COMMUNITY BRIEFS
By Daily Press staff
The Santa Monica Junior Chamber of Commerce has announced that Kathy Irby was selected as the winner of the 2003 Distinguished Service Award, which honors the area’s most outstanding young professional for public and community service.
Now in its 61st year, the DSA annually recognizes Santa Monica’s most exceptional professionals, ages 21 to 39, for their exemplary, unselfish, and meritorious service to the local community.
The honor also acknowledges the individual’s business achievements, leadership skills, and positive impact on the city of Santa Monica at large throughout the previous year.
“Kathy Irby’s unwavering dedication to the service of others has made a tremendously positive and meaningful impact on the community of Santa Monica,” said Bob Cornish, president of the Santa Monica Junior Chamber of Commerce. “Her strength, leadership, and commitment to helping others are indicative of the spirit and mission of the Santa Monica Jaycees, so she is well deserving of this prestigious honor.”
Irby is currently involved in several local community organizations, including the Santa Monica Police Activities League (PAL), the Santa Monica Chamber of Commerce, the Kiwanis Club of Santa Monica, and the Santa Monica Salvation Army.
As the director of the Santa Monica Kiwanis John Drescher Golf Classic, she coordinated fundraising efforts that generated more than $25,000 in donations for the Santa Monica PAL. As a member of the league’s board of directors, she also actively volunteered to assist the organization with the PAL-loween Carnival, spring faire, and holiday workshop.
In addition, Ms. Irby assisted the members of the local Youth Directors Council, a group of local teenagers active in area community service projects. She is a member of Santa Monica’s Homeless Task Force, and has raised money for various local homeless social service agencies. Now a vice president at Encino State Bank in Santa Monica, Ms. Irby was nominated by the Kiwanis Club of Santa Monica.
“I am absolutely thrilled, and extraordinarily grateful, to be honored with this year’s Distinguished Service Award,” Irby said. “I have always felt that service to others, and the community at large, can truly make a positive difference in the lives of others. As a result, I wish to applaud the outstanding work of my fellow nominees, whose collective efforts in Santa Monica are changing the landscape of this wonderful city. In reality, this award is not just for me, but for all of those who consider community service to be one of the most important priorities in life.”
Irby was selected as this year’s winner by an independent panel of judges consisting of local business and civic luminaries. The finalists were chosen following a lengthy nomination process that was conducted by the Santa Monica Jaycees, and included all of the area’s most prominent leadership, service, and nonprofit organizations.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on March 26, 2003. Read the original PDF.