2010 Award Recipients

Catherina Gomes, Violet Richardson Recipient

The 2010 Soroptimist Violet Richardson Award recipient is Catherina Gomes, a senior at Cardinal Gibbons High School. She was born in New York less than a month after her parents moved to America from Bangladesh, and moved with her family to North Carolina when she was two years old. A visit back to Bangladesh with her family seven years later was life-changing, as she saw firsthand what real poverty looked like. Catherina decided then that she wanted to help the poor and homeless in any possible way.

A member of the National Honor Society, Catherina has a full schedule of school activities, rounded out with piano and dance lessons, and a part time job. She still makes time to volunteer with Heartland Hospice, the American Red Cross, her church and Habitat for Humanity. Closest to her heart is working summers at the Shepherd’s Table Soup Kitchen, where she is able to directly make a difference to the homeless.

Catherina also coordinated her school’s annual Box-A-Thon, where students gain perspective on homelessness by spending a night outdoors, sleeping in a box, and then spending a day volunteering with local homeless support organizations like Raleigh Rescue Mission, the Interfaith Food Shuttle, and the soup kitchen. Catherina plans to attend North Carolina State University and major in biomedical engineering.

Dr. Lisa Tolnitch, Soroptimist Ruby Award Recipient

The 2010 Soroptimist Ruby Award: For Women Helping Women winner is Dr. Lisa Tolnitch. Dr. Tolnitch is a practicing physician in Raleigh, North Carolina. Dr. Tolnitch has been helping women with breast cancer since 1991. Her vision of bringing the most effective and least invasive treatments of breast cancer to the Triangle has helped thousands of women throughout North Carolina. She was the first surgeon in Wake County to do a lumpectomy for treatment of breast cancer, and she recently has been at the forefront of adding Mammosite partial breast radiation to the treatment options in our state.

Dr. Tolnitch is the Founder and Chair of the Board of Pretty In Pink Foundation which helps breast cancer patients who desperately need treatment but have no means of paying for these services. The mission of the Pretty In Pink Foundation is to provide financial assistance to uninsured and underinsured breast cancer patients with treatment and surgical needs and the inability to pay for it. Pretty in Pink Foundation promotes life after breast cancer through the work they do with volunteers, the donations they receive and the sponsorships that they create. The ultimate vision of Pretty In Pink Foundation is to eliminate financial barriers and provide financial resources to any and all breast cancer patients with a true financial need for treatment and surgery. The first step to realizing this vision is to expand efforts throughout North Carolina. By 2020, Pretty In Pink Foundation foresees a point of presence in every state.

More information about the Pretty In Pink Foundation and Dr. Tolnitch can be found at www.prettyinpinkfoundation.org.

Kerry Ford, Women's Opportunity Award Recipient

The 2010 Women’s Opportunity Award recipient is Kerry Ford. Kerry balances motherhood, school and work, and makes excellent grades in the process. It has not always been this way – without a degree and as the sole breadwinner for her family, Kerry has faced numerous economical challenges. After surviving an abusive relationship that resulted in the loss of all her material possessions and caused her to be temporarily homeless, Kerry became determined to better her situation.

Kerry considered pursuing a degree in psychology but decided a nursing degree would better meet her need to support herself, her son and daughter. As a result, Kerry concurrently attended ECPI and Durham Technical Community College’s nursing programs. She successfully completed the Licensed Practical Nursing program at ECPI in the fall of 2009. She hopes to soon be employed as a Licensed Practical Nurse to support her family and also to continue her education at Durham Tech to attain her Associate’s Degree in Nursing. Kerry ultimately would like to become a nurse anesthetist – a goal that requires a Master’s Degree in Nursing. The cash award from Soroptimist International of Raleigh, NC and the grant from NAWBO Greater Raleigh will help make Kerry’s dreams a reality.

A nursing instructor at ECPI states that Kerry “has the makings of a real leader within the nursing profession and her community”.

Laura Parker Romero, Women's Opportunity Award Runner Up

The 2010 Soroptimist Women’s Opportunity Award runner-up is Laura Parker Romero. Laura was a student in 2001 and pregnant with her first child. She decided to drop out of school to be a mother and go to work, thinking she could always go back to school. Years later, Laura found herself a single parent with four children under the age of ten. With limited education, financial hardship naturally followed. It was time to make a better life for herself and her family.

Laura is currently pursuing the Licensed Practical Nursing Program at ECPI. She says that making an appointment with the school “was the best decision in her life”. Laura will complete her diploma in April 2010. In the fall of 2010 she will be a full-time student at North Carolina Central University pursuing her Bachelor of Science in Nursing. Her goal is to become a Pediatric Nurse. The grant from Soroptimist International of Raleigh, NC will help Laura to continue her education. Her four children are her motivators. She vows to be a positive example for them. When she completes her degree, she will be the first of seven siblings to earn a bachelor’s degree or nursing diploma.

A nursing instructor at ECPI states that Laura “will be an asset to the nursing community” and “is a role model for her children and her fellow classmates”.