The Bernice Behrens Founder’s Award is presented to an AWIU member who through her extraordinary efforts has furthered the mission of the organization. Recipients have provided AWIU with opportunities to continue to create an international network of women to foster understanding and goodwill among nations.
By an overwhelming majority, member Barbara Rubio was nominated and confirmed as the 2024 recipient of the award. When Barbara accepted the award, she made sure to thank her “village” for their partnership, sisterhood, and support, namely the Passport Committee, including Ann Diederich, Betsy Richman, Chun-Chieh Lin, Eunice Reddick, Lisa O’Quinn, Anja Vojvodic, Claudette Davis, and Miranda Cohen.
Some highlights from Barbara’s nominations:
- Barbara is “nurturing,” “a driving force,” and “a connector.”
- “Barbara embodies the spirit, mission and enthusiasm of AWIU.”
- “She represents the heart and soul” of the organization.
- “As a new member, Barbara welcomed me, showed me the ropes and gave me confidence…no one could have done it better.”
Barbara’s AWIU Journey
Barbara began her AWIU experience without realizing at the time that it was the start of a decades’ long journey. About 20 years ago, Barbara Rubio accepted an invitation from her former Denison College suitemate to attend a literary luncheon in Hillsborough, CA. The speaker was Leonard Shlain, who had recently published “Sex, Time, and Power; How Women’s Sexuality Shaped Human Evolution”. Another luncheon attendee was a petite woman, elegantly put together in a beautiful pastel-colored suit with a big floppy bow on her blouse. She was a sparkling woman who greeted Barbara with warmth and introduced herself as Bernice Behrens. She was about 94 at the time. The college friend was Kathleen Huston, who shortly after the event urged Barbara to apply to be a member of AWIU. She did so and was accepted just in time to join a delegation led by Marty Atherton to Iceland in 2005.
Land of the Midnight Sun
Barbara fondly recalls moments from that early adventure, the 2005 Iceland Delegation. AWIU members chatting with each other while dreamily drifting in the healing waters of the Blue Lagoon hot springs at midnight…in full day light…thus the land of the midnight sun. There was a gift to Marty of an Icelandic hat in appreciation of her gracious representation of AWIU as the delegation leader. The delegation visited the site Thingvellir (old Norse for “Assembly of Fields”) where allegedly democracy was birthed in 930. Barbara was also a delegate on visits to Russia, the Balkans and Chiapas.
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Virtual and pre-Zoom Moments
Past President Anne Tonks coaxed Barbara to chair the virtual chapter which at the time focused on small meetings with several members and an occasional grantee. The virtual chapter was composed of those who did not live near a city with a chapter hosting “in person” meetings. “We felt very forward thinking…we had our own teleconference account!” said Barbara.
The Covid Years
Member Meg Huebner, who chaired the Grant Committee at the time, and Barbara began brainstorming on how to build upon the original teleconference idea with Zoom conversations with grantees and IWOCs. This project took off once Laura Pollard joined with her store of relationships with past IWOCs. International connections with other women continued and grew during this unique time in AWIU’s history. Barbara states: “I really enjoyed going virtual as previous to Covid I was the only active member in Metropolitan, New York, and thus ‘pretty isolated.’ I ventured out 2 or 3 times a year to AWIU events and board meetings. Now I could luxuriate in the teamwork of regular Zooms. I created my little office where I still retreat several hours a day phoning, e-mailing, Whatsapping, and texting. My husband calls me the CEO in the house. It excites me to connect to people, to connect, to collaborate.”
Currently, Laura, Mary Schammel and Barbara are working to develop Forums of exchange among our IWOCs with a focus on topics of mutual concern, such as combatting FGM, building women’s participation in parliament, and so much more.
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What I love about AWIU…
“I love playing matchmaker, connecting people that fit together. It’s like connecting live wires and making sparks happen. Just call me a mad scientist! I love the opportunity to continue to develop human virtues—patience, kindness, empathy, skillful means. I love developing ideas and bringing them to others and having others ground the ideas and making them practical enough to happen. Recruiting and mentoring Passports is a passion, this is where I was meant to be…this is where my education and training has led me,” says Barbara.
The Barbara Beat Goes On
Barbara has chaired the Membership Committee and served on AWIU Boards, in addition to developing the Passport Committee and allowing it to bloom. She commented that the growth has been augmented by her love of conversation and the telephone. Barbara says, “I am never wanting for friends! There is an underlying theme of excitement and joy of working with a dynamic, continuously expanding team, each of whom brings their special gifts and resources.” Finally, Barbara loves her still “ever expanding view of the world and the amazing people, especially women, who occupy it…and the opportunity to be available for, collaborate with and learn from young women and girls of a very different generation than mine, but with a shared passion to make an impact…to be of service.”
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