View photos from the event here.

Tuesday, September 24, 2024
701 Whaley, Columbia, SC 29201
V.I.P. Reception – 6:00 p.m.
Seated Dinner & Awards – 7:00 – 8:30 p.m.

Join us as we recognize and celebrate all the brave South Carolina women who have stepped forward to seek elective (win or lose) and appointive office. The Leading Women Dinner honors women who have blazed trails in civic leadership so that others may follow and builds a support network to encourage women to vie for civic leadership roles. The event includes a V.I.P. reception, open beer and wine bar, seated dinner, and awards for women in local and statewide elective and appointive office that have devoted themselves to community service, demonstrated a commitment to working across party lines, and whose civic work has improved the quality of life for all South Carolinians. The event is sold out! View sponsorship opportunities here. View photos and videos from last year’s event here.

Honorees

Leading Woman Award
Former Justice Kaye Hearn

The Leading Woman award is bestowed annually at the Leading Women Dinner to recognize a woman who has devoted themself to community service, exemplifies the principles of cooperation and collaboration, and has recently achieved a significant accomplishment or milestone that has a statewide or national civic impact.

Justice Kaye Hearn was elected to the Supreme Court of S.C. in May of 2009, becoming only the second woman member in the court’s history. At the time of her mandatory retirement (due to age) from the High Court in April 2023, she was the longest-serving member of the South Carolina State Court Judiciary. The resulting judicial election left S.C. with the only all-male Supreme Court in the nation. With another judicial election imminent upon the mandatory retirement of Justice Donald Beatty on July 31, 2024, Justice Hearn advocated that to administer justice fairly and impartially, the Court should be representative of the people whom the Court serves. Her influence with the Judicial Merit Selection Committee, which recommends judicial candidates, and the S.C. General Assembly, which elects judges in S.C., was instrumental in the consideration of qualified female candidates and securing the unanimous election on June 5, 2024 of the third female member in the history of the Supreme Court of S.C.

View Justice Hearn’s full bio

Leadership Legacy Award
S.C. State Representative Gilda Cobb-Hunter

The Leadership Legacy Award is bestowed annually at the Leading Women Dinner to recognize a woman whose career has made a lasting positive impact on their state by blazing a trail in civic leadership, exemplifying the principles of altruism, empathy, and collaboration, and supporting and encouraging other women leaders that follow them.

Widely respected on both sides of the aisle, the Honorable Gilda Cobb-Hunter is the longest serving Representative in the South Carolina General Assembly, and her historic public service record includes becoming the first African American woman elected to statewide office, where she still serves today representing Orangeburg County. Additionally, she is the only freshman legislator appointed to the powerful House Ways and Means Committee, where she is now the ranking member and First Vice Chairwoman, as well as the first person of color elected to lead a legislative caucus as former House Minority Leader. Rep. Cobb-Hunter’s long standing commitment and dedication as a community activist, social worker, and elected official has improved the lives of the citizens of Orangeburg County. She has worked tirelessly and passionately across the aisle to make sure our rural communities don’t vanish, taking local jobs, schools, and local healthcare away, fighting for quality education for everyone, and advocating for the needs of children and families.

View Representative Cobb-Hunter’s full bio

Rising Star Award
Municipal Judge Nancy Gutierrez of the City of Hardeeville

We are pleased to announce our Rising Star Honoree — Municipal Judge Nancy Gutierrez of the City of Hardeeville. Known notably for being the first female Hispanic Judge in Hardeeville and Jasper County and enhancing the lives of all those in these counties, among her many achievements, she exemplifies what it means to be a Rising Star. She has a long history of dedication to public service, civic engagement, and bipartisan partnerships.

In addition to her tireless work as a municipal judge, her accomplishments include participating in the Clemson and USC Salkehatchie Leadership programs, serving as vice president of the Jasper County Chamber of Commerce, board member for the Habitat for Humanity, board volunteer for the Conecta Business Expo for the Hispanic Business Association of the Lowcountry, member of the National Judges Association, member of the South Carolina Summary Court Judges Association, and serving on the Access to Justice committee in 2017 appointed by the Chief Justice. Judge Gutierrez is a Rising Star, showcasing to young women leaders across the state the changes that dedicated public service can achieve. She exemplifies all of the characteristics that make her a unanimous 2024 SC WIL Rising Star.

View Judge Gutierrez’s full bio. 

Sponsors

The 2024 Leading Women Dinner is sponsored by:

Supporting Sponsors

BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina | Carolina Concession, LLC | SC Ports Authority

Table Sponsors

Abacus Planning Group | Aflac | Alliance Party of S.C. | Allison Dean Love Consulting, LLC | American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists – SC Section | Rebecca Barnett | Benedict College | Burnette Shutt McDaniel | Burr Forman, LLP | The Campbell Consulting Group | Chernoff Newman | Civint | Conservation Voters of South Carolina  | First Citizens | George Hearn | Lucy Mahon | MUSC Health Orangeburg | Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough | Planned Parenthood Board of Directors | The Riley Institute at Furman University | SC Education Association | Senior Women Lawyers | Truist | University of South Carolina, Office of the President | Mary Carrington Wingard | Women’s Rights Empowerment Network | Wyche, P.A.