Greene County Women Hall of Fame Induction

Five Greene County women will be inducted into the Greene County Women’s Hall of Fame on Sept. 28.

Reservations are due by Sept. 21 for the 2013 Recognition Day Luncheon, honoring Greene County women for their contributions to the county’s growth and progress.

The luncheon, which is open to the public, begins at 11:30 a.m. at Walnut Grove Country Club, 5050 Linden Ave. on the Beavercreek/Riverside border.

This year’s honorees are:

• Genell Benner of Xenia — The retired elementary teacher volunteers with the Auxiliary Board at Greene Memorial Hospital, is a home-delivered meal route driver for the Xenia Adult Recreation and Services Center, volunteers for the Xenia Area FISH Food Pantry and is a tutor at Tecumseh Elementary. She is the secretary of the Greene County Historical Society Board of Directors and is an active member of First Evangelical Lutheran Church in Xenia.

• Elaine Hughes of Xenia — The pediatric nurse practitioner works in the Greene County Combined Health District’s Well Child Clinic and volunteers at the Living Well Clinic, a free Xenia health clinic. She volunteers for the Greene County Parks and Trails, Xenia Schools and Westminster Presbyterian Church. She’s also a member of the Greene County Children’s Services Board, Friends of Children’s Services, Michael’s House and the Greene Community Health Foundation

• Phyllis Lawson Jackson of Yellow Springs — The Yellow Springs Senior Center volunteer received the 2013 Greene County Council on Aging Senior Center Leadership Award. A founding member of the Yellow Springs Historical Society, she compiled the village elders’ stories, some of them becoming part of a CNN feature. She helped establish the Women’s Park of Yellow Springs, co-edited a book, “Celebrating Women: The Women’s Park of Yellow Springs” and served as an early member of the African–American Genealogical Group of Miami Valley She’s been a museum docent at the National Afro-American Museum and Cultural Center since its opening in 1988 and is an active member of the Central Chapel African Methodist Episcopal Church and the Friends of Payne, supporting Payne Theological Seminary in Wilberforce.

• Barbara Mills of Xenia — The Horticulture Program Assistant at the Greene County Extension of OSU coordinates the Master Gardener and Ohio Certified Volunteer Naturalist programs for Greene County and coordinates the Ohio Certified Naturalist Program for seven southwest Ohio counties. She has partnered with other county agencies to work with troubled youth by getting them involved in gardening through the “Leave No Child Inside” program.

• Cheryl Shedden of Beavercreek — First elected in 1999, she served two terms on the Beavercreek Board of Education, during which she also served for four years on the Greene County Career Center Board of Education. In 2006 she was selected as the Outstanding Beavercreek Educator of the Year by the Beavercreek Chamber of Commerce. She has served as a child advocate, volunteer and substitute teacher for the district’s preschool program for children with special needs. She is a member of the Beavercreek Women’s League and was a 10-year volunteer with the 24-hour Relay Challenge program. For eight years she has volunteered eight with the Beavercreek Historical Society’s Living History Program for community school children.

The featured speaker for the luncheon will be Mary Luttrell of Xenia, a retired educator who is now an active volunteer at Greene Memorial Hospital, the Greene County Historical Society and the Friends of the Xenia Library.

Tickets are $15 and reservations must be made in advance by phone or mail by Sept. 21.

Mail checks, payable to the Greene County Women’s Hall of Fame, to Box 703, Fairborn, OH 45324.

For further information or reservations, call Ann Byrd at 429-1805.

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