Kay Rosser Named a "Woman of the Year" in the 29th Congressional District
California Desk
April 15, 2010
Washington, D.C. – On Saturday, March 27, at a reception in Pasadena, Representative Adam Schiff honored Kay Rosser for her commitment and service to South Pasadena by naming her a "Woman of the Year."
"South Pasadena is fortunate to have so many superb cultural arts programs and organizations, and that is due, in large part, to the efforts of Kay," said Schiff. "Kay sets a tremendous example of what it means to give back to the community."
Kay began her volunteer work in South Pasadena when her two daughters were in elementary school during the early seventies. Kay helped in the classroom and with Parent-Teacher Association (PTA) special projects dealing with teen suicide and teen alcoholism. She was instrumental in creating the Theatre Arts Angels, a parent support group for the South Pasadena High School drama program.
She has been a volunteer in the South Pasadena Public Library since the early nineties and was a member of the Board of Trustees for seven years. Today, she is still intimately involved with the library and co-chairs the Library´s Restoration Concerts, a classical and jazz concert series that benefits the restoration of the library´s community room.
Embarrassed to have major artists perform on the library´s aging piano, Kay plunged herself into researching and leading the effort to raise $35,000 to purchase a refurbished Steinway. When the funding for the piano was complete, Kay led the effort to raise more donations to fund a Quartet in Residence, the highly-acclaimed New Hollywood String Quartet, now performing in its third season.
In addition to her work in South Pasadena, Kay has been a volunteer coordinator for thirteen years with Plaza de la Raza, a school of performing arts with afternoon classes in music, theatre, dance, and the visual arts offered to children in East Los Angeles and beyond.
In 1990, Kay worked as an assistant to the Chairman of Volunteers for the Los Angeles Festival, and in 1993, she became Chairman of Volunteers and recruited over 1,000 volunteers for the Festival.
Every March, during Women´s History Month, Rep. Schiff honors one outstanding woman from each of the communities in the 29th Congressional District. These women come from all walks of life and represent the thousands of women who make a positive impact in our region. While there are no specific criteria for nomination, Rep. Schiff looks for women who – through their work or volunteerism – have improved the quality of life for our community.
This year, Congressman Schiff´s Women of the Year luncheon was unique because he invited the Women Air Service Pilots (WASPs) who lived in his district. These women, who served in World War II as pilots without recognition at the time, were recently honored with Congressional Gold Medals in Washington DC. The WASPs in attendance at Congressman Schiff´s luncheon were Eileen Ferguson of Pasadena, Alyce Rohrer of Pasadena, and Eleanor Gunderson of Burbank. Each of the women shared stories about their time as a pilot, including the difficulties they faced and reactions they received from their families and from other pilots. The Women of the Year truly enjoyed the presence of these three heroic WASPs. Congressman Schiff presented each of the WASPs a flag that was flown over the Capitol for their service to the country. A flag will be sent to the other WASPs in the Congressman´s district, Geraldine Olinger of Glendale, Margaret Weiss of Pasadena, and Lillian Wray of Burbank, who were not able to attend the luncheon.
Rep. Schiff represents California´s 29th Congressional District, which includes the communities of Alhambra, Altadena, Burbank, Glendale, Monterey Park, Pasadena, San Gabriel, South Pasadena and Temple City.
"South Pasadena is fortunate to have so many superb cultural arts programs and organizations, and that is due, in large part, to the efforts of Kay," said Schiff. "Kay sets a tremendous example of what it means to give back to the community."
Kay began her volunteer work in South Pasadena when her two daughters were in elementary school during the early seventies. Kay helped in the classroom and with Parent-Teacher Association (PTA) special projects dealing with teen suicide and teen alcoholism. She was instrumental in creating the Theatre Arts Angels, a parent support group for the South Pasadena High School drama program.
She has been a volunteer in the South Pasadena Public Library since the early nineties and was a member of the Board of Trustees for seven years. Today, she is still intimately involved with the library and co-chairs the Library´s Restoration Concerts, a classical and jazz concert series that benefits the restoration of the library´s community room.
Embarrassed to have major artists perform on the library´s aging piano, Kay plunged herself into researching and leading the effort to raise $35,000 to purchase a refurbished Steinway. When the funding for the piano was complete, Kay led the effort to raise more donations to fund a Quartet in Residence, the highly-acclaimed New Hollywood String Quartet, now performing in its third season.
In addition to her work in South Pasadena, Kay has been a volunteer coordinator for thirteen years with Plaza de la Raza, a school of performing arts with afternoon classes in music, theatre, dance, and the visual arts offered to children in East Los Angeles and beyond.
In 1990, Kay worked as an assistant to the Chairman of Volunteers for the Los Angeles Festival, and in 1993, she became Chairman of Volunteers and recruited over 1,000 volunteers for the Festival.
Every March, during Women´s History Month, Rep. Schiff honors one outstanding woman from each of the communities in the 29th Congressional District. These women come from all walks of life and represent the thousands of women who make a positive impact in our region. While there are no specific criteria for nomination, Rep. Schiff looks for women who – through their work or volunteerism – have improved the quality of life for our community.
This year, Congressman Schiff´s Women of the Year luncheon was unique because he invited the Women Air Service Pilots (WASPs) who lived in his district. These women, who served in World War II as pilots without recognition at the time, were recently honored with Congressional Gold Medals in Washington DC. The WASPs in attendance at Congressman Schiff´s luncheon were Eileen Ferguson of Pasadena, Alyce Rohrer of Pasadena, and Eleanor Gunderson of Burbank. Each of the women shared stories about their time as a pilot, including the difficulties they faced and reactions they received from their families and from other pilots. The Women of the Year truly enjoyed the presence of these three heroic WASPs. Congressman Schiff presented each of the WASPs a flag that was flown over the Capitol for their service to the country. A flag will be sent to the other WASPs in the Congressman´s district, Geraldine Olinger of Glendale, Margaret Weiss of Pasadena, and Lillian Wray of Burbank, who were not able to attend the luncheon.
Rep. Schiff represents California´s 29th Congressional District, which includes the communities of Alhambra, Altadena, Burbank, Glendale, Monterey Park, Pasadena, San Gabriel, South Pasadena and Temple City.
Print
Email
