ASHLAND — The Ashland County Women of Achievement will have its induction ceremony Nov. 2 at Mount Vernon Estates located at 1041 U.S. 250 in Ashland.
The public is invited to attend. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. with light hor d’oeuvre’s and dessert with ceremony beginning at 7 p.m.
Please join us in celebrating this years Women of Achievement: Melody Barnes, Sandy Burkholder, Kendra Carnegie, Mindy Scurlock, and Susan Shafer. This year the recipients of the Young Woman to Watch are Callina Francis and Corri Vermilya.
Tickets* are $20 and can be purchased by sending your check to “Ashland County Women of Achievement” P.O. BOX 685, Ashland, Ohio 44805.
Your received check serves as your ticket and your name will be at the door. Your RSVP should be received by Oct. 29. *Tickets are non-refundable.
Melody Barnes
Do you know how amazing Melody Barnes truly is? You may think you do, but if you don’t have her resume in front of you, you may still be surprised at all that she has accomplished in her life.
You may know that Melody is trained as a nurse, but her care of people extends far beyond the floors of a hospital. She has served as a volunteer with the Red Cross, and holds numerous certifications from the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Medical Reserve Corps.
She has used that training all over our country, supporting survivors of two large airplane crashes, as an assistant shelter manager in White Plains, New York, and partnering with Disaster Medical Assistance Teams.
She was just one of 30 people chosen for special training with the Office of the Surgeon General of the Civilian Volunteer Medical Reserve Corps after 9-11. She trained with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Office of Terrorism Preparedness and Response.
She was deployed to Washington State as a nurse, case worker, and mental health worker after a mudslide there in 2014 resulted in 43 deaths.
Her dedication to serving others hasn’t stopped now that she calls Ashland her home. Melody continues to share her skills as a Community Emergency Response Team instructor, and remains a volunteer with Hospice.
She serves on the Samaritan Hospital Foundation Board, from whom she received their prestigious Heart of Giving award. With the Ashland Noon Lions Club, she founded a special club for disabled and special needs members of our community, while continuing to spread her net of giving across the Lions family, helping their regional membership health thrive.
Always aiding those less fortunate, she has become an Ashland Court Appointed Special Advocate and Guardian ad Litem. Melody Barnes has lived a life full of giving, supporting, and helping those of us who need assistance the most, and in our greatest times of needs.
We Ashlanders are fortunate that Melody has brought her gifts and talents to share with our community, helping us all continue to feel secure and loved.
Sandy Burkholder
The love Sandy Burkholder has for our community, and for those who live in it, is evidenced time and time again.
She has taken her position as office manager and community marketing manager at Armstrong Cable to new heights, making sure that the business is involved in every single activity in Ashland, all while taking care of her customers and her employees.
Sandy spearheads many of Armstrong’s most notable initiatives, including:
Breaking Bread, which has brought in over $100,000 and over 209,000 pounds of food to help those in need;
Avenge Hunger, an arm of Breaking Bread, which has a focus on educating the community while serving it, and has brought in over $70,000 and 135,000 pounds of food;
Healing Heroes, which raises money for service dogs for disabled veterans in our community.
She took that Armstrong community commitment one step further when she created Antlers & Anglers, a two-day event that brings over 1,000 people into our community to experience outdoor family fun. The money raised at this event goes toward a different non profit every year.
Sandy has sat on the boards of the Ashland Area Chamber of Commerce and Explore Ashland, and is a Chamber Ambassador. She is a 2012 Leadership Ashland graduate and won the Spirit of the Chamber Award in 2016.
She is currently the President of the Ashland Noon Lions Club and has received both their Leadership award and Lion of the Year award. Sandy and her husband, Jon, run Pathfinder Farms, a Christian-based ministry which teaches life skills to young men and women in our community.
Sandy’s involvement in Pathfinders should surprise no one who knows her, as she does everything from applying for grants to organizing volunteers to cooking meals and cleaning the buildings.
As Jon describes her, Sandy is the “mother to thousands of kids.” Sandy’s positivity and her servant’s heart are known across Ashland, a community which constantly benefits from her gifts and her willingness to share them with us. She is a true pillar of Ashland.
