Pell City Rotary honors YWCA CEO
Published 9:48 am Friday, July 27, 2012
- Suzanne Durham (right) is pictured with Pell City Rotarian Jenny Guald, who plays a large role in YWCA actions in this area.
Pell City Rotary Club presented a Vocational Award to Suzanne Durham, CEO of the Young Women’s Christian Association (YWCA) of Central Alabama.
“It was really an honor to be awarded, to be recognized for something you love doing,” Durham said. “That’s always honoring and humbling.”
Durham has worked with the organization for almost 33 years.
Durham says she can’t thank Pell City Rotary enough for welcoming the YWCA into the community.
“To be in Pell City, Blount and St. Clair County in a more engaged way than we have been in the past is so exciting.”
The YWCA has been working to put a stop to domestic violence since 1986.
“It’s a business we would love to go out of,” Durham said.
The YWCA of Central Alabama has a large urban shelter in Birmingham. Six years ago the board of directors decided find a way to meet the needs of domestic violence victims in rural communities.
“We found that rural women, if they have transportation, are afraid to come into the big noisy city,” Durham said. “The board six years ago decided if they can’t come to us, we will go to them. We built a small, safe satellite shelter here to provide a safe refuge for families fleeing domestic violence.”
The YWCA will hold the Fourth Annual Purse & Passion St. Clair County Luncheon Aug. 23 at The Beacon Hall at Pell City First United Methodist Church.
