The 2019 Iris Awards honor women's contributions to Southwest Washington

On March 7, while people around the world prepared to celebrateInternational Women’s Day the next day, members of the local community gatheredin Gaiser Student Center to honor five women’s contributions to SouthwestWashington at the 2019 Iris Awards.

Guests enjoyed refreshments and light fare provided byBeaches Restaurant as they celebrated the honorees. Ceremonies began with agreeting from Clark College President Bob Knight, after which the evening wasturned over to emcee Colleen Boccia, chief marketing officer of Columbia CreditUnion. Boccia introduced speeches by both the honorees and their nominators.

This year’s Iris Award recipients were:

• Ann Fischer, founder of the Healthy Equitable Living Project
• Stacey Graham, president of the Humane Society for Southwest Washington
• Maureen Montague, executive director of Columbia Springs
• Rekah Strong, executive director of Educational Opportunities for Children and Families
• Lynn Valenter, vice chancellor for finance and operations at Washington State University Vancouver

This annual ceremony has a long tradition in this community.The event began in 1985 as a photography exhibit during Women’s History Week,which later developed into a larger awards program and ceremony known as theSouthwest Washington Women of Achievement Awards. In 2012, the event wasreintroduced as the Iris Awards with the same core mission: honoring the womenof Southwest Washington for their outstanding contributions in the categoriesof public, private, philanthropic, and civic service.

Ann Fischer

The evening got off to an emotional start when Diane Irbytook to the podium to describe her experience being a client of the HealthyEquitable Living Project, which Ann Fischer runs and founded.

“The pantry has fed my body quite well,” she said. “But thepure unselfish love [Ann] provided me has fed my soul and my heart and wassomething I didn’t even know I was starving for.

“The pantry keeps me alive,” Irby continued, facing Fischerdirectly, “but you make me want to stayalive.”

Fischer embraced Irby before beginning her own remarks,which centered on the work that HELP does providing food to families in need at14 different schools. She spoke about the importance of not just providingpeople with food and assistance, but doing so in a way that allows them choiceand dignity, mentioning how HELP sets up its food pantry so that clients can “shop”for the groceries they prefer instead of receiving a pre-made box. Fischer alsothanked the many volunteers and partners that support HELP, including ClarkCollege nursing students who volunteered to provide clients with education on hygieneand first aid.

Fischer also made clear that it was not just the clients whobenefited from HELP, but she herself found inspiration and motivation from thework. “The biggest gift you can give yourself is helping other people,” shesaid.

Stacey Graham

The next honoree of the evening was Stacey Graham, presidentof the Humane Society for Southwest Washington. Before coming to HSSW, Grahamhad a long career that encompassed work in the Oregon State Legislature,national public relations and advertising agencies, the United Way ofColumbia-Willamette, and First Independent Bank. When she joined HSSW in 2013,she was charged with raising the level of awareness and visibility of theHumane Society in the local community and animal welfare industry; anddramatically increasing the save rate of the animals in care. Under herleadership, HSSW launched a five-year, $6 million capital campaign. In 2018,HSSW was named the Best Nonprofit in Clark County.

“I’ve been a volunteer with HSSW for 20 years,” saidnominator Debra Hentz. “One thing you see with people at humane societies isthey say, ‘We want to focus on the animals.’ Stacey really focused on thepeople and building them up.”

Graham admitted that she wasn’t a born animal-lover. “I didn’tgrow up with animals,” she said. “The first time I walked into the kennels, I wasscared to death—that’s how I learned I was afraid of dogs. But I walked thosekennels every day, and I learned to love dogs.”

Graham noted that caring about animals is part of caringabout humanity, and noted that HSSW donated pet food to pantries like AnnFischer’s. “We know how much animals mean to people,” she said. “We know theywill give food to their animals before they feed themselves. So we’re hangingin there with you.”

Maureen Montague

The next award presented was the H-RoC Iris Award, a specialcategory created in 2017 to honor women in the community who have promotedcivil discourse, teamwork, collaboration, and cooperation. H-RoC, anon-partisan political action committee dedicated to the advancement of electedand appointed female leaders in Southwest Washington, sponsors this annualaward.

H-RoC member (and 2016 Iris Award recipient) Heidi JohnsonBixby introduced honoree Maureen Montague. Montague currently serves as theexecutive director of Columbia Springs, an environmental education nonprofit andprotected urban natural area on the Old Evergreen Highway in Vancouver. Previousto this position, she was the co-founder and eventual executive director ofNorth Bank Artists.

Johnson Bixby described Montague as “the first to raise herhand to volunteer” and someone with a gift for collaboration andcommunity-building.

Like most of the night’s honorees, Montague said she learnedthe value of community service from her family. She recalled watching hergrandmother sewing a quilt with fellow church members to donate to a recentlywidowed woman to keep her warm during the winter, and feeling “the kindness ofthat good deed in my heart.”

“Community service, to me, means collective kindness,” shesaid. “These things add up. … I’m blessed to live in Clark County, where somany people seem to understand this.”

Rekah Strong

The next honoree of the night was also nominated by a formerhonoree. Jada Rupley, 2004 Women of Achievement Award recipient, introducedRekah Strong by noting that they currently served together on the Clark CollegeBoard of Trustees. She praised Strong for her dedication to the community,saying, “Thank you for being a gentle teacher, thank you for being a fierceadvocate, and thank you for changing our community.”

Strong is executive director of Educational Opportunitiesfor Children and Families. Prior to that position, she served in leadershiproles at the United Way of the Columbia-Willamette and at Clark County. Alongwith her work on the Clark College Board of Trustees, she serves on ClarkCounty’s Developmental Disability Advisory Board and is a former board memberof We Reign Youth Foundation and Southwest Washington Chapter Red Cross.

Strong spoke about her experiences as a young childattending political events with her grandmother and mother, drawing withcrayons and not entirely understanding why she was there, but even so learningthe importance of public engagement. “What my grandmother was doing for me waspouring into me, and creating a template for me that would come full circle inmy life,” she said.

Strong also noted a theme that arose from her experiences: “Smallyesses can have huge outcomes.” As examples, she offered the time she said yesto an employee who needed to bring her baby to work, which led to a programthat served a dozen employees and became a model for other workplaces. Another “smallyes” was agreeing to speak at an open forum about Clark County’s system ofgovernance, which in turn led to her becoming part of the work group thatchanged the county’s Freeholder process and expanded the Clark County Council.

Strong also recounted providing her own children withcrayons as she took them to public meetings—and how, years later, her daughterwould volunteer to visit the State Capitol to advocate for others.

“You never know the ultimate outcome of modeling for others,of pouring into other people, and all those small yesses,” she said.

Lynn Valenter

The final honoree of the night was Lynn Valenter, vicechancellor for finance and operations at Washington State University Vancouver.Valenter, who began her career at WSUV more than 20 years ago, now leads arange of functions including budget and accounting, capital planning,facilities operations, human resources, public safety, and dining services.

Valenter was introduced by WSUV Chief of Staff ReneeBartocci, who expressed her appreciation for her colleague’s work ethic andenthusiasm. “She’s there to be a partner, to bounce ideas off of, and to askthe hard questions,” Bartocci said. “And she’s really good at it.”

Valenter thanked her family for supporting her work—both inher career and as a volunteer—acknowledging the difficulty women face when theytry to manage the obligations of their families with those of their workplacesand communities. “For many, many years, the daily prayer was for balance,” shesaid. Even so, she said the balancing act was worth it.

“I believe each of us finds satisfaction when we make a difference,” she said. “That can be in your family, in your work, and in your community.”

To view more photos from the event visit our Flickr page.