The League of Women Voters of Lexington honored 100 women at a "Stand With Her" event at the Stand Monument, celebrating their achievements and stories on International Women's Day.
The nominations came directly from the community, with residents submitting the names of women they felt deserved recognition. Those names — including Barbra Sutherland, Black Yarn Ink and Brandi Smith — were read aloud at the event, and the honorees will be featured in the Lexington History Museum.
Liza Holland, president of the League of Women Voters of Lexington, said the idea came together about a year ago.
"It was amazing. It was exactly as powerful as I dreamed it would be when I came up with this crazy idea," Holland said.
Holland reflected on what the gathering meant.
"To see so many women come together to kind of celebrate each other was just phenomenal," Holland said.
Lexington City Council Member Jennifer Reynolds was among the 100 women honored at the event.
"It's true that over history, over time, women are not as celebrated as men," Reynolds said.
Reynolds said being recognized for her work on the council was meaningful.
"So it feels really special to be celebrated and to be nominated in this way," Reynolds said.
"As a council member, the work that we do goes unknown, unnoticed, and it's a lot of work, and so it feels just really like a wonderful thing to have your work be noticed. And I think that's what all women want," Reynolds said.
Reynolds said the recognition will extend beyond the present, with her place in the history museum serving as a lasting legacy.
"To know that his mother is going to have a piece of the history museum. He said that he's really proud of me, and that he's really proud of this achievement and so it will be neat for him to be able to go to the museum and take his family there one day and say 'hey that was my mom,'" Reynolds said.
Community member Alisha Schaffin, a board member with the League of Women Voters, nominated retired teacher Melinda Spalding.
"We started this program almost a year ago, and she was my first thought. Like I want people to know how wonderful she is. She is a retired teacher; she worked with special needs kids. So not only is she a wonderful woman in her professional life, but also in her personal life. I believed she deserved to be seen, but also given an award today," Schaffin said.
Spalding said the recognition was deeply meaningful.
"Women kind of do what they do every day, and without a whole lot of recognition. So to have something like this, I just feel special. I really do," Spalding said.
Schaffin said the stories shared at the event will endure for generations to come.
"Her grandchildren can eventually come see it. All the friends she has in the U.S. and internationally can come see it because it will be there. Until frutuity," Schaffin said.
Schaffin also hinted at what is ahead for the organization.
"I think you should watch what the League of Women Voters is doing in the next two years. We're gonna kick some butt," Schaffin said.