If you know her, you also know Sandy throws a mean skillet.
Kendra Carnegie
If you are looking around wondering where Kendra Carnegie is, you won’t be surprised to learn that she is out achieving.
It is fitting that she is representing us at the National FFA convention, because their focus this year is about “growing the next generation of leaders,” and that is something Kendra lives and breathes every day.
Her 33 years of teaching in Loudonville have been about so much more than what she teaches in the classroom. If she sees a student who needs help, she makes sure that student is taken care of, whether it is with help finding a job, supporting them when there is no one to help them at home, or talking with them about their mental demons.
This doesn’t just apply to her Agri-Science students; her help and support are for every student in Loudonville, no matter what hour or what day they need her.
She spends countless hours in her role as FFA advisor, helping shepherd her students through all the jobs their membership involves, while also coaching the teams, running the meetings, organizing fundraisers, attending to the FFA alumni, and more.
Her dedication to agriculture extends to her service on the Loudonville Fair Board. She happily plans her schedule around her students’ schedules, so they can “flourish as an individual.”
Even though there has been tumult in her own life, she has never let that keep her from taking care of her students. They trust her, because they know that she is always there for them in whatever capacity they need.
There are numerous students who would not be where they are today, in a satisfying job that matches their skills, or in higher education pursuing their academic goals, or being active and contributing members of our community, if not for Kendra Carnegie’s guiding hand and steady support.
There are countless parents, as well, who are thankful for the dedication Kendra has to her Loudonville students and community.
Mindy Scurlock
Mindy Scurlock has taken the heart and service required in a career in assisted living healthcare, and brought it to share with our entire community.
The impact that Mindy has had on the lives of the people at Brethren Care has been tremendous. From her start at Brethren Care as an STNA, or State-Tested Nursing Assistant.
Mindy is currently the CEO of Brethren Care Village. Her meteoric rise in this business came from more than her hard work; she was successfully involved in every aspect of the operations and growth of the campus, from patient care to development to housing to fundraising to management.
Mindy was responsible for developing the Bradford House Cottages, which are home to residents with dementia. She has taken that ingenuity and resourcefulness and extended it across our community.
Mindy has served on the Mapleton School Board of Education, the Leadership Ashland Steering Committee, and the Ashland County Community Foundation Women’s Fund.
While at the Women’s Fund, Mindy was a vital part of the creation of Foundations Community Childcare, which will provide childcare to hundreds of families across our community.
Mindy has faced hard choices in her business with heart and compassion. She has taken care of people from the beginning of their life to the end, with a giving and caring heart.
Her career has reached spectacular heights, by a non-traditional path. Mindy has achieved by overcoming adversity and allowing her true nature to lead her and others.
Susan Shafer
Artist, teacher, mentor, community leader, volunteer, philanthropist, wife, mother, and sailor. These are just a few of the words that describe Susan Shafer.
Sue fits every category of an Ashland County Women of Achievement- someone whose work, volunteerism, and personal life benefit our community and those around us.
Sue is not only a nationally-acclaimed artist; she has also shared her talents with students as an art educator in the Hillsdale and Ontario schools.
Her work has been displayed all over the country, and she has received awards from museums and arts centers across the nation.
Recently, her art has been part of collaborations with live performers, bridging the two disciples in a seamless, yet fascinating approach.
Even though she is retired from the classroom, she still offers her studio for other artists to use, and she continues to create handmade stationery as gifts (that artwork was also displayed on the Women’s Fund Mother’s Day cards from their inception until this past year).
Sue is proficient in three-dimensional art as well, as she designed the façade of 10 East Main Street in downtown, honoring the historical architecture of the building, and living her belief in advocating for the restoration and maintenance of historical buildings. Sue has volunteered in every space imaginable, from room mom to Brownie leader to board member.
She has sat on numerous boards in our area, including the Ashland YMCA, the Mansfield Arts Center, the Ohio Art Education Association, and as treasurer of the Ashland Community Arts League, and was a founding member of the Ashland County Community Foundation Women’s Fund, where she served as both a member of the steering committee and was a founding contributor.
