Past Women of Achievement
Berkshire Business and Professional Women has been honoring a local woman with this award since 1965. This award honors a Berkshire County woman for her considerable career accomplishments and outstanding commitment to the community.
2020 WOA
District Attorney Andrea Harrington is Berkshire County’s chief government prosecutor and top law enforcement official. She and her staff of 22 prosecutors, together with their law enforcement partners, handle 7,600 criminal matters each year. She is Berkshire County’s sixth District Attorney, and the first female elected to this position.
The Berkshire District Attorney’s Office prosecutes cases in Superior Court (major felonies), District Courts, Juvenile Courts, and the Massachusetts Appellate Courts. It also collaborates with local law enforcement and state police on criminal investigations, directs homicide investigations, and conducts grand jury proceedings.
The District Attorney is a public servant whose primary duty is to seek justice. According to the Supreme Court, the prosecutor’s aim is two-fold: “that guilt shall not escape or innocence suffer.” *
Read more about Andrea Harrington
2019 WOA
The most recent award was honored to Gwendolyn VanSant, an experienced organizational change consultant and coach who works at the intersection of diversity leadership, equity and inclusion, and strategic planning. Gwendolyn is the Founding Director of BRIDGE and the Equity and Inclusion Team Lead at Changemaker Strategies (formerly Imagine Philanthropy). She has founded several initiatives based in the principles of equity and justice, the inherent dignity and worth of individuals, and our interconnected web of humanity. She serves as the Vice Chair of the Town of Great Barrington W. E. B. Du Bois Legacy Committee, and she’s on the board of the Women’s Fund of Western Massachusetts and UU Mass Action Network. A skilled community organizer, Gwendolyn is also a well-recognized thought leader on gender equity, racial justice, and reparations.
2018 WOA
The 2018 awardee was Patricia Begrowicz, President and Co-owner of Onyx Specialty Papers, at this year's Woman of Achievement dinner celebration. For 2019, The Woman of Achievement award will be presented at a dinner event in May, 2019.
All the proceeds from the Woman of Achievement dinner benefit the BBPW scholarship program, which provides annual career advancement scholarships to working women residing in Berkshire County.
2016 WOA
2015 WOA
2014 WOA
