Athena Awards Honor Local Area Leaders, Businesses And Young Professionals

Sept. 22, 2010 - PRLog -- Local area leaders, businesses, and young professionals came together September 17 to honor three exceptional recipients with the 2010 ATHENA award. This year’s recipients are Victoria Chouris, South Florida Fair & Palm Beach County Expositions in the Individual category; The City of West Palm Beach in the Business category and Sarah Alsofrom, State Attorney’s Office in the Young Professional Leadership category.

"The ATHENA Awards recognize truly inspiring women who are active in our community, excel in their professions and take the time to reach out and mentor others. To hear their personal stories, you can’t help but admire what they’ve accomplished as well as what they’ve done to inspire others,” said Don DeWoody, Chairman, Chamber of Commerce of the Palm Beaches.  “The recipients have shown outstanding leadership and are true role models for the community.  The Chamber of Commerce of the Palm Beaches is honored to recognize these leaders with the ATHENA Award.”

The ATHENA Awards, hosted by the Chamber of Commerce of the Palm Beaches, honors individuals, businesses, and young professionals who have achieved professional excellence, actively served the community, and helped women to reach their leadership potential. The luncheon began with a wonderful video presentation, produced by City of West Palm Beach TV 18, spotlighting all of the award finalists.  Tania Rogers of WPTV NewsChannel 5, served as the Master of Ceremonies. Patti Hamilton of SWS/Sun Recycling, and a past ATHENA recipient, was the event’s Chair.

The ATHENA Individual Award, sponsored by SWS/Sun Recycling, was presented to Victoria Chouris, Vice President and Chief Operating Officer at the South Florida Fair & Palm Beach County Expositions. Ms Chouris, who has been with the Fair for 25 years, and has chaired two statewide associations - the Florida Federation of Fairs and Livestock Shows and the Florida Festivals and Events Association. The mission of both is to mentor individuals in the event industry. She is a member of the Miss America scholarship organization, a group that recognizes young women for contributions to their communities

The Business ATHENA Award, sponsored by Squire, Sanders and Dempsey, was presented to The City of West Palm Beach. The City employs women-friendly business practices in order to attract, promote and retain female employees. Currently 44% of its management positions are occupied by women, including its Mayor.

The Young Professional ATHENA Award, sponsored by CityPlace, was presented to Sarah Alsofrom, Public Information Officer for the State Attorney’s Office. Ms. Alsofrom has been presenting interactive professionalism seminars to university students throughout Florida and is a tireless volunteer for many community organizations.
The Guest Speaker was Dr. Mary Jane Saunders, the new President of Florida Atlantic University.

The ATHENA Awards are presented by the Chamber of Commerce of the Palm Beaches and sponsored by SWS/Sun Recycling, McGladrey, Squire, Sanders & Dempsey, CityPlace, MWH,  The Palm Beach Post and Toshiba Business Solutions of Florida. A pre-event reception was hosted by Chen and Associates at the Kona Grill in CityPlace.

The ATHENA Award is named after the Greek goddess of courage and wisdom, and is  a program of ATHENA International, a foundation dedicated to creating leadership opportunities for women.

Founded in 1913 the Chamber of Commerce of the Palm Beaches is a private, not-for-profit association of businesses that have come together to advance the economic, industrial and civic interests of the Palm Beaches. The Chamber strives to support projects that lead to a stronger economy and an improved quality of life.

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Founded in 1913 the Chamber of Commerce of the Palm Beaches is a private, not-for-profit association of businesses that have come together to advance the economic, industrial and civic interests of the Palm Beaches. The Chamber strives to support projects that lead to a stronger economy and an improved quality of life.