The YWCA of the Sauk Valley named six area women as 2026 Women of Achievement award recipients Thursday at the Dixon Elks Lodge.

The award recipients and nominees

Drs. Marcia Jones and Nancy Tran of CGH Medical Center were selected for the Crete Dillon Bowman Award, which is presented for community leadership. Sam Kersey, Amanda O’Brien, Danielle O’Neal and Maddison Parham were nominated.

Jones, a family medicine physician, and Tran, an internal medicine physician, identified a gap in women’s health care in the Sauk Valley area and in late 2024 co-founded CGH’s menopause and sexual health clinic at 15 W. Third St. in Sterling, YWCA Executive Director Rebecca Muñoz-Ripley said when presenting the award.

Megan Stanley, an agriculture teacher at Sterling High School, was selected for the Jane Reid Keefer Award, which is presented for achievements in medical, legal, social service, teaching and nonprofit careers. Katrina Cornwell, Amanda Eichmann, Kelli Full, Megan Grove, Jana Jacobs and Alisha Hollowell were nominated.

At SHS, Stanley also serves as FFA Chapter adviser and leads their annual Farmapalooza event in which booths are set up by chapter members to teach attendees about agriculture.

Muñoz-Ripley said Stanley’s work “inspires students in a male-dominated field.”

Bethany Megill, an administration assistant at Sterling Federal Bank’s investment center, was selected for the L. L. Ely Award, which is presented to those who demonstrate excellence in clerical fields. Lindsay Good and Aleshia Johannsen were nominated.

LeAndra Hartman, a facilitator of the Whiteside Area Career Center’s CEO program, was selected for the Pearl Woods Award, which is presented for achievements in business and industry. Kaitlyn Blum, Lauren Roth and Abbie Wolf were nominated.

The CEO program, established in 2013, is a hands-on business course offered to junior and senior high school students at WACC member schools. It involves visits to local businesses, a mentor program and a final project where students create their own business.

Hartman, as a facilitator of that program, has strengthened “the local business pipeline” and she “continues to shape confident and capable leaders,” Muñoz-Ripley said.

Ashley Richter, executive director of United Way of Lee County, was selected for the Louise Bittorf Sullivan Award, which is presented to a woman who inspires others. Tygen Bausman, Dr. Odile Blazquez, Clara Harris, Sarah Partington and Nora Rodriguez were nominated.

With United Way, Richter has implemented various programs such as Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library, a free literacy program founded by Parton, which provides a free, age-appropriate book for children up to age five each month, Muñoz-Ripley said.

Madison Krum, a Sauk Valley Community College student, was selected for the Young Woman of Tomorrow Award, which is presented to a woman between the ages of 15 and 22 who has demonstrated exceptional leadership potential. Rhaelynn Chism, Dani Lovett and Briah Merriman were nominated.

At SVCC, Krum serves as student trustee on the college’s board, keeping “students informed and engaged,” Muñoz-Ripley said.

Krum is a student worker in SVCC’s Financial Aid Office and an active member of the business club and Phi Theta Kappa, an international academic honor society.

The YWCA is a nonprofit organization that provides advocacy, counseling and other support services to marginalized groups and survivors of sexual and domestic violence. Its 43rd annual achievement luncheon honored award recipients and the nominees. This year’s theme was “The Power of Her.”