Betty Hatch to receive special Rock Star: Life Achievement Award at the 2014 Spirit of Entrepreneurship Awards
The 2014 Spirit of Entrepreneurship (SOE) Foundation will be honoring ten outstanding women entrepreneurs at their gala Spirit of Entrepreneurship Awards on May 9 at the Fess Parker Resort. Nine winners are being selected from the eighty plus nominations received this year by an independent panel of judges. To preserve the integrity of the Awards, the judges are not connected with the Foundation and do not live in Santa Barbara. For this year’s awards, the SOE Foundation Board voted to make one category unique and announce it ahead of the ceremony: the Rock Star: Life Achievement Award. They unanimously chose Betty Hatch to be the recipient for 2014.
“Betty was one of the first important women entrepreneurs in Santa Barbara,” says Cathy Feldman, Board Chair/CEO of the Spirit of Entrepreneurship Foundation. “She started La Belle Modeling Agency in the 1960s at the age of 25 and trained a generation of top models, one of whom is Kathy Ireland. She also founded the SB Council for Self-Esteem, the original SB County Film Festival, Leadership Santa Barbara as well as being President of the SB Regional Chamber of Commerce, serving on national boards and so much more. She’s an amazing role model for successful women who not only succeed but also give back to the community.”
Feldman points out that the top three nominees in each of the other nine category will be announced in a few weeks, but the winners will not be made public until the dinner at the Fess Parker Resort on May 9, just like the Oscars. Lynda Weinman, Co-Founder and Executive Chair of lynda.com, will again be the inspiring MC for the event and will be announcing the winners.
Proceeds from the Spirit of Entrepreneurship Awards benefit the winners of the SBCC Scheinfeld Center’s New Venture Challenge, a business plan competition for regional high school and collegiate students. The winners of both tiers of the New Venture Challenge Awards will be the Foundation’s guests and receive their prizes at the Spirit of Entrepreneurship Awards dinner.
“The mission of the Spirit of Entrepreneurship Foundation is to support entrepreneurship at all levels in Santa Barbara County because entrepreneurs are the engine for growing our economy,” Feldman added. “By recognizing women entrepreneurs for the benefit of student entrepreneurs, we believe we are making an important contribution.”
For more information about the Spirit of Entrepreneurship Foundation Spirit of Entrepreneurship Awards go to www.soefoundation.org or email info@soefoundation.org or call 805-682-8380. Tickets are available at:
http://www.eventbrite.com/e/spirit-of-entrepreneurship-awards-tickets-10959842183
