Women’s Resource Center of Northern Michigan (WRCNM) will celebrate six community members during the Tribute awards reception at Stafford’s Perry Hotel in Petoskey, 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., Thursday, November 10.  Tribute reception tickets are $25 per person, reserved by calling the WRCNM main office at (231) 347-0067.  Community members submitted nominations in six categories.  Highlighted below are a few of the accomplishments of this year’s community-nominated Tribute award recipients.

Advocate Award
Ginger Stevens, Joppa House and Third Day Fellowship

Ginger Stevens has committed the last several years to helping the homeless and down-trodden with food, shelter and encouragement in Charlevoix County.

Stevens saw people in need of food and shelter and envisioned a way to reach those she saw slipping through the cracks of society. Her vision of a nondenominational, ecumenical ministry to connect with people became a reality when she opened Third Day Fellowship in Charlevoix. The drop-in center offers a twice-weekly food pantry, free Wi-Fi used regularly by students after school, voluntary chapel services and a staff of volunteers willing to lend a helping hand or understanding ear.

Stevens began to see a pattern of chronic homelessness. She found many women and their children stayed where ever they could for as long as they could – having to move with little or no advance notice. This created a lack of stability that affected employment and the ability to keep children engaged at school. This is when Stevens decided to set up transitional housing for women and children who are homeless or facing homelessness.

Stevens worked to rally a community around her vision for Joppa House. The land and house were donated, a basement installed and hundreds and thousands of dollars invested in renovating an old convent into a modern home for women and children. Curriculum was written to provide a weekly class to help the women learn varied skills as basic as hygiene and as advanced as self-sabotage and moving beyond abuse.

Stevens has turned her life’s work into gladly giving to women who have found themselves disadvantaged and struggling to maintain a healthy living environment for themselves and their children. She is now spearheading a new emergency shelter for women and children in Charlevoix at the Third Day Fellowship in response to the great number of calls she receives from individuals who cannot find shelter.

Ginger Stevens has created a legacy of helping women and children who were once nearly invisible in Charlevoix County experience love and understand their value.

Business & Professions Award
Paula Musilek, Harbor Hall

Paula Musilek has tirelessly served female clients dealing with substance use disorders for the past 15 years as a lead member of the Harbor Hall Outpatient Services clinical team. Those who know Musilek describe her as passionately driven in her dedication to serving women as they heal from their addictions, as well as hard-working, dedicated, professional and kind.

Musilek relies on a treatment approach that is strength-based with attention to addiction recovery integrated throughout, creating hope and the possibility of positive change for each person seeking service at Harbor Hall. As a result, her female-specific counseling and therapy have had an enormous impact on women in the community. Although Musilek has a never-ending schedule, she always has the ability to extend herself professionally to meet the needs of her clients. She is loyal to her clients while also acknowledging their situations and boundaries. She also has the ability to fearlessly address tough issues and create a climate for positive growth and change.

Musilek’s grass-roots understanding of the problems women face with substance use acts as a foundation for her professional education and development. She is not only passionate about providing counseling services, but also furthering her understanding of clinical needs through continued professional development. Musilek is professionally respected, works collaboratively with other agencies and always has time in her busy schedule to be there for someone in need.

As a professional and certified addictions counselor, Musilek is highly sought after in the community and is well-known for providing caring, empathic treatment. Those who work with her have a genuine respect and admiration for the dedicated contributions Paula Musilek has made to women in the community and describe her as hard-working, dedicated, professional and kind.

Community Service Award
Lisa Blanchard, civic-minded community leader

Lisa Blanchard is a community philanthropist who gives her time, effort and talents to better the community she loves for those who live here. Her decades-long involvement with dozens of nonprofits and organizations has positioned her as a continuing learner, passionate advocate, loyal friend and dedicated community-minded volunteer.

Blanchard’s involvement and concern for community has touched many local organizations over the years, such as Emmet 20/20, Emmet County (commissioner, board member, volunteer), First Presbyterian Church, Girl Scouts, Leadership Little Traverse, Lincoln Elementary School, Little Traverse Civic Theater, Manna Food Project, Northern Chaplain Services, Northern Community Mediation, Sunday Soup Kitchen, Petoskey Children’s Nursery, Petoskey Club, Petoskey-Harbor Springs Area Community Foundation, Petoskey Public Schools, Resort Township Planning Commission, SEE North, Walloon Trust and Conservancy, Women Who Care Giving Circle, Women’s Resource Center of Northern Michigan and Young Life of Little Traverse Bay.

Blanchard has served on the board of the Petoskey-Harbor Springs Area Community Foundation for more than 14 years and is the current board president. Her leadership style is accessible, enthusiastic and dedicated even if the project at hand requires months of work prior to board review and approval. Though unfailingly positive, Blanchard understands the challenges that exist locally. In her work with the Community Foundation, she supports efforts to sustain programs that help people meet their needs, as well as projects that test a new approach to a problem.

Blanchard also served two consecutive three-year terms on the Women’s Resource Center of Northern Michigan (WRCNM) Board of Directors and is a past board president. She has also served on the Resort Township Planning Commission for the past 15 years focused on preserving the beauty of the township through smart development.

In all of Blanchard’s community work she believes in possibilities, action and the hope for improvement. Those who have worked with her describe her as someone who supports other professionally and personally – someone who has had an impact on our community that is both deep and wide.

