Leavenworth is Honored as Person of the Year

December 20, 2012

Kathy Leavenworth sat there, munching on a Nestle crunch bar, half-listening to a presentation about an award-winner at the Geauga Park District Foundation meeting earlier this month.

When the speaker started talking about accomplishments she was familiar with, she sat up and took notice.

Then came the announcement: Leavenworth, a Russell Township resident, won the 2013 Emerald Leader Award, presented by Leadership Geauga County.

“I was very surprised,” Leavenworth said Monday. “I had known about the award, but never expected I would win it. My first reaction was that someone else got it.”

Leadership Geauga County, started in 1996, is a Chardon organization that provides leadership training for business owners and other community figures, said Executive Director Bob Faehnle.

The organization recognizes community leaders who have enhanced the quality of life.

Since 2001, Leadership Geauga has presented the Emerald Leader Award — Geauga County’s Person of the Year — annually to either a business, person or nonprofit agency.

The winner is chosen due to his or her positive contributions through volunteerism, philanthropy or innovation that helps the county, Faehnle said.

Past award winners include Dick Moss, Kimm Leininger, Deborah O’Connor and Richard Frenchie.

“Kathy has excelled in leadership and volunteerism in our county and state for many years,” Faehnle said. “Her commitment to community and generosity with her time has been outstanding.”

Faehnle said Leavenworth will formally receive recognition March 2, 2013, at the Leadership Geauga County Emerald Ball, which will take place at Federated Community Center in Bainbridge Township.

Leavenworth said she had some experience with Leadership Geauga in the past by helping the organization take root. She also helped start leadership organizations in Ashtabula and Cuyahoga counties.

Faehnle, a former Chardon High School principal and Newbury Schools superintendent, said he has known Leavenworth for several decades.

“That was some 20-odd years ago,” he said. “She was on a committee related to the county school board at the time. I can’t remember the exact committee, but I could see she was special.”

The executive director would run into her often at various functions and said Leavenworth was “easy to contact.”

“She was a great communicator and she epitomized what leadership was about,” he said. “I will say, when she received the award, she was totally shocked.”

Leavenworth attended Wells College in New York state and later received a bachelor’s degree in interpersonal communications from Cleveland State University.

In 1979, she was elected to West Geauga Schools Board of Education and held that seat for 30 years, 22 years as president.

During that time, she chaired various board committees, levy committees and headed strategic planning for the district.

Additionally, she headed a construction committee that successfully oversaw a $20 million renovation to the district’s buildings and infrastructure.

Longtime board member Sally Gillmore, who was elected to school board at the same time as Leavenworth, said Leavenworth understood the importance of the renovations to the district and worked hard to see the construction committee succeed.

“We both came on board at the same time,” she said. “We were elected in November 1979, but did not take office until the following January.”

Gillmore said Leavenworth was a “stabilizing” influence at West Geauga. It took a few years, but the pair helped revise the board’s culture and updated its bylaws.

“Those bylaws hadn’t been revised in years,” Gillmore said. “We put together what was the forerunner of today’s bylaws.”

Leavenworth also founded the West Geauga Educational Foundation in 1986 and the West Geauga Performing Arts Foundation in 2000.

The educational foundation funds programs not covered by the district’s core curriculum.

Additionally, she has served as president of the Northeast Region of the Ohio School Boards Association and also on its board of trustees.

Leavenworth was an at-large member of the state Board of Education, appointed by then-Gov. Ted Strickland in 2009.

Currently, Leavenworth remains active in the county on various boards and committees, such as the Western Reserve Land Conservancy, Geauga Humane Society Rescue Village, the Geauga Park District Foundation, the Ohio League Conservation Voters and the National Council for the Land Trust Alliance.

How does she find time to fit it all in her schedule?

The retiree said the schedule keeps her busy, but she also finds time to travel.

Last spring, she went to South America and has been to Patagonia and Africa as well. Leavenworth also spends time with her friends and family, including several grandchildren.

Gillmore said she considers Leavenworth more than just a fellow board member.

“She’s more than that; she’s a friend,”?she said. “If I were to sum her up in one sentence, I’d say she’s an advocate for children.”

For information about Leadership Geauga County, contact Faehnle at 440-286-8115 or email at bfaehnle@gmail.com.