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The Girl Scouts of Western Ohio’s 2018 Women of Distinction
Award Recipients!
On October 25, th Girl Scouts of Western Ohio honored women
who have made significant contributions in one or more key
focus areas for success. Included were: Diana Patton,
motivational speaker and author, in the area of healthy
living; Barbara Petee, ProMedica, for leadership; Rhonda
Sewell, Toledo Lucas County Public Library, for community
responsibility; Rene Smith, Fostoria Economic Development
Corporation, for financial empowerment and Adrienne Taylor,
SSOE, for STEM.
Rhonda Sewell
Rhonda B.
Sewell is manager, External and Governmental Affair at the
Toledo Lucas County Public Library, where she initially
served as the system’s Media Relations Coordinator and then
as Governmental Affairs and Media Strategist. She joined the
Toledo Library system after a noted 18-year career as a
journalist at The Blade, the daily newspaper in Toledo, OH.
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Rhonda Sewell |
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Before joining
The Blade, Sewell worked for one year as a general
assignment reporter at The Lansing State Journal, in
Lansing, MI, while completing her senior year at Michigan
State University (MSU). She received her B.A. in
Journalism from Michigan State University in 1989.
She was hired
at age 21 at the Toledo daily newspaper after attending the
City University of London (via Michigan State University’s
Overseas Study Program) in 1988 where she completed graduate
coursework in international journalism. Shortly after
joining The Blade, Sewell was requested to represent the
company as an international correspondent and was sent to
England, Italy, France, Belgium, Switzerland, and The
Netherlands.
Sewell’s
newspaper career was primarily in the Features department,
where she served for a decade as The Blade’s Fashion Writer
and frequently traveled to New York to cover major fashion
events, awards ceremonies, and conduct designer interviews
with the likes of Donna Karan, Kenneth Cole, Yves Saint
Laurent, Anna Wintour, and Marc Jacobs. She also worked as
the American Fashion Correspondent for CLEO Magazine, a
former publication based in Cairo, Egypt.
During her
Blade career, Sewell interviewed countless prominent figures
such as author Maya Angelou, singer Usher, the late Dana
Reeve, Yves Saint Laurent, and many others. In the 1990s,
she also served as a part-time instructor at Bowling Green
State University (BGSU), where she taught a self-designed
course titled, “Ethnic Groups and Mass Media.” During her
Blade career, she also served as a talk show host on
Toledo’s PBS station, WGTE PBS Channel 30, where she now
volunteers as a program moderator to help introduce
important segments and documentaries.
Sewell
frequently served as a cohost on “The Editors,” The Blade’s
former political and community TV talk show, and as an emcee
for many Blade events.
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Diana Patton
Diana Patton
is a speaker, social justice and integrative health
advocacy coach, author and attorney. She conducts
life coaching for individuals who are in the
"helping profession", which includes school
counselors and social workers, on how to go into
life’s fire and not get burned (out). She speaks to
and works with high schools, colleges and other
"helping organizations," encouraging them to
implement her newly developed RISE program. She also
speaks to organizations on leadership, emotional
intelligence, and diversity and inclusion topics.
In December
2015, she completed her full-time work as the
VP/COO/General Counsel for the Toledo Fair Housing
Center. Prior to assuming her role at the Toledo
Fair Housing Center, she worked on staff at
CedarCreek Church and directed various ministry
teams. Before her roles at CedarCreek, she was an
inspirational speaker, certified health coach and
co-business owner of health-based company, FITatudes,
LLC. |
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She was
trained and certified as a health coach at the Institute of
Integrative Nutrition (IIN) in Manhattan, New York. Prior to
becoming a health coach and speaker, Patton held a number of
law firm and high-level corporate positions, including
global director-level positions at Fortune 500 companies
(including Dana Corporation and Owens Corning). She has
worked in the areas of contract procurement, purchasing and
negotiation, litigation assistance, supplier diversity,
corporate training and strategic planning.
She earned her
bachelor and law degree at the University of Toledo. Patton
serves on the University of Toledo College of Health and
Human Services Board, to improve the human condition
through meaningful community engagement, and also serves on
the University of Toledo Paralegal Advisory Board. After
completing a board position at the now closed Polly Fox
Academy, a school for pregnant and parenting teens, she has
begun working to develop an effective nationwide strategy
for teen moms to complete their high school education,
thrive, and be successful in life.
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