The Open Stage of Harrisburg Education Department has announced the names of its 2010 "Women Who Care." Initiated in 2000, the WWC program honors women who have demonstrated unselfish devotion to the Greater Harrisburg community and to the arts, including Open Stage. Awards are presented before each Friday night performance of the theatre's FLYING SOLO Festival, June 4 - 27.
Inaugural recipient of the 2010 Open Stage "Women Who Care" Awards is attorney Sarah Yerger, who will be honored Friday, June 4. Ms. Yerger, a Senior Deputy Attorney General for the Pennsylvania Attorney General, has devoted her legal career to public service, having worked in state government for almost twenty years, and works in the Civil Litigation section doing civil defense work. The mother of her two young children, she is also a volunteer for the American Heart Association, where she was on the local heart board for more than ten years, served on the committees of all fundraising events, and was the Board President for three years. She continues her involvement by captaining a Heart Walk team and bartending an annual event where proceeds benefit the AHA. For ten years, she has organized a holiday gift for kids program, which has grown from 30 child recipients to 255 this past year. She is also in her second year as a team leader in the Civics Alliance Program in which she and a team of lawyers go monthly throughout the school year to teach a civics lesson to 8th graders in the Harrisburg School District. Ms Yerger is an avid reader and participates in two monthly bookclubs.
Francine Feinerman's biography is varied and wide-ranging. After moving to Harrisburg after her marriage, she created the Freckled Frog, the area's first paper boutique. She became Executive Director of Beth El Temple, Program Director of the Jewish Community Center, Vice-President of Development and Community Relations of Whitaker Center for Science and the Arts, and President of Citizens for the Arts in Pennsylvania. She is currently Campaign Coordinator for the Jewish Federation of Greater Harrisburg. Other community service positions include board member and officer of National Council of Jewish Women and Beth El Temple, steering committee of Women in the Arts, and board chair of Open Stage of Harrisburg. Her life in Harrisburg has focused primarily on creating awareness of the importance of the arts and culture as well as working with nonprofits to strengthen their programs and identities. She and her husband Leon have two children and two Bouvier des Flandres dogs. She will be honored June 11.
Jennifer Delaye, who will receive her award June 18, is CEO of The JDK Group, the founding organization of a collection of event service companies-JDK Catering, Essential Party Rentals, Imagine Event Design & Production, and Weddings by JDK. In 2008, the company had annual sales in excess of $3.5 million. Mrs. Delaye opened the company in 1987 with her brother, Drew, and sister, Kirsten (the "D" and "K" in JDK). In 1992, Ms. Delaye became sole proprietor of JDK Catering, Inc. Over the next decade, JDK experienced double digit growth; averaging 18% growth annually until 2001. The mother of four children and the highly integrated CEO of JDK, she also serves on the board of the Harrisburg Regional Chamber and the International Caterers Association. JDK is well known for its philanthropic commitment, making yearly donations of food and rental services to approximately 100 non-profit fundraisers and organizations. For both her business savvy and community service, Ms. Delaye and JDK have received numerous accolades. For almost a decade, Harrisburg Magazine readers have named JDK the region's best caterer. In 2000, she was chosen as one of Pennsylvania 's "50 Best Women in Business". In 2005, JDK Catering was awarded Small Business of the Year by both the Harrisburg Regional Chamber and the Central Penn Business Journal.
Linda Litton, a community volunteer and supporter of the arts, will receive her award June 25. An anesthesiologist, Mrs. Litton was married to the late Jason Litton, MD. She has been a supporter and advocate of numerous arts organizations in the area, including Market Square Concerts, and the Susquehanna Art Museum , where she supported the work of visual artists and musicians for many years. Mrs. Litton is also a gourmet cook, and has held house concerts and dinners for both organizations. She been a supporter of the Central PA Kidney Foundation through its annual event, Elegant Progressions, once again opening her home to not-for-profit causes. She is the mother of three children.
In addition, the "Women Who Care" will be honored at a special luncheon for family, friends, and the general public on Thursday, April 29 at 11:30 at Felicita Resort in Fishing Creek Valley. The luncheon features entertainment and a tour of the gardens at Felicita.
For more information on the "Women Who Care" program and its events, readers may call the Open Stage Education Department at 214-3250.
Open Stage, a not-for-profit professional regional theatre, receives state arts funding support from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, a state agency administering an annual state appropriation for grants to the arts. This program is funded, in part, by the Cultural Enrichment Fund, the capital region's united arts fund and the National Endowment for the Arts. For more information visit online at
www.openstagehbg.com.
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