ATHENA Awards Recognize Community Changemakers

The Stockton chapter of ATHENA International honored three influential women at the ATHENA Awards Luncheon, which took place November 20 at the Stockton Golf & Country Club. Kay G. Ruhstaller of Family Resource Center is the 2025 ATHENA Leadership Award recipient; Stephanie Braithwaite of Lily Pad Living/Lotus Rising Recovery Services received the 2025 ATHENA Young Professional Leadership Award; and Abigail Coussons, a senior at Linden High School, accepted the 2025 ATHENA Youth Leadership Award.

“I am so excited to honor three amazing women at this year’s ATHENA Awards luncheon,” said Timm Quinn, CEO of the Greater Stockton Chamber of Commerce, said prior to the event. “This is one of the longest-running ATHENA Awards communities, and I am amazed each year by all the recipients and nominees. We are so blessed as a community to have such wonderful leaders and role models for everyone to aspire to and learn from.”

ATHENA International partners with hundreds of chambers of commerce, colleges and universities, corporations, women’s organizations and affiliate communities in 48 states and 11 countries. Over 8,000 leaders have been recognized with the ATHENA Leadership award in more than 500 regions worldwide. Stockton has one of the longest-running ATHENA programs in the nation, with the first Stockton ATHENA Award having been presented in 1986. The ATHENA Young Professional Leadership Award was introduced locally in November 2010. The ATHENA Youth Leadership Award, for young women under the age of 18, was introduced nationally and locally in 2024 with the Stockton chamber giving out the first ATHENA Youth Award in the United States.

Kay G. Ruhstaller
The ATHENA Leadership Award recognizes accomplished individuals who actively support women in attaining professional excellence and leadership skills. This award highlights what recipients have accomplished in addition to ways they have paved the path for other women to have future successes. Throughout her time as CEO of the Family Resource Center, Kay G. Ruhstaller’s work has helped thousands of families find affordable, quality childcare. Family Resource Center is San Joaquin County’s largest nonprofit organization, now operating with an annual budget exceeding $100 million and impacting over 8,000 children annually. Christina Gilbert, a mentee and colleague, described Kay as “the most influential mentor in my career, combining strategic insight, compassion and remarkable generosity.”
Kay co-founded the San Joaquin Children’s Alliance, uniting nonprofit and civic leaders to align child-focused investments and secure more than $5 million in mental health funding for families after the pandemic. She played a key role in developing 211 San Joaquin, a helpline that provides residents with referrals to housing, food, mental health and emergency services. In 2024, she led the integration of a Community Resource Navigator into the Family Justice Center, strengthening trauma-informed services for survivors of violence and deepening partnerships across county lines. As a registered dietitian, she has overseen the delivery of more than 4 million healthy meals to children and over $6 million in reimbursements to childcare providers annually. She also guided Family Resource Center’s Joan Richards Learning Village to a Tier 5 quality rating, the highest standard in California for early childhood education. She has served on the First 5 San Joaquin Commission for more than a decade and is a gubernatorial appointee to the California Early Childhood Policy Council. Kay was the 13th female president of the Greater Stockton Chamber of Commerce in 2023. “Kay is a leader of leaders. Her strength, planning and calm presence have guided our organization through difficult times and lasting transformation,” Gillian Murphy, president of Family Resource Center’s board of directors, said in a Chamber press release.

Stephanie Braithwaite
The ATHENA Young Professional Leadership Award celebrates emerging leaders. This award honors those under 40 who have taken significant steps in their career journey and served as a role model for women and girls. Stephanie Braithwaite’s nomination for the Young Professional Leadership Award cited many achievements that show she is a powerful advocate and visionary leader with a servant heart. She is the founder and program director of a multi-site recovery residence network, Lily Pad Living/Lotus Rising Recovery Services, known for its intensive outpatient and integrated services programs that support individuals and families facing substance use, human trafficking, domestic violence, housing insecurity, poverty and child welfare involvement.
Stephanie leads outreach and education efforts throughout the community, focusing on youth impacted by the justice system, neglect, violence and housing instability. She works tirelessly to spread awareness about the dangers of fentanyl and substance use while guiding those in need toward hope and recovery. Stephanie teaches weekly Bible study and volunteers at His Way Community Church. She also facilitates a weekly trauma-informed recovery group and leads Keys to Freedom, a program supporting survivors of violence and abuse. In 2023, she organized San Joaquin County’s Recovery Happens event, part of a national initiative celebrating the power of recovery. She serves on the San Joaquin County Public Health Healthy Communities Committee and the Community Advisory Committee and has presented at numerous events for the San Joaquin County Opiate Coalition. She also founded and coaches two Stockton softball teams as part of a sober living wellness initiative. Stephanie mentors the next generation of female leaders thought Vision 209. She does all this while also raising her sons!

Abigail Coussons
Learn more about Abigail Coussons, the recipient of the 2025 ATHENA Youth Leadership Award, in this month’s Spark Joy feature.