Chamber announces Kansas City’s top civic leadership award for women

The Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce said Monday that Dianne Cleaver, who currently leads a neighborhood improvement organization, will be this year’s recipient of the city’s top civic leadership award for women.

The Athena Leadership Award to Cleaver, executive director of the Urban Neighborhood Initiative, will be given at a reception Oct. 8. Cleaver has a 30-year history of serving on many civic boards, especially devoted to education, health and human services.

Also to be honored with the Athena Young Professional Leadership Award is Sunita Lavin, a project manager at Garmin, who is active in local efforts to improve education and participation in science, technology and engineering professions.

The top Athena award is given for a history of community betterment work. Cleaver follows Betsey Solberg, SuEllen Fried, Janice Kreamer, Mary Kay McPhee and Adele Hall as recipients in recent years. Cleaver also is the wife of U.S. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver II, a former Kansas City mayor.

Diane Stafford, stafford@kcstar.com

This story was originally published August 24, 2015 at 11:20 AM with the headline "Chamber announces Kansas City’s top civic leadership award for women."