Committee seeks exemplary women to honor
The Committee of Women Honoring Women is once again calling for nominations for the 2009 Women of Wisdom. WHW is committed to honoring exemplary Bonner County women. Nominees should be area residents 65 years of age or older, who, over the course of their lives, have demonstrated leadership and a commitment to the local community, have lived with dignity and integrity, possessed vision, pursued knowledge, and served as an inspiration to others. Known as Women of Wisdom, more than 60 recipients have received the distinction during the past ten years.
This year the WHW committee enters a new decade with new leadership. Founder and chief organizer Marsha Olgilvie has passed the baton to Kathy Chambers. In addition, some new members have joined the committee.
A gala luncheon honoring 2009 WOW recipients as well as past honorees is scheduled for Saturday, June 13 at the atrium in the Panhandle State Bank Business Center. Though the traditional day and venue have changed, the WHW committee aspires to maintain the integrity of this special event, known for its emphasis on family and friends coming together in a warm, festive atmosphere to celebrate the honorees.
We encourage the community to participate by nominating deserving women. We acknowledge that women collectively possess a “patchwork of wisdom” and that their contributions affect varying numbers of people in numerous ways. The gifts of women may be broadly focused so that they leave indelible imprints on the lives of many, or those gifts may be narrowly focused so that they change the direction of the lives of a few. Moreover, the efforts of selected honorees could be highly visible, or they could be unsung and unseen.
Generally, the selection committee seeks women who possess vision, exhibit an ongoing love of learning, show a commitment to church, school, or community, demonstrate leadership and achieve goals through collaboration. Honorees have also distinguished themselves by facing life’s challenges with grace and courage, by living with dignity, integrity and honor, and by serving as examples and inspirations to future generations of women.
A “patchwork of wisdom” is reflected in the lives of our past recipients. Some include a physician, a philanthropist and several educators. One woman’s spirituality and faith motivated her to minister to jail inmates and to attend to their children. Two women whose insight, compassion, and effort resulted in housing and services for the homeless have also been recognized.
Other honorees include women who helped create, construct, and maintain the library, a woman whose vision and collaboration resulted in the community purchase and renovation of The Panida Theatre, an individual who helped organize and maintain services available at the Gardenia Center and the original organizer of The Festival at Sandpoint. Several honorees have served as advocates for neglected and abused children and the mentally ill. The list includes many other amazing women whose achievements are too numerous to mention.
Please take the time to consider a woman you know who may be deserving of this award. A candidate nominated previously may be nominated again. Nomination forms are printed periodically in The Daily Bee. Nominations should be mailed to: Women Honoring Women, P.O. Box 159, Sandpoint, ID 83864 or e-mailed to khubbard@cdapress.com and received no later than Friday, April 10.
MARIANNE LOVE
Women Honoring Women Committee