WORCESTER – YWCA Central Massachusetts announced the recipitents of the 2024 Katharine F. Erskine Award, who will be honored at the 30th annual Tribute to Women Luncheon on Tuesday, Sept. 24, at noon at the AC Hotel, at 125 Front St. in Worcester.
In 1885, 14 women founded the YWCA of Worcester with an objective “to promote the temporal, moral and religious welfare of young women who are dependent on their own exertions for support,” according to its website.
Today, the YWCA mission is “to eliminate racism and empower women.” It provides services in the areas of child care, domestic violence, health and wellness, housing, racial and gender equity, and youth development.
Since the YWCA began issuing the Katharine F. Erskine Award in 1994, it has celebrated over 130 women.
Tickets to the event are available on the YWCA website.
The 2024 Katharine F. Erskine Award recipients, who are all from Worcester, are:
- Christina Connolly – Community Resources Manager for the Worcester Public Library
- Connolly has over 25 years of professional experience in urban libraries. Since joining the Worcester Public Library in 2012, Christina has introduced inclusive programs and services for vulnerable individuals for whom the library has become a place of respite and refuge.
- Her initiatives have connected patrons with essential resources, including housing, shelter, clothing, food security, reintegration assistance, career services and more. She also spearheads staff training in life-saving interventions like naloxone administration for opioid overdoses, non-violent de-escalation, and mental health first aid.
- Laxmi Bissoondial, M.Ed. – Director of the Office of Multicultural Affairs at Worcester State University
- Bissoondial oversees the University’s A.I.D (Access program), Upward Bound program, (the University’s pipeline high school program) and retention efforts for all first generation students. Above and beyond access and retention efforts for underrepresented students, she has led and continues to provide cutting-edge student leadership and Multicultural programming on behalf of the University. She has worked at Worcester State since 2002 and was appointed as director in 2022
- In 2022, Laxmi received the Key to the City of Worcester along with the Office of Multicultural Affairs for the impact, retention rate, and graduation of ALANA/BIPOC, first-generation and low-income students at Worcester State. Earlier in her career, she received Special Congressional recognition for her youth development work.
- The Honorable Margaret Guzman, JD – U.S. District Judge for the District of Massachusetts
- Guzman is the first Latina judge appointed to the U.S. District Court in Worcester. Prior to her appointment as a federal judge by President Biden in March 2023, Judge Guzman served as the First Justice of the Ayer District Court.
- She served as a public defender from 1992-2005, a private practitioner from 2005-2009, then was appointed as an Associate Justice presiding over criminal and civil business in 32 of 62 District Courts. She actively participated on several judiciary committees addressing general education, implicit bias and race and ethnic fairness.
- Maydee Morales – Resiliency Center Director for the Worcester Community Action Council
- Maydee has worked in human services for over 25 years, including at Centro, Friendly House, Edward M. Kennedy Health Center, and Great Brook Valley Health Center. Prior to joining WCAC, Maydee was the Director of Social Services for Catholic Charities of Worcester County.
- For the last 30 years, Maydee has become a community leader by lending her voice to underserved and underrepresented individuals and advocating for a better life for all who live in Worcester. She has worked for racial equity and social justice and has been an advocate for systematic changes in our community. She has worked directly with patients who suffered from chronic diseases such as diabetes, hypertension, asthma, behavioral health, and HIV. After Hurricane Maria hit Puerto Rico in September 2017, Maydee became a key leader in efforts to resettle families by helping them find employment and housing.
