Each year, WWPR presents an award to a senior level Washington area female PR practitioner as a means to honor and celebrate the accomplishments of PR women and expand awareness of contributions to the industry. This year's luncheon marked the 20th anniversary of the PR Woman of the Year (WOY) event.
Temple was selected from a panel of judges who nominated three final honorees based on their exceptional leadership and integrity to their fields as well as their community involvement. The two other honorees were Jody Arlington, Managing Partner, PR Collaborative and Director, Georgetown Entertainment and Media Alliance and Kirsten Suto Seckler, Director of Global Brand Marketing and Awareness, Special Olympics.
"Each of the honorees deserves recognition for far exceeding standards within the public relations profession," said Lauren Lawson, president of Washington Women in Public Relations.
"Sarah Temple was selected as the 2009 PR Woman of the Year for setting the benchmark in terms of her strategic communications planning, partnership development and social responsibility programming."
Temple's 18 years of experience includes spearheading the award-winning National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute's (NHLBI) "The Heart Truth" campaign, raising awareness about heart disease in women, as its project director. Currently, she advises NHLBI on community and corporate partner outreach across all its social marketing campaigns. She also directs the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Screen for Life's campaign including its partnership with the Entertainment Industry Foundation/Stand Up 2 Cancer.
The event also featured a keynote by Dana Bash, CNN's senior congressional correspondent, responsible for covering the activities of both the U.S. House and Senate. A raffle was held to benefit WWPR's pro bono client, the Children's Law Center, the leading civil legal services provider in the District and the only organization that provides comprehensive free legal representation specifically for children who have been abused and neglected, have special education or health care needs.
A list of previous recipients of this distinguished award is available here.
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