Former Wyoming Gov. Mike Sullivan, noted lawyer and a key participant in the 1998 peace accord in Northern Ireland, has been named the 2016 Citizen of the West.
With deep roots in Wyoming, Sullivan embodies the spirit of the Western pioneer, organizers with the National Western Stock Show said in a news release.
“He is a real Westerner, a great Wyoming governor, a straight shooter and a loyal friend,” said former Wyoming Sen. Alan Simpson.
Sullivan will receive the award in January at the National Western Events Center, which will donate its proceeds to 80 scholarships that support colleges and universities in Colorado and Wyoming.
Sullivan, who grew up in Douglas, Wyo., was elected governor in 1986 and re-elected in 1990.
After earning his law degree at the University of Wyoming and becoming an accomplished trial attorney, he ran for governor.
“Wyoming went through some very tough economic times, so it was no easy job,” said Jim Lyons, an established Colorado lawyer and public servant who is a longtime friend and colleague of Sullivan. “But Mike is one of the greats.”
Lyons said Sullivan, his wife, Jane, and Sullivan’s family are “Westerners through and through.”
“Mike knows everybody in Wyoming, and if Mike doesn’t know someone who just moved in, he’ll know them by the end of the day,” Lyons said.
In 1999, President Bill Clinton named Sullivan U.S. Ambassador to Ireland, where he helped facilitate the peace accord in Northern Ireland.
“Sullivan is not just a citizen of the West, but a citizen of the world,” said former Wyoming Gov. Dave Freudenthal. “His relentless efforts to summon the better angels of the human spirit are the trademark of his personal and professional life.”
Elizabeth Hernandez: 303-954-1223, ehernandez@ or
