BETHLEHEM, Pa. — The power of mentorship, balance and collective leadership took center stage Thursday morning.
Greater Lehigh Valley Chamber of Commerce held its annual ATHENA Awards Celebration honoring three women who embody strength, compassion and a commitment to empowering others.
This year’s honorees were:
- Former U.S. Rep. Susan Wild, recipient of the ATHENA Leadership Award
- Veronica Gonzalez, honored with the ATHENA Emerging Professional Award
- MKSD Architects, presented with the ATHENA Organizational Award for its commitment to workplace equity and community impact.
Held by the Women’s Business Council of the Greater Lehigh Valley Chamber, the event at ArtsQuest Center at SteelStacks, brought together hundreds of business and community leaders to celebrate the recipients' achievements.
The ceremony saw the awards, presented annually since 1985, honor its 100th recipient.
“It’s such a huge honor,” Wild said, reflecting on receiving a standing ovation from the hometown community in which she's lived since the 1980s.
"More than anything, I hope the message that comes through today is that we must uplift and support other women. Don’t just be a passive role model — reach out, bring someone with you, make them realize that they can do these things.”
A focus on childcare
Wild, a Democrat who represented the Lehigh Valley in Congress for three terms, was unseated by U.S. Rep. Ryan McKenzie (R-Lehigh) by 4,000 votes last November.
She participated in a panel discussion with Gonzalez and Jessica Klocek, associate partner of MKSD Architects, with Women's Business Council Chairwoman Flo Scott as moderator.
"We have to do a universal system of childcare that is subsidized, and it will pay back in spades, and we need universal preschool."Former Congresswoman Susan Wild
Since leaving office, Wild participated in a fellowship program focused on developing a national childcare policy.
She said the initiative, which concludes in January, has let her step back from the political spotlight and focus on one of the issues about which she’s most passionate: supporting working families.
"Child care is literally the biggest impediment that our economy has, and the families have," Wild said.
"And I'm not going to limit this just to women. When women started to go to work in the 1960s, we never developed any sort of systemic plan for childcare.
"We have to do a universal system of child care that is subsidized, and it will pay back in spades, and we need universal preschool."
Setting an example
During the panel discussion, the honorees also reflected on the role mentorship has played in shaping their personal and professional growth.
Klocek credited Silvia Hoffman, founding partner of MKSD Architects and a lead designer of ArtsQuest's new $32 million cultural center,as an important mentor in her professional journey.
"I try to pay that forward with my own girls.”Jessica Klocek, associate partner of MKSD Architects
She emphasized that much of her leadership guidance occurs at home with her offspring.
“My parents were both working — my mom led an early-intervention child care program and worked long days, showing me what grit and hard work can do for a woman in a leadership role.
"I try to pay that forward with my own girls.”
Klocek, a mother of a 13-year-old and a 9-year-old, explained that even though her daughters don’t always see her at work, they witness her dedication at the dinner table each night.
“They see what I’ve been doing and understand what hard work can achieve," she said.
"Now I’m seeing them take initiative on their own — my 13-year-old is stepping into leadership roles at school — and it’s rewarding to know they’re learning from example rather than direction.”
