Four Jefferson County women who were being celebrated for their contributions to Jefferson County were quick to credit much of their successes to the support and encouragement of family and friends.
A sold-out crowd of 180 attended the Leader’s third annual Celebrating Women event on March 6 at The Marquee on Main in Crystal City to honor the four women: Alexis Counts of Imperial, Jannah Oppermann-Budt of Festus, Karin Kostich of Arnold and Taylor Miller of Hillsboro.
“It really takes a village, and we’re so grateful to have such village,” said Counts, who is president of the Mary Daniels Foundation, which provides resources and financial assistance to survivors of domestic violence in Jefferson and Franklin counties. She is also a Domestic Violence Intervention Partnership advocate at the Crime Center in St. Louis.
She said the foundation is proud to serve those counties and to bridge the gap for domestic violence survivors and meet basic needs. She said none of it would have been possible without the support of her family and husband.
Fellow honoree Oppermann-Budt agreed, saying the compassion of her care is possible thanks to the support of those around her, including God, her staff, family, friends and husband.
Oppermann-Budt, who has worked in geriatric medicine for more than 20 years, is the owner of Senior Care Solutions and opened the Collins House in Festus, offering senior care.
“So (if you) give me a mic, I’m going to talk about my elders,” Oppermann-Budt said. “We serve families who are walking one of the hardest journeys. There is that being loving and caring for an aging parent, a spouse or family member … Our mission is to be a safe place, a trusted partner … We provide compassionate, relationship-centered care in a small home environment.”
She said her facility’s goal is to be a place where people are known, valued and truly seen.
Fellow honoree Kostich said she gives the glory to God for putting the mission in her heart, and she said she never imagined receiving an award like this.
Kostich is the founder and executive director of the James II Project, which provides free lunches to those in need at the Jefferson County Salvation Army and the First United Methodist Church of Festus and Crystal City. The organization also offers services such as laundry and showers.
“I have a table full of women sitting here tonight that mean the world to me,” she said. “They’ve encouraged me, they’ve supported me, they’ve told me to shut up whenever I need to shut up. And we have an amazing group of volunteers. We have 150 volunteers.”
Honoree Miller, who is the transportation coordinator for the Jefferson Franklin County Action Corporation’s EZMO program that provides free rides to healthcare appointments, employment opportunities, grocery trips and more, thanked her coworkers, mother and her support system that inspires her to do what she does for the community every day.
“The work I do is rooted in simple but urgent truth, transportation is access to opportunities ... It is an essential service that determines who gets access to jobs, health care, education, food and connection,” Miller said.
Katelyn Mary Skaggs, the Leader’s advertising manager, said she was pleased with the event.
“If you were in that room, you probably teared up at one point, and were also laughing hysterically at one point, so it was a wonderful evening to celebrate all the women of our community,” she said. “This event is quickly becoming my favorite.”
It was a sentiment shared by many in the audience.
Phyllis Neff, of Festus, said she loved the event because it solely celebrated women.
“I think women do a lot for the world and for so long, we went unnoticed,” said Neff, who is a Mary Kay consultant and member of the Twin City Area Optimist Club. “Now we’re celebrating ourselves.”
Lesa Moss of Imperial said she was inspired to come to the event by her mother, Joyce Luebbers, who accompanied her.
“My mom saw the article in the Leader, and she cut it out, and brought it to my house, and said, ‘I want to go to this,’” Moss said. “So, I grabbed two of my blingiest friends I know… and here we are.”
Luebbers of Arnold said she was drawn to the event because of its “Boots and Bling” theme.
“It said boots and bling, and I’m a blingy person,” she said.
Luebbers said community events like this are important, not only for women, but for others as well.
Natalie Pigg of Festus agreed, saying, “I think this gives us a broader view of the people who are building the community and who are having an impact.”
This year’s title sponsor was the Twin City Area Optimist Club, and the event featured raffles, games and giveaways.
Skaggs said the Optimists had several raffle baskets and two different raffles, including a 50/50 raffle that benefited Monarch Jewelry, an organization in the metro St. Louis area that works to prevent sex trafficking and bring women out of sex trafficking.
The giveaways included two private shopping events at Paws and Boots in Eureka or Milk and Honey in Wildwood, a Botanical Garden membership, Mary Kay items from Phyllis Neff, earrings from The Rose and Hook in Eureka and a basket from Town and Country Bank.
Monarch Jewelry received about $800 from the 50/50 raffle, along with about $1,000 in item and jewelry sales from the night.
Nominations are now open for next year’s Celebrating Women event. To nominate a woman of impact, visit myleaderpaper.com/celebratingwomen.
Next year’s theme will be the “Roaring Twenties.”
Click to see more photos from this year's event:
