Women of Achievement Awards features a first in the 45-year history of the recognition
By Kevin Haas
Rock River Current
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CHERRY VALLEY — The YWCA Northwestern Illinois celebrated six women on Monday with its annual Women of Achievement honors, including a pair of awards that marked a first in the 45-year history of the event.
This year’s Leader Luncheon and awards ceremony at the Tebala Event Center marked the first time that two mother-daughter duos were honored on the same day.
Sheila Hill, who runs a property management company and is the co-founder of the small business incubator Think Big, won the mentorship award for guiding and inspiring women. Her daughter, Khaneidra Horton, a vice president at U.S. Bank, won the promise award recognizing her potential leadership and service.
“It’s probably the proudest mama moment of all time,” Hill said. “Seeing her walk up there was like seeing the younger version of me, knowing that’s she’s following in my footsteps. It was a little overwhelming.”
The other mother-daughter duo was Julia Scott-Valdez, a former city of Rockford deputy administrator and director of management services at Four Rivers Sanitation Authority, and Christina Valdez, a recently elected Winnebago County Board member who also serves as board president of NAMI Northern Illinois. Scott-Valdez won the professions award while her daughter won the community leadership award. Valdez’s other daughter, Catherine Valdez-Doyle, won the promise award last year. Christina Valdez had won that award in 2016.
2025 Women of Achievement Awards
- Business Award: Lisa Entrikin, CEO of Rock River Valley Blood Center
- Community Leadership Award: Christina Valdez, board president of NAMI Northern Illinois and finance officer for Rockford Area Arts Council
- Mentorship Award: Sheila Hill, Phd, CEO of Hill Enterprises and co-founder of Think Big
- Professions Award: Julia Scott-Valdez, former city of Rockford deputy administrator, Four Rivers Sanitation Authority director of management services
- Promise Award: Khaneidra Horton, vice president and SBA special loans manager at U.S. Bank
- Racial Justice: Alesia Jones, Phd, assistant dean for diversity and inclusion, director of behavioral science and chair of the committee on diversity, equity and inclusion at University of Illinois College of Medicine Rockford
The other winners Monday were Lisa Entrikin, CEO of Rock River Valley Blood Center, who won the business award, and Alesia Jones, an assistant dean at the University of Illinois College of Medicine Rockford, who won the racial justice award.
“The common thread in the award winners for the past 45 years is really a strong personal connection to making their community better,” said Kris Machajewski, president and CEO of YWCA Northwestern Illinois. “I think that is what it really comes down to, and with women making sure we are clearing the path for younger women behind us.”
The YWCA also presented five scholarships to high school seniors who demonstrate leadership and the potential to affect positive change in their school and community.
2025 YWCA scholarship recipients
Bright Future scholarship
- Cassie Boyer, Dakota Jr. Sr. High School
- Sahyan Garcia-Mendez, Belvidere North High School
- Anna Polasky, Belvidere North High School
La Voz Latina scholarship
- Angie Perez, Boylan Catholic High School
- Mia Rodriguez, Pecatonica High School
The YWCA, which makes it its mission to empower women and eliminate racism, holds its Leader Luncheon each year to recognize people who make a positive difference in their community and promote diversity and the success of women.
This year’s award ceremony came amid a national political climate where diversity, equity and inclusion efforts are being stripped at the federal government level and rolled back in several major corporations. President Donald Trump’s administration and others have argued that DEI measures were themselves discriminatory and should be replaced with meritocracy.
While no award winners mentioned any politicians by name, several used their platform to championing the strengths of diversity and inclusion.
“Rockford, Illinois, is strong and diverse and beautiful and inclusive,” Valdez said in her acceptance speech, “and as long as people like me and you are sitting in this crowd, Rockford is here to stay a champion of all of those ideals.”
Scott-Valdez, whose award category came after her daughter’s, said the younger Valdez already captured what she wanted to say.
“You do need to be very worried, about what we see happening,” Scott-Valdez said. “You need to vote. You need to call your elected officials. You need to do something to manage and to change the current direction.”
Jones, who won the racial justice award, is the assistant dean for diversity and inclusion, director of behavioral science and chair of the committee on diversity, equity and inclusion at University of Illinois College of Medicine Rockford.
“I know these are uncertain times, but what I’m certain of is the power of the collective,” she said. “The collective is what’s going to produce change … We’re not going to be silenced. We’re ready and we’re ready to take action now.”
The Leader Luncheon is the YWCA’s largest annual fundraiser. Proceeds are used to provide programming and “advocate for women and families with a clear commitment to promoting equality and diversity.”
“The YWCA since 1891 in this community has been nonpartisan. We have served all people in this community regardless of race, gender, sexual orientation,” Machajewski said. “We really believe that peace, justice, freedom and dignity for all — and those are four principals that lead our work — they are just as relevant today in this climate as they were in 1891.”
This article is by Kevin Haas. Email him at khaas@rockrivercurrent.com or follow him on X at @KevinMHaas or Instagram @thekevinhaas and Threads @thekevinhaas
