The 7th Citi-YWCA Korea Women’s Leadership Awards

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2009-09-29 10:26

Seoul--(뉴스와이어)--The winner of Citi-YWCA Women’s Leadership Awards for 2009 is announced. The award jointly established by Citibank Korea (CEO Yung-Ku Ha) and YWCA (President Kyo-Ja Kang) marks its 7th anniversary this year.

This year, Whang Youn-Dai, former president of Korea Disabled Peoples’ Development Institute was named the winner of Citi-YWCA Women’s Leadership Awards. She has dedicated her whole life to the medical, mental, and social rehabilitation of the disabled. She suffered from polio at the age of 3, but became the first female physician with disabilities in Korea. Taking care of patients at Severance Medical Center, she established the Korean Polio Children’s Special Education and Welfare Association, opened Chung Nip Polio Center and was appointed as Director of the Center, and later served as Director of the Korea Employment Promotion Agency for the Disabled Person.

At the Seoul Korea Paralympic games in 1988, she contributed her awards money to the International Paralympic Committee (IPC). IPC decided to establish the Whang Youn-Dai Achievement Prize to enhance the will of people with disabilities to overcome their adversities through sports and Paralympic Games.

Every year, the Prize is granted to a male and a female player respectively –regardless of their performance, nationality, race, religion, or ideology – who gave hopes and courage to the people with disabilities around the world.

Young Leader of the Year Prize went to Lim O-Kyeong, a well-known Korean national handball team player who won Olympic medals three consecutive times for twelve years. She has contributed to bringing the non-popular sport at home to the world-class level.

As a mother of one girl, she has been the role model for her continuous endeavor and dramatic, excellent performance. She also displayed her leadership capability as a player-manager, leading her team in Japan to the Japan Handball League championship for eight years in a row. Since July last year, she took the player-manager post of new Seoul City Hall Handball Club, committed to foster young talents and help popularization of handball sport.

Molly Holt, head of Holt Children’s Services will be the first awardee of newly designated ‘Special Prize’ for her lifelong dedication to Korean orphans and children with severe disabilities continuing her father’s legacy.

Molly came to Korea in 1956 while she was studying at a nursing school in the U.S. At a time when there was no such thing as welfare for the disabled in Korea, she dedicated herself to give better life for the disabled children who are rarely adopted by Korean families, at the same time opening and running rehabs for the mentally disabled, nursing homes for severely disabled people, job center for the disabled and group homes for the disabled. As head of Holt Children’s Services since 2000, her sphere of activity has been expanded to adoption, fostering home, support for single moms, multicultural families and welfare at the community level.

Kang Kyo Ja, Chairperson of YWCA Korea mentioned, “We are more than pleased to select Ms. Yeon Dae Hwang,a true leader in disabled society and Ms. Oh Kyoung Lim, an active director with passion, leadership and winning spirit of Korea women handball team. Especially, Ms. Yeon Dae Hwang had sacrificed herself for rehabilitation, abolition of discrimination, and welfare of the disabled society for her whole life. Also, we are more than honored to award Ms. Molly Holt, the chief of director of Holt Children Service, for her devotion on children welfare with benevolence and volunteerism, stretching out of national borders. This was a good opportunity to remind the true meaning of Korea Women Leadership Awards.”

YWCA Korea and Citibank Korea founded the Korea Women’s Leadership Awards in 2003 sponsored by Citigroup Foundation to annually acknowledge a woman leader who has made great contributions to the Korean society with outstanding leadership as well as a young female leader who demonstrates active and innovative leadership.

The winners of the award include : Park Dong-Eun, UNICEF Korea Director General, Jeong Gwang-Mo, President of Consumers Union of Korea, Chang Myung-Soo, former President of Hankookilbo Newspaper, Yoon Jung-Ok, Co-Head of Korean Council for the Women drafted for military sexual slavery by Japan, Minister Cho Hwa-Soon of Dalwol Church, and Lee In-Bok, Manager of Nazareth Sacred Home.

Meanwhile, Kim Ki-Hye, Head of Susunhwa house, Han Bi-Ya, World Vision Emergency Relief Team Leader, Kim Sung-Joo, CEO of Sungjoo International, Kim Young-Mi freelance producer, Bang Gui-Hee Sotdae Literature publisher, and Lee So-Yeon, Korea’s first astronaut has been named the Young Leader Winners.

The award ceremony will be held at 20 Fl. International Conference Room, Press Center at 2pm on Oct. 29.

Citibank Korea Inc.

Citibank had opened its first branch in Korea in 1967, and was born newly as Citibank Korea Inc. (CKI) through integration with KorAm Bank in 2004. CKI serves customers at 231 branches (as of end of June 2009) in Korea by providing the first class financial products and services based on the various products and know-how of Citi with global network including more than 100 years of history and 200 million customers in more than 100 countries. CKI delivers new financial world to the customers through development of innovative financial products and services, encompassing from corporate and investment banking to consumer banking, private banking, and wealth management. Furthermore, Citibank Korea Inc., as a responsible corporate citizen, conducts diverse community activities in the areas of financial education, next generation education, woman, diversity, community, and environment consistently in corporation with sound non-profit organizations.

Citi Foundation

The Citi Foundation is committed to the economic empowerment of individuals and families, particularly those in need, in the communities where we work so that they can improve their standard of living. Globally, the Citi Foundation targets its strategic giving on its priority focus areas: Microfinance and Microenterprise, Small and Growing Businesses, Education, and Financial Education and Asset Building. The Citi Foundation works with its partners in Microfinance and Microenterprise and Small and Growing Businesses to support environmental programs and innovations. Additional information can be found at www.citifoundation.com.

웹사이트: http://www.citibank.co.kr