Countywide : 13 Women Honored at YWCA Ceremony

Efforts of three women to preserve 15,000 acres of open space in Laguna Canyon received special recognition Thursday at the YWCA’s Tribute to Women awards dinner.

The awards are given to outstanding women in their professions and to residents who make special contributions to their communities.

Laguna Greenbelt board member Elisabeth Brown, Laguna Beach City Councilwoman Lida Lenney and Irvine Co. executive Carol Hoffman were awarded the newly created Shared Vision Award. The YWCA cited the three women for their roles in reaching an agreement to preserve open space in Laguna Canyon.

Other honorees:

In business, entrepreneur Carole P. Eichen was singled out for her innovations in model home interior design and efforts in bringing more women into the housing industry.

In communications media, journalist and historian Doris Walker won for opening the doors for women in the news business. Walker has written several books on Orange County history and has been an editor and reporter at several South County newspapers.

In education, the honor went to Billie Masters, the supervisor of teacher education at UC Irvine. Masters has worked with the California Teachers Assn. for student and teacher rights, has worked with Indian advisory groups and received national awards for her efforts in the area of civil rights.

In government, Newport Beach Councilwoman Ruthelyn Plummer was honored for her work on government and political committees and in regional and community organizations. She has served as chairwoman of the Orange County chapter of the National Women’s Political Caucus and on the Orange County Republican Central Committee.

In health, Dr. Phyllis Agran, a pediatric gastroenterologist at UC Irvine, was honored for her research that led to new laws to protect children riding in cars. She is now researching the hazards of allowing children to travel in the backs of pickup trucks.

In law, Jan Shaw was recognized for her work as the director of mediation and investigative services for the Orange County Superior Court. She was the first family court mediator for Superior Court and has helped develop and teach the first graduate-level curriculum for mediators at Chapman College.

In religion, Cecil Downey Piantadosi was honored for her work as the first woman president of the Newport/Mesa-Irvine Interfaith Council and as a member of the Ecumenical and Interreligious Commission of the Diocese of Orange. She also planned the first Holocaust Conference in Southern California.

In the arts, Janice M. Johnson won as the chairwoman of the All Guild Board and board member of the Orange County Performing Arts Center. She also has served almost a dozen volunteer organizations and has been a music and piano teacher.

In world peace, Mission Viejo High School teacher Laurie Kund was honored for teaching young people about their role in the peace process. When she worked at schools in South Central Los Angeles, Kund introduced inner-city students to Model United Nations, in which teen-agers play roles as U.N. leaders.

Santa Ana residents Florence and Jim Lukens won an award for their community service as founders of the Orange County Performing Arts Center and work on several rehabilitation projects for women. They also are supporters of the Mission on Our Doorstep project, which built 14 new churches in the past eight years, and the Mary Magdalene project, which has two homes for the rehabilitation of women prostitutes.

In addition, Fluor Corp. Vice President J. Robert Fluor II and engineer Edmund B. Buster won “Y’s Guy” awards for their contributions to the YWCA Hotel for Homeless Women.