Celebrating The Women Who Lead

 Women Leadership Luncheon Coming Wednesday

Last year while on the staff of River Country Chamber Kamille Massey had an idea for an event that would shine a spotlight on the number of women in our community who are part of the driving force for positive change. The Influential Women in Business Luncheon received rave reviews and while Ms. Massey has moved on to other opportunities the event is  getting the first of what is hoped are many encores.
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 Sponsored by the Fremont Area Community Foundation,  ChoiceOne Bank, Edward Jones The Scott Swinehart Agency, and LIsa Lightfoot Realtor at Coldwell Banker Schmidt, the Second Annual Luncheon focuses on Women in Leadership and will be held this Wednesday, October 12th at the Center for Hope and Healing in White Cloud. 

Fourteen local women have been nominated and two will be named winners  in the categories of Community Leader and Emerging Leader. 
But each of the 14 on the nominated list are winners as they help shape the future of our county.
“It is exciting to celebrate leaders who do so much for the community,” said Shelly Kasprzycki, President and CEO of the Fremont Area Community Foundation.  “There are so many women leaders in Newaygo County that elevate our collective success.”

​Last year Julie Burrell of The Right Place was selected for the honor and spoke about what the award meant to her.
“As I began my career in more urban counties to our south, I always admired the women who were fortunate enough to be included in the leadership circles and truly admired those recognized for their work through these types of events.  Returning home to Newaygo County, I always hoped we’d have a chance to lift up the amazing women who have such impactful roles in our communities, and now we have this amazing opportunity!  The Women in Leadership event has been immensely impactful for me, as its inaugural award recipient of ‘most influential’, and I am honored to be a part of the event going forward to recognize and celebrate so many more women.”

Want to attend? Details can be found in the link below.
https://www.rivercountrychamber.com/events/details/newaygo-county-influential-women-in-leadership-

​“Kamille had a vision for this,” said Rachael Porter, RCC Community Relations. “We are hoping our collaboration with Fremont Area Chamber of Commerce, Fremont Area Community Foundation and the Newaygo Economic Development Partners will do it justice.”

And the nominees are:
AMY STOCKWELL, WHITE CLOUD LIBRARY DIRECTOR
APRIL STORMS, WHITE CLOUD CITY MANAGER
DARCIE WITTE, FIFTH THIRD BANK, PERSONAL BANKER
DIANE SCHINDLBECK, SCHINDY'S AT DIAMOND LAKE, CEO
JALISA DANHOF, CAMP NEWAYGO DIRECTOR
JENIFER FORT, VICE PRESIDENT & HEAD OF PUBLIC RELATIONS, NEWAYGO GHOSTBUSTERS
KELLY WAWSCZYK, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, MECOSTA COUNTY DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION
LISA LIGHTFOOT, REALTOR AT COLDWELL BANKER SCHMIDT
LOLA HARMON-RAMSEY, DIRECTOR OF ADVOCACY & COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT, AMERICAN CLASSIC
MANDA HAMPLE, NCRESA, COSMETOLOGY INSTRUCTOR
MARY RANGEL, DHD#10, WIC TECH
MELISSA MILLER, NCRESA  SUPERVISOR OF EARLY COLLEGE & STUDENT SUCCESS SERVICES
NICOLE KLOMP, NEWAYGO POLICE DPT SOCIAL WORKER
TARA NELSON, NCPCA EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

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