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**FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE**
March 27, 2008
Contact: Sarah Krauss
(212) 669-4193; (917) 541-0936
Release #: 011-2008
PA Gotbaum Celebrates Women's History Month; Honors Women from Each Borough for Work and Advocacy for Children
MANHATTAN - Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum, along with Councilmember Helen Sears, celebrated Women's History month tonight at a reception honoring five women for their leadership and work advocating for children. Hosted by Jodi Applegate from Good Day New York, the reception highlighted the achievement of one woman from each of the city's five boroughs.
Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum said, "As the first female Public Advocate and the only female city-wide elected official, I am inspired every day by the hard work and compassion of my female colleagues, in and out of government. An event like tonight, that gathers so many successful and inspirational women in one place, shows us just how far we've come."
Councilmember Helen Sears said, "Since becoming chair of the Women's Issues Committee, I have seen first hand what the words overcoming obstacles truly means and how it personifies the women of today."
The five women honored were:
Lilliam Barrios-Paoli (Manhattan), Safe Space, President and CEO, former Senior Vice President and Chief Executive for Agency Services of the United Way of New York City, former Commissioner of Department of Employment, the City Personnel Department, the Department of Housing Preservation and Development, and the Human Resources Administration.
Joan McKeever-Thomas (Staten Island), UFT Parent Liaison for Staten Island, PTA President of two schools, Chair of the High School President Council in District 31, former President of the Staten Island Federation of PTAs, former Staten Island representative on the Panel for Education Policy.
Carol A. Gresser (Queens), Adjunct Professor at St John's University, four-time president of the NYC Board of Education, member of the Advisory Board of Common Cause/NY, former Vice President of the Board of the Child Center of New York, and member of the Advisory Board of the St. John's University School of Education..
Isis Sapp-Grant (Brooklyn), Founder and Executive Director, Youth Empowerment Mission, and founder of the Blossom Program for Girls in the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn, NY.
Alexie Torres-Fleming (Bronx), Founder and Executive Director of Youth Ministries for Peace and Justice, recipient of the Young Adult in Ministry Award from the Latino Pastoral Action Center, the 1998 Union Square Award for work in activism and human rights, and the 2000 Heroes Award from the Robin Hood Foundation.
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