Susan Waldman
Susan Waldman

The Washington Women in PR honored Meals on Wheels chief marketing and communications officer Susan Waldman as its 2021 Woman of the Year at a virtual awards ceremony on Nov. 18. Meals on Wheels supports more than 5,000 community-based programs across the country that are dedicated to addressing senior isolation and hunger. At the organization, Waldman has driven campaigns to raise brand awareness, turn a federal budget threat into one of the largest budget increases ever awarded, recruited nearly 250,000 volunteers and supporters, and raised emergency relief funding in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic. The event also recognized finalists Brenda Foster, senior vice president of Vanguard Communications, and Carrie Fox, founder and CEO of Mission Partners, Benefit LLC.

Ravi Agrawal
Ravi Agrawal

The Institute for Public Relations is holding its annual Distinguished Lecture and Awards Dinner on Dec. 2 at 5:30 p.m. as both a live (at NYC’s Current at Chelsea Piers) and virtual event. The dinner, which is the organization’s main fundraising event of the year, will feature Ravi Agrawal, editor of Foreign Policy magazine and the podcast Global Reboot. Receiving 2021 lifetime achievement awards will be LinkedIn global director of customer insights Allyson Hugley, Gagen MacDonald CEO and founder Maril MacDonald and Marcia DiStaso, professor and chair of the public relations department at the University of Florida. From 2 to 5 p.m. the same day, IPR will hold a free research symposium (also both live and virtually). Topics addressed at the symposium will include communications on climate change issues, diversity management and workforce ecosystems.

Wendy Kurtz
Wendy Kurtz

A Dec. 8 PRSA event will look at the pros and cons of becoming an independent practitioner—and what it takes to succeed. Moderated by International Practitioners Alliance programs chair Wendy Kurtz, “So You Want to Go Independent?” will offer attendees tips on such essentials as how to reframe your thinking to develop the mindset critical for success, marketing yourself, pricing methods and identying available resources. The program will also include an extended Q&A segment. Paid registration for non-IPA members includes the live webinar and video playback for one month.