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LTC 049-2007 Women's History Month lD -=- MIAMI BEACH RECEIVED 2001 fEB 28 AM 1/: 24 CIT)' CLERK'S OFF ICt OFFICE OF THE CITY MANAGER NO. LTC # 049-2007 LETTER TO COMMISSION DATE: Mayor David Dermer and Members of the City Commission Jorge M. Gonzalez, City Manager\ ..-- "'- ~ February 26, 2007 0 0 WOMEN'S HISTORY MONTH TO: FROM: SUBJECT: March is Women's History Month, and, as in previous years, the Miami Beach Commission on the Status of Women will celebrate the event with a reception in honor of three women in our community whose contributions have made a difference. The Women Worth Knowing Award will be given to each of these women and was voted on recently by the Commission on the Status of Women. A list of the three honorees and a brief summary of their major accomplishment is attached. The City in partnering with the Commission on the Status of Women will hold a reception in honor of Women's History Month on Thursday, March 15, 2007 at 6:30 p.m. at the South Beach Marriott Hotel located at 161 Ocean Drive, Miami Beach, Fl 33139. During the reception each honoree will be presented with a Certificate and will have the opportunity to highlight her major accomplishments regarding her work in the community. We hope that you will be able to attend this important event. Please RSVP to Maria E. Martinez in the City Clerk's Office at (305) 673-7411 by March 9, 2007 if you plan to attend. If you have any questions or need additional information regarding this event, please feel free to contact me. JMG: MEM Attachment F:ICLERI$ALL\LILL YlCOSWltrslwomenshistorymonthltc..doc Marice Cohn Band: A Miami Beach native and resident, Ms. Band is a long-time photojournalist for the Miami Herald. After graduating Beach High in 1966, she attended Parson's School of Design. She planned to be a fashion designer, but instead ended up at Miami Dade College, studying marine biology. She took a drawing class - and began sketching elderly people on South Beach. "They'd always leave before I finished," she says - so she decided to take a photography course - to capture her subjects on film, so she could finish her sketches. The rest - as they - is history. Marice began working for the Herald in 1979 - and has been there ever since. An award-winning photojournalist, she has documented many aspects of life in Latin America, the Caribbean and South Florida. She loves her job because "it's different every day" - and it allows her to do what she does best: linking people to her "side job" - helping the Girl Scouts. Married to attorney Michael Band, she's mom to daughters - Jessie, 38, Samantha, 20, and Alexandra, 18. When her younger daughters were in elementary school, Marice wanted them to experience scouting, like she had as a young girl. Miami Beach had no active troops at the time, so in 1992, Marice became the guiding force of Girl Scout Council of Tropical Florida's Group 1239 - and has continued this mission for over 14 years. In addition, she serves as a delegate for the Council and as the area Service Unit Leader. The goal of scouting, she expiains, "is to help the girls evolve into community-oriented, self- sufficient women". Marice has guided and encouraged "her girls" to do just that. Her troop began with 23 girls and grew to 120 at one point - ages 8 to 18. "Her girls" - many of whom she has meritored over the years - do more public service than most other troops in the country. Their many on-going projects include: A Book Drive for Little River Elementary, self-guided walking tours of the Art Deco district, Sing- Alongs with elderly residents of South Pointe Manor; Holiday Goodie-Bag Making, Baynanza, a community-wide project to clean Biscayne Bay, and more. Marice's mission to heip her girls - her many girls - understand that if you have the ability to help others, then that is what they are supposed to do. "I believe in karma," she says, "what you do, you get back." And what if Marice had had sons, instead of daughters? "I would have been a boy scout leader!" It's our pleasure to recognize Marice Cohn Band tonight as a Woman Worth Knowing. Karen Fryd: Karen Fryd has lived in Miami Beach for 30 years. She was born in Baranquilla, Colombia, attended high school in New York and college in Switzerland. She is married to Jonathan Fryd. They have three children, Alexander, Jeremy and Sabine. Karen's legacy of caring and volunteer service began 15 years ago serving as a chief civilian volunteer for the City of Miami Beach Police Athletic League Christmas Toy Drive. In 1999, a chance encounter with her husband's former high school classmate would take her volunteerism to another level. This first grade teacher at Frederick Douglas Elementary School told Karen about the challenges of teaching the poorest of the poor. Karen called every school supply wholesaie resource and bought enough school supplies not only for her friend's class, but the entire school for that year and the following three years. Jonathan felt Karen's work would benefit more if it was facilitated through a non-profit foundation. Today, the South Florida Youth Foundation has: provided 5,000 backpacks yearly with all the school supplies included; distributed over 50,000 pieces of brand new clothing; bought and distributed over 3,000 school uniforms; and provided summer camp scholarships for 114 abused children. For almost two years, she has coordinated a midnight basketball program in Overtown to give adolescent boys a safe place to play. Presently Karen is sponsoring a new violin program for Santa Clara Elementary in Wynwood called "Violins against Violence". Four more schools are expecting the program. However, Karen's favorite project is at Booker T. Washington High School where she helped create the "Twister Cafe for the Mentally Trainable Handicapped Students". Karen said, "It is humbling to be with such sweet children. This program makes almost $70 a day; most of these kids want to go into culinary careers." Karen is also a member of the National Council of Jewish Women, The Urban League, Miami Beach PAL., City of Miami PAL. and the Initiative for Child Murder and Youth Violence Prevention Committee for the City of Miami. Karen has placed herself on the front line in the heart of struggling communities with at-risk children, primarily in Overtown, Liberty City and Brownsville working hand-in-hand with principals, police officers and school counselors. We are proud to introduce you to Karen Fryd, a Woman Worth Knowing. Deborah Markham-Ruggiero: Deborah Markham-Ruggiero is a Miami Beach native whose passions include kids, gardening and North Beach. Since 2001, she has been the Executive Director of Teen Job Corps, giving her special guidance to at-risk youth. An outspoken advocate for her neighborhood, Deborah sits on the board of directors of the North Beach Development Corporation, is the president of the Parkview Point Homeowner's Association, and founded the Coalition for a Safer North Beach. Biscayne Elementary also has enjoyed her involvement on its executive board for 14 years. Over 35 years, she has served in various leadership roles with Miami-Dade County's Parent Teacher Student Association. She has created many butterfly gardens in Miami Beach and throughout Miami-Dade County and has given classes at the Log Cabin Nursery to developmentally disabled individuals with an enthusiasm for gardening. From painting out graffiti to cleaning up our waterways, Deborah has made her mark on Miami Beach and its residents as a Woman Worth Knowing.