Outstanding Small Businesswomen Award Winners Inger Miller and Jill Hawkins of Miller Hawkins Productions, LLC in Altadena
State Senator Carol Liu, along with Assemblymembers Anthony Portantino and Mike Gatto, honored nearly 30 outstanding local women for their accomplishments to the local community at the Women in Business Legislative Update and Awards Luncheon, held Friday afternoon in Pasadena. The annual event co-hosted by all three state officials “honor[s] local women whose exceptional abilities have contributed to the economic vitality and diversity of the 21st Senate District and/or 43rd and 44th Assembly Districts”, according to State Senator Carol Liu.
Numerous local women were honored in a series of award categories during the event, such as the Most Inspirational Award, the Empowerment Award, the Woman in Science and Technology Award, the Woman in Arts and Entertainment Award, the Woman in Law Award, the Environment/Energy Efficiency Award, the Outstanding Corporate Woman Award, the Outstanding Non-Profit Exec Director Award, the Outstanding Non-Profit Employee Award, the Tami Ginsburg Award, the Outstanding Small Businesswoman Award, and the Outstanding Junior Businesswoman award. Numerous local small business owners, non-profit and entrepreneurial leaders, local government officials, scientists and doctors, and other standout women in the local community were proud recipients of the prestigious state awards.
Ellyn Leyva, anchor of ABC7 Eyewitness News at 4pm and 6pm, served as the emcee of the event, while Nagin Cox of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, an instrumental figure in the recent Curiosity Rover’s Mission to Mars, served as the keynote speaker, providing attendees of the event with a fascinating overview of the technical details involved in exploring the “red planet” through the eyes of a robot.
A complete list of the award-winners at the event is included below:
Most Inspirational Award
- Maria Cruz Lujan, Eufloria Flowers
- Carolyn Rowley, Ph.D., Cayenne Wellness Center
Empowerment Award
- Jamie Khuu Inzunza, Mamma’s Brick Oven Pizza & Pasta
- Robin McCarthy, Women at Work
Women in Science and Technology Award
- Dr. Linh Chen, Glendale Adventist Medical Center
- Dr. Cheryl Lee Jang, Glendale Adventist Medical Center
Women in Arts and Entertainment Award
- Taline Bessos, Singer
- Jill Michnick, Los Angeles Opera
Women in Law Award
- Lt. Lola Abrahamian, Glendale Police Department
- Carol A. Peters, Attorney
Environment/Energy Efficiency Award
- Phyllis E. Currie, Pasadena Water and Power
- Hilda Morovati-Pirim, EmbroidMe
Outstanding Corporate Woman Award
- Lisa Stevens, Wells Fargo
- Virginia Grebbien, Parsons Environment and Infrastructure
- Leah Thomson Snell, Merrill Lynch
Outstanding Non-Profit Executive Director Award
- Robin Hughes, Abode Communities
- Christy Zamani, Day One
- Trina Marie Smith, Teen Futures
Outstanding Non-Profit Employee Award
- Ramella Markarian M.S., MHA, Glendale Adventist Medical Center
- Ana Gomez, Kid’s Community Dental Clinic
- Cheryl Reynolds, YMCA
- Yvonne Bell, Center Theatre Group
Tami Ginsburg Award
- Lisa Derderian, Pasadena Fire Department
- Angélica Palmeros, MSW, City of Pasadena Public Health Department
Outstanding Small Businesswoman Award
- Emma Garabetian, Modella Uniforms
- Inger Miller & Jill Hawkins, Miller Hawkins Productions, LLC
- Patty Parker, Verizon Connect
- Lori A. Webster, Webster’s Fine Stationers
Outstanding Junior Businesswoman Award
- Lina P. Lee, Charles Dunn Company Inc.