Women’s Hall Of Fame Seeks Nominations For Working Woman Of The Year

FARMINGTON — To appreciate the many women of the state who make women’s lives better with their daily efforts, Westfarms, L’Oréal Paris, and Connecticut Women’s Hall of Fame are paying tribute to one special woman as Connecticut’s Working Woman of the Year. Accepting public nominations through the beginning of April, Westfarms and its partners are celebrating women who raise families, pursue higher education, excel in their careers, overcome adversity, help those less fortunate, and more.

Nominees must meet the following criteria to be eligible for the award:

*A woman 18+

*A current full-time Connecticut resident

*A woman who works – in any capacity

*A woman who demonstrates outstanding achievement and/or has overcome adversity

*Available on May 9 for news conference announcement (will be notified by April 21)

The deadline for submitting nominations is April 7.

The Connecticut Women’s Hall of Fame (CWHF) is an educational outreach organization whose mission is to honor publicly the achievement of Connecticut women, preserve their stories, educate the public, and inspire the continued achievements of women and girls. Founded in 1994 in Hartford, the hall fills the void that traditional curricula still fails to address and today stands as the state’s premier source for women’s history with more than 85 inductees.

These women’s lives and accomplishments are celebrated and documented through a wide spectrum of innovative statewide programs offered free of charge to Connecticut citizens.

The Advisory Panel who will select this year’s winner includes notables such as former winners Stephanie Haines, Rosalind Best, and Donna Palomba; as well as Carol Hamilton, president of L’Oréal Paris; Allison Demers, WRCH-FM host; Kara Sunland, co-host of WFSB-TV’s Better Connecticut; Katherine Wiltshire, executive director of the Connecticut Women’s Hall of Fame; and Christa Allen, marketing director, Westfarms.

“So many women go day in and day out with little recognition for all of the hard work they do,” said Ms Allen. “We developed this award to acknowledge these extraordinary women for the positive impact they’ve made in Connecticut.”

“We are thrilled to be involved with this year’s award,” said Ms Wiltshire. “This award mirrors the Hall of Fame’s mission to honor and showcase the achievements of Connecticut women. We’re excited to support a program that furthers this mission and is another way to publicly recognize the amazing women of our state.”

The award recipient will receive a round-trip vacation for two to Ireland, a $500 Westfarms shopping spree, a L’Oréal Paris gift package, and more. In addition, she will be recognized at a news conference on Friday, May 9, the official kick-off to Westfarms Working Women’s Weekend — a free event celebrating women presented by L’Oréal Paris on May 10 and 11. The weekend will consist of free massages, mini-makeovers, fashion advice, giveaways, and more.

Visit www.shopwestfarms.com/womanoftheyear for more information or to nominate someone, or write to Connecticut Working Woman of the Year, Westfarms Mall Management Office, 500 Westfarms Mall, Farmington CT 06032. Information and nomination forms are also available at Westfarms Customer Service. The nomination deadline is April 7.

The CWHF website, which is an educational tool receiving more than 100,000 individual hits each year, attracts international, national and local researchers, teachers and students. For more information, visit www.cwhf.org.