Two local women, business receive leadership awards from Aspire

With International Women’s Day as a backdrop, business leaders gathered to honor a local woman, a female-led business and a government official at a county chamber event Friday.

Melahni Ake of Everyday Leaders received the Aspire Johnson County Woman Leader of the Year and Stage I Dance Academy received the Champion of Women Award during the countywide chamber of commerce’s third annual Women Leaders Awards Friday at Valle Vista Golf Club in Greenwood. A third surprise winner was announced at the end of the ceremony: Carmen Young, Whiteland’s director of administration, who received the Impactful Leader Award for her efforts in the aftermath of the March 31, 2023, tornado.

The awards ceremony followed a Woman Leaders Workshop presented by Johnson Memorial Hospital. The awards were presented by Ageless Aesthetics and VisionQuest Eyecare, and are designed to not only recognize women leaders but also put the spotlight on organizations that have been placing women in leadership roles and supporting them, chamber officials say.

Women Leader of the Year

The Women Leader of the Year Award recognizes a woman who has made a significant contribution to her company or organization as an influencer, leader and ally. There were four finalists for this year’s award: Ake, Andrea Munn of Tilson HR; Gail Richards, formerly of the Johnson County Community Foundation; and Katie Stahlhut of Stage I Dance Academy.

Ake is a speaker, coach, author and trainer who “thrives on aligning people with vision, passion and integrity to be servant leaders.” She also leads workshops, hosts a podcast, does personal and business coaching and has co-authored six books focused on developing leaders. She also has a new book coming out that brings together local women business owners to become recognized authors themselves to share their stories and make a bigger impact for their businesses, said Ellie Johnson of Ageless Aesthetics, who presented the award.

“Helping, equipping, paying it forward, servant leadership, mentoring the next generation are all ways to describe our winner, ” Johnson said.

Ake’s leadership started when she was younger, and she has been leading her whole life, Johnson said. At Greenwood Community High School in 1985, she and a friend started the school’s first radio program. She also petitioned to start the first softball team for the school, Johnson said.

“With 100 signatures and a coach, history was made,” Johnson said.

Ake has developed a youth leadership program for at-risk high school female students. Through an Indiana Education Foundation grant-funded program, she coordinates “passionate women serving community youth” to facilitate daily leadership development programs at Shortridge High School in Indianapolis. The program has been so successful, that it’s already been funded for the next school year, Johnson said.

At Emmanuel Church, she leads a women’s small group focused on empowering women’s hearts through transition and change. Her mission is to help women achieve more through three areas of their lives: confidence, courage and consistency, Johnson said.

Top Floor Women was moved under Ake’s leadership in 2022. This group allows women to prepare, practice, and deliver their business strategies in front of other women who are “passionate leaders and learners” This community has emerged into a “supportive servant group” of women leaders, and with consistent efforts and marketing visibility, the group now serves over 60 women. They meet monthly, Johnson said.

Before her work with Everyday Leaders, Ake was in the medical device sales and leadership field for 25 years. She started her journey with her current work eight years ago, she said.

“I always thought this is what I love to do,” Ake said.

Champion of Women

The Champion of Women Award recognizes an organization that prioritizes women in leadership and provides women with growth opportunities, both inside and outside their workforces. There were four finalists for the award: AECOM Hunt, Everyday Leaders, Spotlight Strategies and Stage I Dance Academy.

Of Stage I Dance Academy’s 25 employees, 24 are women. It has been woman-owned and operated for over 60 years. The academy was started by Beverly Smithey, who “lovingly” sold the studio to one of her students, Katie Stahlhut, eight years ago.

The Greenwood business encourages its employees to continue personal and professional development and leadership and skills development by attending workshops to further their education and growth. They also emphasize “striving for the best” while also having a work/life balance, said Dr. Gaia Hess of VisionQuest Eyecare, who presented the award.

“Partnerships in the workplace help in sharing the workload to ensure everyone is working within their best skill sets, which brings better results and happier employees — propelling women forward in business,” Hess said. “Employees are encouraged to dream big — no project is too big or small to be achieved.”

Five years ago, Stage I added studio directors, expanding its leadership team to promote an “environment of empowerment.” This allows employees to grow not only professionally, but personally, Hess said.

The academy also encourages its employees to serve their community. Stahlhut, for example, is the president of Dance Every Journey, a nonprofit that brings dance classes to an adult population who wouldn’t otherwise have the opportunity. Dance classes are offered in seven assisted living facilities with more on a waitlist. This is in addition to a class taught at Stage I, Hess said.

“The mission of Stage I Dance Academy is ‘Love, Encourage and Empower.’ This is evidenced through every part of their business,” she said.

Stahlhut accepted the award on behalf of Stage I. She called it humbling and an honor.

“Stage I has been so vital in my life. I grew up starting there in fourth grade and continued on throughout, and [got] some of my best friends from it,” Stahlhut said.

Impactful Leader

The Impactful Leader Award was new for this year’s ceremony and kept under wraps until the end of the ceremony. The award recognizes a woman leader who has demonstrated strong leadership and measurable achievements while overcoming barriers and/or adversity, said Angela Vandersteen, vice president of investor development and relations for Aspire.

“The Impactful Leader has created success and growth for her organization that truly impacts our community,” Vandersteen said.

Aspire had been considering adding another individual award to the program for a while that focused more on community impact, she said. After tossing around some ideas, one name kept popping up as the award’s first recipient: Carmen Young, Whiteland’s director of administration.

Vandersteen described Young as a “woman of action.” Young had been with the town in various roles over the last five years when she had to step up following last year’s EF-3 tornado.

She was the community development and planning director at the time but stepped into the role of acting town manager as the town manager was on leave. She organized staff and helped manage the town’s clean-up efforts, Vandersteen said.

“Many of us are aware of the speed and efficiency of the town’s cleanup, the buildings that have been rebuilt, the resources brought in, the collaborations bringing in FEMA multiple times and such,” she said. “These things alone make Carmen worthy of recognition, but she didn’t stop with just what she needed to do.”

Young personally reached out to every resident and business owner in Whiteland affected by the twister. She helped establish a locally-led long-term recovery group for victims, spearheaded a move-back-in gift program for returning families, and as late as last month was arranging open meetings for residents to meet with insurance agents to ensure they are getting needs met, Vandersteen said.

Because of her work, Young was appointed the town’s director of administration last June. She is now tasked with running the town’s daily operations, handling planning and zoning and meeting with developers to discuss projects, Vandersteen said.

Young “truly cares” about the town and its residents, Vandersteen said.

“She has always shown her desire to put others first and pull people together for a common goal,” Vandersteen said. “If there is a need, she will find a way to take care of it.”

It was surprising for Young to learn she would be receiving the award and wasn’t even set to attend the workshop until Aspire had reached out to her. She was set to leave before the awards began before being strongly urged to stay by her husband, Shaun “Slim” Young, who is the town’s director of operations, she said.

Young emphasized that it wasn’t just her who helped with the recovery. There were a lot of people that went “above and beyond” their job duties to help the community recover from the tornado — and they’re still doing it, she said.

For example, Spotlight Strategies put together some of the gifts that are being given to returning families, she said.

“As people are continuing to come back home, just saying ‘Welcome back.’ and still just trying to help our community be better than what it was before I got there,” Young said.