know what services they can access. 

“Nobody should ever have to suffer in silence. Nobody should even have to bear their trauma by themselves,” McCarty said. “As a society we haven’t done a very good job of supporting survivors.” 

She said victim blaming still occurs, citing the recent trial for the man convicted of the brutal attack on Air Force veteran Marilyn Pharis in her Santa Maria home three years ago.

“Who could blame this woman for anything that happened to her? We just can’t wrap our head around it. But it happened. Victim blaming happened in that case,” she said.

As a fellow survivor, McCarty said she realizes others need to hear that what happened to them was not their fault. 

“People need to know they have a voice and that it’s OK to speak up,” she said.

— Noozhawk North County editor Janene Scully can be reached at jscully@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.