She has both volunteered her time to deliver food and assist in transportation to those in need, and, with her late husband, created the first donor-advised fund at the Community Foundation, where yearly a specific area organization is chosen to meet a local need.
Oh. And the sailing. Not only were she and Phil members of the Mohican Sailing Club, she was also their treasurer. Sue has always lived a life combining the things she loves with the presence to make them sustainable and enjoyed by others. Her gifts to our community are numerous, and her support of others is immeasurable.
Callie Francis
Callie Francis is an example of resilience and drive in her pursuit of educational and academic excellence.
Overcoming the learning barriers that she faced in her early years, Callie is now excelling in AP, Honors, and College Credit Plus classes, as well as receiving First Honors and High Achievement awards repeatedly across her high school studies.
Callie is also a leader at school, where she has been the Class President for the past three years. She brings her vision, creativity, organization, and leadership to numerous activities and events at her school.
Callie launched the Autism Acceptance Color Run, an awareness and fundraising event through her school that promoted embracing differences and celebrating individuality.
Working with fellow students, she lead the initiative to find partners, market, and operate the event.
At the Salvation Army, Callie assists her parents’ role by volunteering at Sunday School, bell-ringing, serving meals, leading music, and assisting in Vacation Bible School.
She serves meals at Thanksgiving and packs gifts for distribution at Christmas. Callie has also served three years in the Corps Cadets, a youth fellowship program that empowers young people through training in leadership and which teaches the word of God.
Callie is a gifted vocalist and actress, and has performed in numerous musical theatre productions since she was 5 years old (you have probably seen her on stage at school or in local theatres).
Callie has consistently been awarded top prizes at the Salvation Army’s Music and Arts Star Search for the eastern United States, and has been awarded superior ratings at the Ohio Music Education Association Solo Contest.
Calile’s leadership and character are evidence both in front of the curtain and off stage. She has taken it upon herself to help mentor younger children in the performing areas, and continues to encourage them when they are on stage in their auditions.
She has a true concern for others and a willingness to serve as a role model and mentor for the next generation. Callie Francis has demonstrated to all who know her that she is a Young Woman to Watch, as both her star rises, and she helps others better themselves.
Corri Vermilya
When young girls stop a teenager and ask for her autograph, you know something great is happening.
How lucky are we that this behavior isn’t meant for a teen rock star, but for one of our own, Corri Vermilya.
Corri’s academic prowess is evident. She enters this, her senior year, ranked first in her graduating class at Loudonville High School. Corri has never earned a grade lower than an A in any of her high school classes.
She is Loudonville’s top student in math and composition. She is currently taking college courses as a high schooler, with the intent to continue to support education with a major in Middle School Education.
In 2022, Corri was the only Ohioan to be chosen to the Academic All-American 1st team, and in 2023, she was one of two to receive that honor.
Corri’s athletic prowess is unparalleled. She is the only athlete in Loudonville High School history to be chosen as State Player of the Year by the Ohio Prep Sportswriters.
She is a two-time Ohio Player of the Year in her division, and last year finished third for the Ohio Ms. Basketball award, the highest finish ever for a boy or girl in our region.
She has been chosen Player of the Year by the Mid-Ohio Buckeye Conference twice, District 4 Coaches Player of the Year twice, Wooster Daily Record Player of the Year twice, Richland Source/Ashland Source/Knox Pages Player of the Year, and has won numerous 1st Team awards.
She was the Ohio leading scorer in 2022 and 2023, and holds the school record for career points, points in a season, and points in a game. Her final high school basketball season has yet to begin.
If you follow college basketball and are a fan of our Ashland Eagles, the good news for you is that even though she has been recruited to play for numerous Division 1 schools, Corri has elected to stay close to home and play for the National Champion Eagles and Coach Pickens.
And she runs track, too.
Corri gives back to her school and community by volunteering with young children at basketball camps, and is active in Student Council, National Honor Society, LEO Club, Drug Free Club, and the Fellowship of Christian Athletes.
She works numerous service projects and has parked cars at football games and served dinners at the American Legion.
Corri’s skills in athletics and academics, as well as her willingness to support and help her community, truly make her a Young Woman to Watch.