Some distinct women up for awards

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 28/04/2015 (3828 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Winnipeg is full of women of distinction and southeast Winnipeg is no exception.

Eleven women who live in The Lance’s readership area are nominees for the 2015 YMCA-YWCA Women of Distinction awards, which recognize women who have broken down barriers and have made exemplary contributions to the development of others, organizers say.

The winners will be announced at an awards gala at the RBC Convention Centre Winnipeg (375 York Ave.) on May 6.

“At the awards gala we will showcase the outstanding achievements of these role models, visionaries and pioneers,” said Melanie Verhaeghe, chair of the YMCA-YWCA Women of Distinction steering committee, in a news release.

“The stories of the nominees are awe-inspiring — these women have gone above and beyond to create opportunities for others and make our communities better.”

According to organizers, 11 award nominees are based in southeast Winnipeg, which include:

• Yalembrhan Beyene (St. Vital) is nominated in the arts, culture and heritage category for co-founding the non-profit Ethio-Canadian Dancers Group in order to introduce Ethiopian culture to Manitobans through dance and cooking classes, as well as live performances.

• Rosie Jacuzzi (St. Vital) is nominated in the business, professions and trades category for breaking new ground and working her way up in the health care field, starting as a public health nurse to become the first CEO in one of Winnipeg’s eight hospitals as Misericordia Health Centre’s president and CEO.

• Kristin Petaski (St. Boniface) is nominated in the business, professions and trades category for becoming a recognized expert in the male-dominated field of engineering safety consulting and runs an engineering consulting business called Workplace Engineering Solutions.

• Sarah Phillips (Southdale) is nominated in the business, professions and trades category for starting a small business that helps reduce the emotional trauma and stigma of lice infestation for families.

• Karen Wiebe (River Park South) is nominated in the education, training and mentorship category for creating peer-led drug education programs to empower youth to choose to be drug free.

• Patricia Ward (Southdale) is nominated in the education, training and mentorship category for her groundbreaking work building a school community model where independent education, health and community services together to identify, develop and fund programs that build strong youth.

• Alexandra Little (St. Vital) is nominated for the Gerrie Hammond memorial award of promise for her volunteerism efforts that include spearheading a fundraiser to support the Wasichana Fund, which provides underprivileged girls in Kenya with sanitary towels and health education.

• Madeleine Hamilton (Royalwood) is nominated for the Gerrie Hammond memorial award of promise for mentoring her fellow students in volleyball skills development and improving the academic performance of other students through tutoring.

• Leslie Malcolmson (St. Vital) is nominated for the volunteerism category for more than 900 hours volunteering as a case worker for the Winnipeg Police Victim Service Section, where she provides support by counselling victims of crime, as well as her association with Habitat for Humanity, where she helps select applicant families.

• Kristen Poff (St. Vital) is nominated for the young women of distinction award for founding Technical Women in Consulting Engineering (TWICE), which addresses issues associated with being a female in the male-dominated field of engineering and fosters growth of women in the profession.

• Tanjit Nagra (St. Vital) is nominated for the young women of distinction award for being the youngest individual in Winnipeg to run for a school trustee position in last year’s civic election campaign and breaking new ground with her involvement with the Arts Student Body Council at the University of Manitoba.

Tickets to the gala event are available online at www.ywinnipeg.ca/wodtickets or by calling 204-831-2974.

Facebook.com/TheLanceWPG
Twitter: @lanceWPG