Henry Ford Community College’s 40th Annual Women’s Recognition Luncheon was
held on March 22, 2013 in the student center from 11am to 2 pm. Business and
Economics instructor Jacqueline Lawson served as the Mistress of Ceremonies,
moderating a panel of 4 highly influential women from the Southeast Michigan area.

The afternoon started with an opening raffle, followed by the official welcome from
HFCC President, Dr. Gail Mee. Lunch was then served and the panel discussion about
“Women in Public Life: Answering the Call for Leadership” commenced.

The panel was made up of the four 2013 Gene L. Brazell Community Role Model
Award Recipients. State Representative Vicki Barnett of the 37th House District,
who represents Farmington and Farmington Hills. She also served as mayor of
Farmington Hills for four years and as president of the Michigan Municipal League,
among other achievements.

Debbie Dingell, who serves as president of D2 Strategies and a chairwoman of
the Manufacturing Initiative of the American Automotive Policy Council, is also an
dynamic leader in her community here in Michigan as well as in Washington, D.C.
She has been recognized nationally for her efforts as an activist for women and
children.

Deb Drummond is a military veteran with over ten years of experience and also
formerly served as President of the Women Marines Association, Michigan Chapter.
Last but not least, Brenda Lawrence, Mayor of Southfield Michigan, who is the
first African American mayor of the city of Southfield and has been serving in this
position for twelve years. She is recognized for originating several community
programs and has received multiple awards for her influences.

After the panel discussion came to a close, each woman was each presented with an
award for being a community role model by Dr. Gail Mee. Next was the presentation
of the 2013 Women’s Recognition Award by Jolie Stepaniak, who was presented
with this award in 2012. This highly esteemed award was presented to Cassandra
Fluker, who is the Director of Student Activities here at HFCC. She is regarded highly
on campus and recognized for helping organize many student clubs and also serves
as the faculty advisor for the Mirror News. She has transformed the newspaper from
purely volunteer work to being more academically focused and completely student
staffed. She is an active participant in multiple committees as well as coordinating
community and extracurricular opportunities for HFCC students. To conclude the
event the final raffle announcements were made and attendees were dismissed.

Cynthia Kismarton, who served on the planning committee for this year’s event
stated “This year’s luncheon was another success for the Women’s Recognition

program. This is my first year serving on the committee. I joined because I could see
the value of the event. It brings the community together with students, faculty, staff
and administrators at the college. It’s a great opportunity to honor women who have
made an outstanding contribution to the lives of others at HFCC, and it supports
student scholarships!”