Pam’s Party Line for June 17, 2012

The Baton Rouge area is fortunate to have men and women willing to step up and lead — both in the private sector and in the nonprofit world. Last week, some of these leaders were in the spotlight.

‘Influential Women’

Ten women were recognized as “Influential Women in Business” by the Baton Rouge Business Report at a luncheon June 5 at the Crowne Plaza. Featured speaker for the event was Lisa Johnson, founding partner of the Grapevine Group, who talked about the power of stories.

This year’s honorees included Barbara Auten, executive director of Alzheimer’s Services of the Capital Area; attorney Shelly Dick; Kay Goodwyn, CEO of Roco Rescue; Jamie Haeuser, Woman’s Hospital senior vice president of operations; Jo Ellen Kearney, CPA/financial adviser, Daigrepont & Brian; Dee LeJeune, CEO of St. Elizabeth Hospital in Gonzales; Janet Olson, relationship manager, Capital One Bank; Christy Reeves, director of communications, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana; Erin Monroe Wesley, senior vice president of governmental affairs, Baton Rouge Area Chamber; and Monica Zumo, managing partner, Hannis T. Bourgeois CPAs.

Leadership BR

Later that evening, the Leadership Baton Rouge Class of 2012 was honored at a graduation dinner at Boudreaux’s. A program of the Baton Rouge Area Chamber, Leadership BR’s mission is to prepare a diverse group of professionals for leadership positions in the community by focusing on key areas of concern.

It was a bittersweet moment for retiring facilitator Willie Johnson, who was grinning ear-to-ear as she kicked her last batch of ducklings out of the nest. Equally as proud was her successor, Mary Beth Chevalier, who worked with Johnson in preparing this year’s class to be future leaders in the community.

Tapped to represent their classmates as representatives on the Leadership BR Alumni Board were Jesse Hoggard and Jim Raines.

Items for “Pam’s Party Line” must be received by 9 a.m. the Monday preceding the run date. Digital photos should be emailed to pbordelon@theadvocate.com; hard copy photos should be dropped off at or mailed to The Advocate, 7290 Bluebonnet Blvd. Events will run no later than four weeks after they have taken place. The date, place of the event and a contact name and phone number must be included. Photos may not include more than nine people and will be used on a space-available basis. Hard copy photos can be picked up in the lobby of The Advocate for up to three months after they run. By submitting photos to The Advocate, you agree that they can be published in any of The Advocate’s print or digital publications.