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w w w . o a kv ill eb ea ve r.c o m O A KV IL LE B EA V ER Fr id ay , O ct ob er 8 , 2 01 0 2 6 By Angela Blackburn OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF In 13 years, ATHENA Oakville has beenborn, come of age and will now passthe torch. And thats not just a good thing, say its officials its a great thing. ATHENA Oakville, like similar programs around the world, was inspired by the Greek goddess of wisdom, war, the arts, industry, justice and skill. It bestows an annual award to someone who exemplifies the ATHENA tenets of authenticity, creativity, relationship, intel- lect and spirit and, just as importantly, someone who mentors women. It came of age at a time when the cele- bration of those who mentored women as leaders was crucial. Established first under the auspices of the Oakville Chamber of Commerce and then growing up to operate independently, ATHENA Oakville even branched out to develop scholarships to further support women developing leadership skills. Now, however, it has determined it may have become a little redundant as many other groups now also do the same work. Thats not a bad thing, says past ATHENA Oakville chair Linda Stalker. As society in general has become not just more accepting, but more support- ive of female leadership, ATHENA Oakville took a look around and found many groups doing exactly what its doing. Over the years, we started to see groups that are now recognizing women, and peo- ple, who mentor women. I like to think we had something to do with that, said Stalker. Given that, ATHENA Oakville deter- mined it didnt need to be doing what its doing anymore or that perhaps its role should change. ATHENA Oakville wont be bowing total- ly out of the picture, though it will bow out gracefully. It will leave the Legacy of ATHENA Oakville Fund to finance its annual schol- arship awards and it will celebrate all that it has accomplished at one grand cele- bratory ATHENA Oakville awards dinner to be held on Nov. 3 the ATHENA Oakville Grand Finale Awards Ceremony And yes, after taking a hiatus last year, one final ATHENA Oakville award recipient will be selected from a field of four nomi- nees. Nominees for the 2010 award include Catherine Bobesich, Cathy Benbow Plewes, Lorraine Green and Jane Wightman. ATHENA Oakville founders and mem- bers have always maintained that it is just as great an honour to be nominated for an award as it is to win one. To date, the ATHENA Oakville winners have included: former mayor Ann Mulvale, Laura Kupfreschmidt, Anne Day, Patricia Dillon, Kathy Parke, Judy Henderson, Norma Gamble, Mary Jane Howie, Sheila Kuyper, Brenda Zimmerman, Linda Rothney and Wendy Perkins. According to Stalker who recently spoke with the The Oakville Beaver about ATHENA Oakvilles past, present and future, the nomination process is stringent, the nominees increasingly notable year over year and the final selection almost impossible. This years winner, and this years nomi- nees, will be honoured Nov. 3. We will also be supplying a legacy that we will be leaving for the community, said Stalker who noted she faced challenges in her career and appreciated the mentoring role her current employer provided and is thankful such philosophy exists when she reflects on the futures of her two daugh- ters, aged four and eight. It was in 2005 that ATHENA Oakville began handing out a $1,000 scholarship to a mature Sheridan College student who had returned, from life, to classes. ATHENA passes torch with legacy fund LivingOakville Beaver LIVING EDITOR: ANGELA BLACKBURN Phone: 905-337-5560 Fax: 905-337-5571 e-mail: ablackburn@oakvillebeaver.com OAKVILLE BEAVER FILE PHOTOS LEADING WOMEN: Oakville resident Brenda Zimmerman was guest speaker at the 11th annual ATHENA Oakville Award gala after winning the award the previous year. Zimmerman will return as emcee of this years grand finale gala on Nov. 3. Above, the ATHENA Award. See ATHENA page 27