The Soroptimist International of Auburn Club recently awarded $4,000 to Women’s Opportunity Award recipients.

The Women’s Opportunity Awards program is the Soroptimists’ major women’s education project. Since the Women’s Opportunity Awards program began in 1972, about $25 million has been disbursed to help tens of thousands of women achieve their dreams of a better life for themselves and their families.

Jennifer Kirsch was a top-award winner. Connie Carroll, Kelley Tarp, Nichole Butler and MeLinda Harvey were runners-up.

The club also honored two area women with the Ruby Award for Women Helping Women. The award honors women who are making extraordinary differences in the lives of other women. Examples would be a woman who helps to establish a domestic violence shelter, a woman who starts a mentoring program for at-risk girls, or a woman who lobbies her company to provide on-site child care. The program will give the club and the entire organization the opportunity to say “thank you” and encourage others to explore ways to assist women.

Anne Baunach, a past recipient, was honored for single-handedly writing a Soroptimist grant for $10,000 and received a perfect score with the club receiving the full-grant amount.

Marsha Medgard was honored for her work at the Women’s Programs office at Green River Community College.

Josephine (Jo) Cugini was honored by the club as a longtime member and community mentor for her dedicated 50 years of service to the Auburn area. The club made a $1,000 donation in her name to the Laurel Society that helps secure the future of programs such as the Women’s Opportunity, Violet Richardson and the Workplace Campaign to End Domestic Violence.