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Man and Woman Of The Year Nominees 7

Pam Ingram, Marlee Lauffer and Carole Lutness.

The official 2007 Man and Woman of the Year will be named at the 40th Annual Recognition Dinner to be held Friday, May 4, 2007, in the Grand Ballroom of the Hyatt Valencia Hotel. The event will pay tribute to the top volunteers in Santa Clarita Valley and to past award recipients. It will benefit a number of charities and will include dinner, a multi-media presentation and the recognition ceremony.

Below are the biographies of three volunteers up for the Man and Woman of the Year award. Each one deserves recognition for the work they do. We will feature three nominees every day this week.

Image19  Pam Ingram

Pam Ingram joined the Betty Ferguson Foundation Board of Directors almost two years ago and has been an integral part of this organization ever since She co-chaired the 2005 "Woman of Honor" Dinner. She currently serves on the Foundation's Education Advancement Forum Committee, where she interviews scholarship candidates on behalf of the board. At board meetings, she shares he knowledge of the community and mentors the board on the non-profit sector. Pam has been active with numerous organizations in the SCV. She is a member of Soroptimists International of Santa Clarita, where she was president 2003-04. She is a seven-year member of the SCV Chamber of Commerce, which she serves as its current President; she was Vice-President of Events for 2005-06, and Membership Co-Chair 2004-05. She has been a volunteer for the American Cancer Society, Relay for Life, Boys & Girls Club of SCV, Carousel Ranch (the Harvest Ride Co-Chair), Child & Family Center, Helmers School Parents Association, Old Orchard PTA, Special Olympics and the SCV Senior Center. Pam supports all these organizations financially and donates the use of her moving van to many local non-profits.

Image20  Marlee Lauffer

Marlee Lauffer, who has been the most visible face and outspoken personality at Newhall Land for the past 15 years, has quietly devoted personal time and efforts to help numerous charitable and civic organizations in the SCV. A board member of the SCV Chamber of Commerce since 1990, Marlee chaired the Teacher Tribute 1991 and 1992, served as president of the Chamber 1993-95, was a founding member of the Chamber's Political Action Committee, and is its current Corporate Secretary.  She has devoted time to the Child & Family Center, serving on the Capital  Campaign Cabinet (1999-2002) and is a member of the Center's Advisory Board. She also has been member of the prominent Zonta Club of SCV for 10 years, where she has served on the Celebrity Roast committee for all 10 years, and has done her duty as a Roaster. She has also been a member of the Soroptimist Club since 2001, who named her a "Woman of Distinction" in 2007. In 2003, she was given the "Woman of Honor" award by the Betty Ferguson Foundation, the highest award they bestow. She was also a member of Project Playhouse, and served as Co-Chairman 2004 of the LA/Ventura HomeAID. She has helped the SCV Senior Center, serving on the Celebrity Waiter Committee, 2000-2004. As an active parent, she has worked with Girl Scout Troop 172 as a co-leader during the past three years, and has been a PTA Volunteer at North Park Elementary School. She has been an Appointed Business Member of the Cultural Affairs Advisory Committee over the past three years. Last year she was the recipient of the 2006 Visionary Award from the San Fernando Valley Business Journal. And she has served on the College of the Canyons Foundation Silver Spur Committee (2002-2004). Nominated by the HMNM Health Foundation, Ms. Lauffer began serving the Foundation board in 2002, jumping in as an officer, and she chaired the Board in 2006-2007. Marlee became very involved in the hospital's Capital Campaign Cabinet 2003-2006, cultivating potential contributors to build a new Emergency Department and Cardiac Cathertization Lab. She personally contributed a major gift, and she recently served on the new Sweetheart Gala committee. While Newhall Land encourages executive leadership participation in community organizations, Marlee has gone far beyond that and has truly devoted her volunteer services wherever needed in the community.

Image21  Carole Lutness

Carole Lutness has been an extremely active member of SCOPE (Santa Clarita Organization for Planning and the Environment) for the past five years. She has donated her skills in many critical areas: making videos of their river tour, helping at the information booths, and providing extra hands with their mailings. On top of this, she has helped with SCOPE's July 4th parade float. Carole is a competent organizer and is responsible for a "Water Justice Campaign," aimed at educating the public on issues surrounding the use of bottled water, as well as various other water issues in our community. She is also active in the Unitarian Universalist Church of the Santa Clarita Valley, where she is a member of the Social and Environmental Justice Committee. Through the church she has spearheaded projects to ensure that two low-income families received presents over the holidays, and she organizes monthly meals for the homeless shelter. Carole has been an untiring community advocate for the shelter, ensuring that the homeless have a winter shelter, speaking about this at City Council meetings, and writing letters on the shelter's behalf. Out of concern about the corrupting influence of special-interest money in all levels of government — local, state and federal — Carole organized and spearheaded the bipartisan "$CV Clean Money for Better Government" committee last year.  She felt that the declining voter turnout and community participation in the electoral process is directly related to the impression voters have that their "vote doesn't matter."  She views this as an educational campaign which could result in a City Ordinance or the formation of an Ethics Committee. Last year she continued these activities besides successfully battling breast cancer. The chemo and radiation therapy slowed her down for only a few months; she continued her volunteer efforts throughout her therapies.

Man and Woman Of The Year Nominees 7

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