Eleven women business owners, including six from Central Ohio, will be recognized tomorrow during the 2010 Keys to Success Awards program at the Verne Riffe Center Capitol Theatre in downtown Columbus.
Awardees include Dianne Grote Adams of Safex in Westerville, Luconda Dager, Joanne Dager, and Andre Dager of The Velvet Ice Cream Co. in Utica, Joelle Rubcich of Leading EDJE in Galena, and Vanessa Sutton of Affordable Real Estate Co. in Columbus.
“Ohio’s businesswomen play a key role in the economic growth and future of our state,” says Lisa Patt-McDaniel, director of the Ohio Department of Development, whose Entrepreneurship and Small Business Division sponsors the awards program.
“The 2010 Keys to Success Awards recipients should be congratulated for their business acumen and extraordinary commitment to Ohio’s business community,” she adds.
Recipients were selected in six categories: manufacturing/technology, service, real estate/construction, health care/medical, marketing/advertising/public relations, wholesale/retail. In addition, the Shining Star award honors a woman in business for more than five years whose company is currently owned by a daughter or granddaughter of its founder and the Rising Star award honors a woman in business for less than five years.
This year’s Shining Stars are the aforementioned Dager sisters; the Rising Stars are Michelle Henry and Amanda Barna of the Center for Marketing and Opinion Research in Akron.
Ruby Hartley of Southeastern Ohio Home Health & Staffing Solutions Inc. in Logan, Margery Murphy of Acadia Lead Management Services in Dayton, and Judith Phillips of Stand Energy Corp. in Cincinnati round out the 2010 awardees.
To qualify for the Keys to Success Awards, nominees must be female majority owners of companies with annual revenues in excess of $250,000, with exceptions in the service and Rising Star categories, where annual revenues must be a minimum of $200,000 and $150,000, respectively.
Further, nominees must be Ohio-based, well-established, growing and profitable for the 2009 federal tax reporting period, and demonstrate an empowering work environment and involvement in their communities.
A committee of five women entrepreneurs reviewed nominations.
The awards program begins at 3 p.m., WBNS-10TV’s Anietra Hamper will serve as emcee, and Donatos Pizza President and COO Jane Grote Abell will provide the keynote address. The event is free to the public.
