Athena Award recognizes local women

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WANE) - Two Fort Wayne women were awarded ATHENA Leadership Awards on March 14 at the Eighth Annual ATHENA Awards Luncheon, hosted by the Greater Fort Wayne Chamber of Commerce. The two were selected from 15 nominees for the awards.

The ATHENA Leadership Award was given to Sharon Simmons, Board President of Francine’s Friends.   Through Francine’s Friends, Simmons has worked tirelessly to provide mammograms for all women in Northeast Indiana.  Simmons, a breast cancer survivor herself, knows importance of providing easily accessible screenings to women. Thanks to the mobile mammography unit established by Francine’s Friends, any woman in Allen County and the surrounding areas can get screening mammograms in a much more convenient and much less intimidating place.

The ATHENA Young Professional Leadership Development Award was presented to Julia Fiechter, founder of Lendingahand.net . Fiechter has married her passion for community service with her business experience as a realtor to launch a philanthropic organization that connects local charities to much needed funding sources. At a time when many charities struggle to fight for dwindling donations, Fiechter has created an innovative and easy program that combines the generosity of local businesses with the buying power of consumers to generate donation for area charities.

Also awarded today were The 2012 ATHENA Scholarships, which honor young women who have excelled in their academic career while demonstrating leadership potential and a commitment to their community.

This year’s scholarship recipients are Dorina Feher of Northrop High School and Serene Alyssa Rosario Macaraig of Concordia Lutheran High School. Each student received a $1,000 scholarship.

ATHENA recipients must meet each of three specific criteria. They must:

• Assist women in reaching their full leadership potential.
• Demonstrate excellence, creativity, and initiative in their business or profession.
• Provide valuable service by devoting time and energy to improve the quality of life for others in the community.