Women making an impact in Santa Barbara and Ventura counties celebrated by California Legislature
VENTURA, Calif. - It was the perfect day to celebrate women in Ventura county. This week State Senator Monique Limón honors women in Ventura and Santa Barbara counties
Every year the California State Legislature honors local women and their contributions within their communities.
“These eleven women are women who have all had a trajectory and a tenure of doing incredible work in the healthcare space and the childcare space in the nonprofit space," said Senator Monique Limón. "All eleven of them are people who have been here in our community for decades.”
The six honoree women that were celebrated in Santa Barbara on Thursday are as follows, Gina M. Gonzales-Carbajal, Chief Programs Officer of Scholarship Foundation of Santa Barbara. Ashley Costa, Executive Director for Lompoc Valley Community Healthcare Organization. Lori Lander Goodman, Executive Director of LEAP: Learn. Engage. Advocate. Partner. Roberta M. Jaffe, Farmer Activist, Condor's Hope Vineyard, Cuyama Valley Small Farmer and Rancher Network, Cuyama Valley Community Association. Katrina B. Mitchell, MD, IBCLC, PMH-C at Sutter Health and Wendy Sims-Moten, Executive Director of First 5 Santa Barbara County.
The five honoree women that were celebrated in Ventura Friday are as follows, Marlyss Munguia Auster, President and CEO of Visit Ventura. Pattie Braga, Executive Director of Ventura County Leadership Academy. Tammy I. Glenn, Executive Director of National Volunteer Caregiving Network; Ventura County CAREGIVERS: Volunteers Assisting the Elderly. LaRita Joice Montgomery, Chair of Martin Luther King Jr. Committee of Ventura County and Vanessa Rauschenberger, General Manager of Gold Coast Transit District.
One woman shared why it’s important to celebrate women not only today but every day.
“It took a long time for women to get where they needed to be and where we we were and so to have a celebration like this is so incredibly important and I also think it lifts others," said Pattie Braga, Executive Director of Ventura County Leadership Academy.
President and CEO of Visit Ventura, Marlyss Munguia Auster shared her reaction to the news of being selected as women of the year.
“Is there something I can help with? But she goes ‘Well it’s very busy these days however this is a pleasant call.’ And she told me and I was just floored because I was expecting something completely different on ways that I could help her because that’s just what I like to do. So it was a big surprise," said Marlyss Munguia Auster.
