Foothill Unity Center's Betty McWilliams Named Woman Achiever

Betty McWilliams, Executive Director of Monrovia's Foothill Unity Center, has been named one of 27 Women Achievers of 2014 by Business Life Magazine. The awards will be presented at a luncheon and expo on Monday, September 29, at the Glendale Hilton. This marks the 25th year for the awards. Criteria for nomination include contributions to the community, adversities overcome, volunteer work, recognitions and factors that make the nominee deserving of this honor.

For sixteen years, Ms. McWilliams has been instrumental in the fight against hunger, homelessness and poverty in the San Gabriel Valley as Executive Director and previously Deputy Director of Foothill Unity Center, the primary provider of food, case management/crisis help, and access to health care resources across eleven cities in the San Gabriel Valley. During that timee, she has played a leadership role in the growth of the organization's client base, services and supporters.

Ms. McWilliams, who holds a Bachelor of Sciences degree in Gerontology from the University of Southern California, began her career in human services as a VISTA volunteer working with low income residents of a settlement house. She came to Foothill Unity Center from Standard Industries, Inc., where she was Director of Administration, and had previously served as Executive Director of the Pasadena Senior Center.

Source: Foothill Unity Center press release

- Brad Haugaard