The group will present Marsha Passmore with its highest honor in a Nov. 4 event at Wishing Well Barn.
There’s no shortage of awards and events in Plant City for people who go above and beyond to make a positive impact in the community. But the women of Aspire Plant City recently realized there was room for one more.
“There are a few events in town that honor great people in our community, but no events that specifically honor women and the work that they’re doing,” Sophia Hyde, Aspire’s vice president and its incoming president, said. “We felt like there was a gap and we wanted to step in and fill that.”
Aspire’s members wanted an annual event that would highlight the group’s mission of “empowering women personally and professionally.” That goal led to much brainstorming and, eventually, the annual Woman of Distinction Award was created. This award is to be presented every year to a woman who is “successful in career, mentorship, leadership and community,” and who is “always striving for excellence, caring for and supporting our communities.”
To settle on this year’s candidate, Aspire asked the Plant City community for nominations and formed a committee to review each nominee and pick a winner.
“We opened it up to the community for nominations and received several dozen,” Hyde said. “We were so excited about the response.”
The first-ever winner of the Woman of Distinction Award is Marsha Passmore, who is well-known around Plant City for her inability to sit still and her willingness to serve the community in just about any way possible. Passmore, a Plant City native, has been active in numerous civic organizations, boards and even Plant City government for decades. She was elected to the city commission in 1992 and was re-elected in 1995. As a commissioner, she became chair of the Community Redevelopment Agency and worked closely with the Downtown Business and Merchants Association. She joined the Business and Professional Women’s Club in the 1970s and has since been involved with Unity in the Community, the Greater Plant City Chamber of Commerce, the United Food Bank of Plant City, Plant City Main Street, the Arts Council of Plant City, the Historic Resources Board, the East Hillsborough Law Enforcement Association, Plant City Entertainment, the Robert W. Willaford Railroad Museum, the Plant City Photo Archives and History Center, the Plant City Christmas Parade and much more. She and her sister, Dodie White, also curate the annual Queen’s Exhibit at the Florida Strawberry Festival and have volunteered at the festival for more than 40 years.
Passmore was named Plant City’s Citizen of the Year in 2011 and was one of the Plant City Observer’s “Wonder Women” in 2016.
“I am very honored that the Aspire organization has selected me as their first Woman of Distinction,” Passmore said. “To be singled out in such a manner is certainly a humbling experience and I am very grateful for the recognition.”
The award ceremony will take place during Aspire’s monthly Power Hour lunch meeting, which will be held at Wishing Well Barn, 4302 Pippin Road, at 11:30 a.m. Nov. 4. Aspire will also vote on its 2021 slate of board members at the meeting. For more information about the group and future events, visit aspireplantcity.org or email aspireplantcity@gmail.com.
