Nashville, Tennessee (TN Tribune)– Nashville ATHENA Awards, chaired by Dr. Tameka Winston and co-chaired by Atty. Liz Sitgreaves, celebrated and recognized over fifty nominees, community, and industry leaders in an event on Friday, June 25, 2021. Various organizations in the Greater Nashville area nominated individuals in the Traditional and Young Professionals categories that had made an impact throughout their community and through their professional work. Headed into its 31st year, Nashville ATHENA chose to focus on a diverse and inclusive opportunity with a first-time partnership with the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and the Islamic Center of Nashville. This was the largest and most diverse class in the history of the ATHENA program.
“This has been a very different kind of Athena year, but we moved things along despite the pandemic. This year, we set out to have the largest Athena nomination slate. We met that goal. What I have loved about the program since I became involved as a judge back in 2007 is the diverse nominee slate each year. This year my goal was to build on that, and we did. My vision for the 2021 ATHENA program was clear: “Capturing the true essence of new Nashville and its ever-changing population while remaining true to the ATHENA legacy. Thanks to first time participating organizations like the Nashville Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and the Islamic Center of Nashville for making my vision a reality. Not only was the 2021 nominee list a direct reflection of our community, but it was the largest number of nominees in the history of the program.” says Dr. Tameka Winston, ATHENA Chair.
Winners were announced on Friday, June 25, 2021, and honored in an event presented by Bone McAllester Norton at RocketTown in Nashville. Tabitha Robinson was crowned the Young Professional recipient and Dr. Katherine Y. Brown was crowned as the Traditional recipient. In addition, Dr. Winston added two honors to this year’s event. “Due to the pandemic and social injustices across the country, I felt that it was important to let the community know that we are in tune with what is happening. I added two awards to honor a social justice pioneer, Charles Bone and a healthcare pioneer, President James Hildreth.” says Dr. Winston.
Sponsors for the event included Deloitte, First Horizon, Enterprise Solutions, Compass Executive, Fifth Third, Google Fiber, HCA, NES, Ogletree Deakins, Advance Financial, Asurion, Baker Donelson, Katie & Willam Braddy, Kraft Asset Management, Kroger, Latitude, Littler, Mendelson, Magpies, Mark Baugh/Baker Donelson, Rogers Manufacturing, and The Wilson Group.
Traditional Nominees Young Professional Nominees
Leticia Alvarez Maliyah Bass
Judith Bright Katie Braddy
Katherine Brown Jessica Brown
Alice Camuti Angelica Dotson
Jonica Cowan Lacie Dunn
Cherae Farmer-Dixon Meredith Fortney
Nashville Athena Award Program
Monica Fawknotson Shia Handricks
Olivia Flakes Ashley Harrison
Jenn Garcia Kellee Hill
Nikki Gibson Brittany Irby
Julie Gray Tequila Johnson
Jacqueline Hayes Anna-Vija McClain
Karen Johnson Rahwa Mehari
Demetria Kalodimos Nakeisha Micheaux
Dimeta Smith Knight Courtney Rogers Perrin
Tiffany Lee Katie Radel
Cheryl Mayes Tabitha Robinson
Megan McCall Domonique West Townsend
Rita Mills Mieah Turner
Sabina Mohyuddin Jolie Grace Wareham
Arie Nettles
Davina Powell
Sharon Reynolds
Laura Smith
Nita Smith
Kimberly Stephan Tate
Karen Y. Thompson
Sondrea Tolbert
Deb Varallo
Stephanie Williams
