CELEBRATIONS
YWCA Greenwich announces ‘Women Who Inspire’ honorees
The YWCA Greenwich will put the spotlight next month on the honorees for its 2022 Women Who Inspire Award.
The awards will be presented at 5:30 p.m. Nov. 10 at a cocktail reception at Greenwich Country Club. The event will be hosted by Demetra Ganias, founder of Ganias Media Lab.
“This year's class of Women Who Inspire Award Honorees is truly remarkable. We are thrilled to celebrate their accomplishments and their significant impact on our community,” said Mary Lee Kiernan, YWCA Greenwich President and CEO.
The award was established to recognize and celebrate women who have excelled in philanthropic, professional and volunteer pursuits and enriched the lives of those in the community. This year's honorees are:
Stephanie Dunn Ashley, CEO of the American Red Cross, Metro New York North Chapter in Cos Cob;
Kathleen Bordelon, CEO of SilverSource Inc. in Stamford, a comprehensive resource for Fairfield County's seniors in need;
Grace Lockhart Djuranovic, community volunteer;
Danielle Eason, community volunteer;
Laura Erickson, member of the town Board of Estimate and Taxation and former chair of the Board of Education in Greenwich;
Molly H. King, head of school at Greenwich Academy;
Christine Lai, executive director and co-founder of S.E.L.F., the Special Education Legal Fund;
Nicole Mitchell, executive director of SPIDACARES, a family foundation that impacts families and communities through the power of education and athletics;
Dr. Karen Santucci, senior vice president and chief medical officer for Yale New Haven Health and Greenwich Hospital; and
Dr. Asha K. Shah, director of infectious diseases and hospital epidemiologist at Stamford Health.
The Next Generation Women Who Inspire Awards will go to Lauren Mondschein, a senior at Greenwich High School, and Emma K. Neary, a student at Sacred Heart Greenwich.
The law offices of Cummings & Lockwood, represented by its Chairman and Managing Director Laura Beck, will receive the Women Who Inspire Corporate Award for its leadership in developing a strong culture and practices that support gender equity and women's empowerment.
YWCA Greenwich has a long history of honoring women in the community, including the BRAVA Awards, which were established in 1977 and recognized professional women; the Spirit of Greenwich Awards, which began in 1994 and honored volunteers; and the Women Who Inspire Awards, which was established in 2019 to recognize all women and the fluidity in today's work/life balance.
For more information about the event and to purchase tickets, visit www.ywcagrn.org/inspire.
Global Citizens Initiative announces new executive director
David P. Janes has been appointed the new executive director of Global Citizens Initiative Inc., a Greenwich-based nonprofit organization.
Founded by Yumi Kuwana in 2012, Global Citizens Initiative empowers young global citizens from all sectors of society to be lifelong leaders of positive change and build the next generation of ethical leaders.
“We are absolutely thrilled and honored to have David, such a seasoned and high caliber ethical leader, join GCI as he is a global citizen himself and espouses and breathes the work we do on a daily basis,” said Kuwana, president of GCI. “He has been engaged with GCI as a valuable mentor to our fellows for several years.”
Janes is based at GCI's office in Connecticut. He joins GCI with more than 25 years of experience in international education, U.S.-Japan relations and philanthropy at major universities and international nonprofits.
He said he is excited to partner with Kuwana, the GCI Board of Directors, staff and community and said he will assist in building a new Global Scholarship Fund to enable students to join GCI's program regardless of financial circumstances.
Janes joins GCI from the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University, where he served as chief advancement officer, and as president and CEO of the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Foundation. In this capacity, he led a major effort to support educational ties between the university and schools in Okinawa and developed dialogues around education in Hawaii and Okinawa.
Previously he served as an executive at the United States-Japan Foundation, focused on building innovative ties between schools, teachers and students in the U.S. and Japan.
Janes speaks English and Japanese and holds a master's in international affairs from The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University, a master of philosophy degree from The New School for Social Research, and a master's in Asian Relations from University of Hawaii, Manoa.
He received his bachelor's in religion from the University of Mary Washington. Greenwich-based GCI works directly with students, educators and schools to provide the educational tools and community support to equip global citizens with the mindset, skills and resources necessary to be effective and ethical global leaders.
The core of GCI's program is the Summit, followed by a 10-month fellowship for high school students. GCI also offers an international seminar for secondary school teachers.
Americares Airlift Benefit raises $1.8 million for relief efforts worldwide
The 35th annual Americares Airlift Benefit, which was held Oct. 1, raised nearly $1.8 million for the health-focused relief and development organization's programs worldwide.
Craig Melvin, a news anchor on NBC News' “Today,” and co-host of “3rd Hour of Today” served as master of ceremonies.
“We are so grateful for the incredible support that we received at this year's Americares Airlift Benefit,”
said Christine Squires, Americares president and CEO.
Nearly 400 guests attended the benefit at the Citi Aviation Hangar at Westchester County Airport.
“The funds raised will help support our responses to current and future emergencies, such as Hurricane Ian, as well as fuel our ongoing programs that improve health in communities across the globe,” she said.
The Americares Airlift Benefit celebrates the organization's health programs and the health workers and partners who make the programs possible.
This year's event highlighted Americares relief efforts for Hurricane Fiona, the ongoing recovery from Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico and its response to the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine.
Dr. Brenda Rivera-García, Americares senior director of Latin America and Caribbean programs, and Americares Director of Complex Emergencies Adam Keehn were the featured speakers.