Ramona Sain chosen as 2007 ATHENA Award Recipient

Katharine Roat Stevens Education and Training Fund
and Katharine Roat Stevens Scholarship Fund Announced

(Flint, Michigan, November 9, 2007) Ramona Sain has been named the recipient of the 2007 ATHENA Award. The award was presented by the Women’s Business Council of the Genesee Regional Chamber of Commerce at a ceremony held Thursday, November 8, 2007 at the Holiday Inn Gateway in Mundy Township.  Also announced during the event were the newly updated Katharine Roat Stevens Education and Training Fund and the Katharine Roat Stevens Scholarship Fund, to be awarded in 2008.

The ATHENA Award is presented yearly and recognizes the leadership of a professional woman in the community who mentors young women, and forges paths for other women to follow. A selection committee consisting of a diverse group of leaders from outside Genesee County reviewed the nomination forms and selected the ATHENA recipient.

Sain is the Executive Director for the Genesee County Bar Association, a long-standing member on the Board of Directors for Planned Parenthood, and a current officer of Quota. She has also been involved in organizations such as Fairwinds Girl Scout Council and the Hurley Foundation.

Sain managed Ask the Lawyers, an on-air, weekly television segment where attorneys answered legal questions from the public. She also initiated “Teens & the Law,” which taught local students about practical aspects of the law. And she planned and implemented the “Nursing Home and Hospice” program, which offers free legal work for low income senior citizens.

Mentoring young adults, she says “requires conscious application of honesty, trust, accountability, encouragement and the ability to challenge one’s perceptions.” These are attributes she works to not only instill in others, but in herself. Sain volunteers a lot of her time to the community, but believes the best results come from helping the individual as opposed to the cause.

A Community Award recipient from the A. Phillip Randolph Institute, Sain was also recognized nationally by the American Bar Association for a Civility and Professionalism initiative.

The ATHENA Award program, sponsored by Chase, included a cocktail reception at 6 p.m.—sponsored by The Flint Journal—followed by dinner and the award ceremony at 7 p.m. In addition to the accolades and recognition, Sain received a bronze ATHENA sculpture. She was also honored with a diamond and gold pin presented by Advanced Physical Therapy Center. Thirteen other Genesee County women were nominated. Each nominee received a shadow box from the Genesee Regional Chamber of Commerce featuring the Athena sculpture crafted in paper.

Nominees for ATHENA 2007:

• Anne M. Arrand, Dort Federal Credit Union
• Lois Craig, Special Olympics
• Sara Jo Gallock, ABC12
• Kathryn Hunter-Williams, Museum of Afrikan Ancestry & Research Center
• Reverend Dr. Deborah Kohler, Woodside Church
• Ruth Kramer, G.P. Promotions
• Reverend Dr. Mary Lloyd, Community Hope Church of God
• Lisa R. Pelio, Pelio School of Dance, Inc.
• Elleen Roth, Retired/Roth Electric Supply
• Verona Terry, Flint/Genesee Job Corps Center
• Ginger Virkler, The Flint Journal
• Chery S. Wagonlander, GISD/Mott Middle College High School
• Kathy Wolowiec, McLaren Regional Medical Center

Four additional Leadership Awards were presented representing four of the core philosophies of the ATHENA International Organization:

• Dr. Rev. Mary Lloyd received the 2007 Leadership Award for Relationships
• Kathryn Hunter-Williams received the 2007 Leadership Award for Fierce Advocacy
• Lois Craig received the 2007 Leadership Award for Collaboration
• Elleen Roth received the 2007 Leadership Award for Giving Back 

Also announced during the ceremony were the Katharine Roat Stevens Education and Training Fund and the Katharine Roat Stevens Scholarship Fund, both to be awarded in 2008. Ms. Stevens was a local entrepreneur and 1988 ATHENA Award recipient. The funds were created in her memory at the Community Foundation of Greater Flint by the Flint Chamber Foundation (now the Genesee Chamber Foundation) in 1993. 

The Katharine Roat Stevens Education and Training Fund supports education and training opportunities for low income women living in Genesee County with entrepreneurial aspirations. The Education and Training Fund award in the amount of up to $1,000.00 will be used in college, vocational or recognized business-related training. The Katharine Roat Stevens Scholarship Fund will be an annual scholarship awarded to female high school seniors graduating from Genesee County schools and who meet a specific criteria. The funds are managed by the Community Foundation of Greater Flint.

Applications are now being accepted for both awards. The deadline for the Katharine Roat Stevens Scholarship Fund is March 1st. For more information or applications email krsscholarship@thegrcc.org. For information regarding the Katharine Roat Stevens Education and Training Fund email krset@thegrcc.org. Or for both log on to www.thegrcc.org.

For further information contact:
Lara DeLosh        
Public Relations & Project Coordinator, Communications & Marketing
810.600.1421