Man of Action Award
Steve Van Dam, Van Dam Custom Boats

Steve Van Dam is a person who has many roles; he is a father, grandfather, husband, business owner and a pioneer of epoxy and wood boatbuilding in North America. Friends, colleagues and new acquaintances know Van Dam as a genuine, engaged and affable person. Van Dam is also a community leader and man of action.

Social change happens gradually through seemingly small, every day actions. Van Dam has taken a number of actions to become more aware of the issue of violence against women and the root causes of this pervasive societal problem. He has learned about the subtle, yet strong messaging of violence, degradation and objectification of women that occurs daily in the world. Through education and awareness-building efforts he has become more knowledgeable about the significance of those influences in our culture and society. He has also taken action.

Van Dam decided to discontinue playing music in his business that degrades women and promotes violence against them. He has prominently placed posters in employee spaces that portray messages of non-violence and respectful relationships. He has been a contributor and active member of the 100 Men Campaign which aims to engage local men in the movement to end violence against women. He attends and participates in community educational events and is currently working with the Women’s Resource Center of Northern Michigan on a collaborative project illustrating how individuals and businesses can influence positive change and take action to help end violence against women.

Van Dam’s main boatbuilding facility is an airy building that smells of freshly cut wood and hums with a sense of quiet purpose. That purpose may be a team of dedicated staff building a wooden boat representing thousands of hours of labor. That purpose might also be creating a solid reputation in the boatbuilding business which has played a huge role in their growth and success. That quiet sense of purpose could also be the actions of Steve Van Dam that will create a ripple-effect to positively impact family, friends, associates, employees and others in the community and beyond.


Pinnacle Award
Martha Lancaster, retired executive director of Char-Em United Way and civic-minded community leader

Martha Lancaster works courageously and energetically for causes she believes will make our community a better place. She is known as someone who is extremely reliable, thoughtful and committed; professionally and as a volunteer and friend.

While working in health administration at the Burns Clinic during the 1980’s, Lancaster began advocating for women’s health as a Planned Parenthood board member and Public Affairs committee chairperson. She joined the organization in 1990 and became a community voice for women’s preventative health services, helping increase awareness and funding so that women had access to sound medicine.

Lancaster has also been a longtime supporter for public transportation in Emmet County. Friends Enhancing Emmet Transit (FEET) is an advocacy group Lancaster continues to promote to residents and county commissioners through clear messaging, research, solutions and tenacity. Lancaster and other group members seek a reliable transportation alternative for those who are disabled, seniors who can no longer drive and workers/students without access to vehicles; supported through a transportation millage.

In 2006, Lancaster became the executive director of Char-Em United way. One significant achievement during her tenure was establishing the Dolly Parton Imagination Library program that provides a free, monthly mailed book to registered children in Charlevoix and Emmet counties until they turn five years old. She also created a needs assessment to use during annual grant-making to make sure donated dollars fund the greatest needs.

Lancaster believes in philanthropy and understands the ongoing need for funding. As a founding member of Hestia Giving Circle, she has helped allocate more than $270,000 in collective community investments to benefit area women and girls.

Lancaster continues to give back to the community as a Literacy Corps volunteer tutoring 5th grade girls and as a certified AARP tax aid volunteer helping senior citizens prepare taxes at the Friendship Center.

Those who know Martha Lancaster describe her as a reliable and thoughtful person who follows through on commitments, “She is truly one of the most special people in our community.”

Youth Award
Emily Kurburski, volunteer and college student

Emily Kurburski, a high achieving student and engaged community member, is a Petoskey High School (PHS) graduate attending Kettering University.

While at PHS, Kurburski earned a Gold Award through Girl Scouts of Michigan Shore to Shore. The award represented a culmination of her hours working on a project with Women’s Resource Center of Northern Michigan (WRCNM) staff to develop violence prevention curriculum for middle school students. Additionally, she handcrafted scarves for domestic abuse survivors participating in WRCNM support groups.

Kurburski was one of 23 grant recipients nationwide to earn $500 for a project through generationOn, a global youth service movement that inspires kids to make their mark on the world. The grant helped her fulfill a project to provide fresh, healthy meals to domestic abuse survivors residing at the WRCNM Safe Home.

Kurburski is a highly motivated person involved in a variety of activities such as Emmet County 4-H, Great Lakes Electric Co-op Youth Leadership Summit, Crooked Tree Youth Leadership Academy and as a National Grange delegate. Last year she and other PHS students attended DECA International Career Development Conference and medaled for top 20 in the world. Ten years of involvement with First Tee of Northern Michigan earned what Kurburski describes as a “once in a lifetime opportunity” to attend the organization’s Life Skills and Leadership Academy in Minnesota.

Kurburski was also recognized with the Char-Em United Way Michigan Student Service Award by donating more than 400 hours of volunteer time during her four years of high school, as well as the Farm Bureau Scholar-Athlete Award, First Tee of Northern Michigan Scholar Award.

“Each and every mentor, teacher or individual I have had the opportunity to interact with has given me a new perspective that has had a profound effect on the person I have become,” said Kurburski. “Each person teaches you a lesson, gives you an experience and helps mold you into a young and empowered individual.”

Kurburski’s advice for other young people, “Find something you are passionate about, reach out to others with background in that subject and finally make a difference!”