Last Friday I attended the 2009 Zonta Women of Achievement Luncheon honoring local women who have been leaders in their respective fields. All of the nominees were well deserving. The guest speaker, Robin Carnahan, was very interesting and entertaining and read a great poem entitled Anyway. As the luncheon proceeded the excitement was building until the moment the winner would be announced. Every year it is any one's guess as to who will win as all those nominees are winners in their own right.

The moment finally arrived when Kathy Blevins was named the winner. This was particularly exciting for me as Kathy has been a co-worker at SEMO-NASV for the entirety of the agency's history. Kathy has worked tirelessly to care for women and children (and men) who have been victims of sexual violence. Prior to her work in this field she worked in women's health care settings in the areas of family planning, labor and delivery, and other similar programs.

It was a great day to be present when Kathy received this award. My thanks to the women of Zonta who year after year put on a spectacular event to honor women of this community. Their hard work is evident by the huge participation, the smoothness with which the event flows, the wonderful food and the inspirational speakers.

All those who are honored do not perform their work so they can some day be publicly recognized, but it sure is nice when it is. Congratulations to all the nominees, to Kathy and the the great Women of Zonta.

Namaste,

Tammy