April 2, 2007
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Recently, I had an opportunity to attend the 15th Annual Paradigm Award Luncheon, sponsored by the Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce. This award recognizes the outstanding female business woman from the Philadelphia area, honoring her personal and professional achievements. This year’s award recipient was Terry D’Alessandro, Market CEO for the Mid-Atlantic East Market of Sovereign Bank.
Devereux has been proud to be a sponsor of the Paradigm Luncheon for the past two years. Helena T. Devereux, a Philadelphia school teacher, epitomized this same spirit of leadership, vision, and tenacity when she started our organization in 1912. Ninety-five years later we remain a venerable Philadelphia institution.
While the luncheon itself offers a wonderful tribute to the accomplishments of the Paradigm Award recipient, there is also a focus on helping working women advance their careers. Each year the Philadelphia Chamber also awards scholarships to working women who are pursuing their bachelor’s degrees. During this year’s luncheon, we heard remarks from past recipients about how the scholarship changed their life.
One of this year’s recipients was Renay Oberholtzer, nurse manager at the Devereux Kanner Center. I was delighted to be among the crowd of 650 business people cheering for Renay as she and other women were recognized. Renay was awarded the maximum amount, a $5000 scholarship.
Honoring the achievements of a business leader like Terry and recognizing the dedication of folks like Renay seemed like a perfect reflection of the Devereux spirit and our founder Helena T. Devereux.
Devereux continues to be led by several strong women leaders. I salute the success of Devereux’s women leaders – past and present - and offer my heartfelt congratulations to Renay.
