Call for PWC Woman of the Year Nominations

The Professional Women’s Chamber (PWC) has announced its call for nominations for its Woman of the Year award.  The award is presented annually to a woman in the western Massachusetts area who exemplifies outstanding leadership, professional accomplishment and service to the community.

This award has been given annually since 1954 and is publicly recognized as one of the most prestigious honors given to any citizen for distinguished service and selfless giving.  The award’s first recipient was Julia Buxton, treasurer of Buxton, Inc., founder of what is now known as the PWC and the first woman elected to the Springfield Chamber Board of Directors.  Other past recipients include the 2019 Woman of the Year Denise Hurst, vice president of advancement and external affairs; Charron, chief risk officer and senior vice president of operations and information technology for PeoplesBank in Holyoke; Dr. Arlene Rodriguez, vice president of academic affairs for Springfield Technical Community College; Anne Paradis, chief executive officer for MicroTek; Carol Campbell, president, chief executive officer and founder of Chicopee Industrial Contractors; the late Kitty Broman and Senator Iris K. Holland; Sister Mary Caritas; retired Judge Nancy Dusek-Gomez; former Senator Gale Candaras; and businesswomen Arlene Putnam, Mary Reardon Johnson, Ellen Freyman, and Jean Deliso.

To be considered, candidates must be gainfully employed in a paid full-time position and live or work in the Pioneer Valley.  Any woman in the Pioneer Valley may be nominated; no chamber affiliation is required.  Nominee achievements can be representative of a lifetime of work or for more recent successes.

Deadline for nominations is February 14, 2020.