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2015The Women Who Make
a Difference Award MAURITA BRYANT
ASSISTANT CHIEF AT PITTSBURGH BUREAU OF POLICE
& Zonta’s 81 st Birthday The Rivers Club
One Oxford CenterPittsburgh, PA
Presented by
WelcomeThe Zonta Club of Pittsburgh would like to welcome you and say thank
you for joining us in honoring
Assistant Chief Maurita J. Bryant,a 34 year veteran of the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police
and our 2015 Women Who Make A Difference Awardee.
Zonta International envisions a world in which women’s rights are recognized as human rights and every woman is able to achieve her full potential. In such a world, women have access to all resources and are represented in decision making positions on an equal basis with men. In such a world, no woman lives in fear of violence.
What better way for the Zonta Club of Pittsburgh to foster this initiative than to honor an individual whose life long mission has been to better the lives of women in Pittsburgh. Chief Bryant has been a facilitator of the domestic violence program MOMS and COPS since 2000. For ten years, Chief Bryant was the Executive Director of Save Our (little) Sisters, SOS, a teenage intervention program. She serves on the Executive Board for Youth Enrichment Services, YES, Adelphi Village, Gwen’s Girls, Pittsburgh Child Guidance Foundation and the Birmingham Foundation. Chief Bryant also serves on the Advisory Board of Women Against Abusive Relations, WARR, and is an Honorary Board Member of Sojourner House and Sojourner MOMS. She is a life member of the NAACP and the past Grand Grayback (president) for the Grand Cootiette Clubs of Pennsylvania, a volunteer club servicing hospitalized veterans.
And, just as importantly, she oversees the Investigations Branch of the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police!
Our community is richer for the advocacy and services provided by this amazing woman. It is an honor and a privilege to recognize Assistant Chief Maurita J. Bryant as our 2015 Woman Who Makes a Difference.Thank you for coming and enjoy the evening.
Camella WehrlePresidentZonta Club of Pittsburgh
Program Schedule
Cocktails
WelcomeLorene Vinski
Zonta District IV Area 6 Director
Dinner
Presentation of AwardLee Fogarty
Advocacy Co-Chair for District 4
Remarks
Previous Awardees2009 - Mary Burke2010 - Jeanne Clark
2011 - Christine Haas2012 - Women on Boards Initiative of the Executive
Women’s Council of Greater Pittsburgh2013 - Women’s Center and Shelter
2014 - Men and Women of Alcoa
Assistant Chief Maurita J. BryantAssistant Chief Maurita J. Bryant is a 34-year veteran of the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police and has served in a supervisory capacity for over sixteen years. After serving in various capacities from patrol to criminal investigations and rising through the supervisory ranks, Chief Bryant currently oversees the Investigations Branch of the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police. Chief Bryant is a 1970 graduate of George Westinghouse High School. She received her Bachelor of Science Degree and Master’s Degree in Criminal Justice at Point Park
University. Chief Bryant is a 2004 graduate of the 218th session of the FBI National Academy in Quantico, Virginia, and a 2005 graduate from the Police Executive Research Forum’s Senior Management Institute for Police in Boston, Massachusetts. She is a 2010 graduate of the XXVI class of Leadership Pittsburgh and an instructor for the Penn State Justice and Safety Institute. Chief Bryant has taught criminal investigations and terrorism courses internationally, in the Republic of Botswana and in Nouakchott, Mauritania.
Cleaning offices in the U.S. Steel building in Downtown Pittsburgh in 1975 to support her two small children, Chief Bryant did not foresee a 34-year career cleaning up the streets of Pittsburgh. That career has led her to Assistant Chief of the City of Pittsburgh Bureau of Police. Chief Bryant has stated in the past that she struggled with the physical portion of academy training and course work. However, her hard work paid off. Chief Bryant now has her bachelor and master’s degrees in criminal justice from Point Park University and oversees the police operations branch, with six commanders and 579 officers under her charge, including the SWAT unit.
In addition to advancing on the police force, Chief Bryant also serves on nonprofit boards. Those include the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives. Chief Bryant founded the Pittsburgh chapter and served as national president in 2012.
About Zonta InternationalFounded in 1919, Zonta International is a leading global organization of professionals empowering women worldwide through service and advocacy. With more than 30,000 members belonging to more than 1,200 Zonta Clubs in 67 countries and geographic areas, Zontians all over the world volunteer their time, talents and support to local and international service projects, as well as scholarship programs aimed at fulfilling Zonta’s mission and objects
Zonta International, its districts and its clubs are nonsectarian and nonpartisan.
Zonta Club of PittsburghThe Zonta Club of Pittsburgh unites women leaders from business, academia, healthcare, government, social services and the arts through a commitment to service. Chartered in 1934, the Zonta Club of Pittsburgh provides awards to women pursuing higher education in our region and financial assistance for local human services initiatives.
For the past 15 years, the Zonta Club of Pittsburgh’s signature event has been the Amelia Earhart award. This program recognizes ten young women from the Pittsburgh Public School System for their achievements as well as overcoming obstacles and their perseverance in graduating from high school to become contributing members of their communities and society.
Recognizing that more than half a million babies around the world die each year at birth, Zonta Club of Pittsburgh rallied support for a hospital in the Kisumu District of Western Kenya to assemble and provide more the 4,000 packages of supplies each year. These packages are known as birthing kits and have ensured sanitary deliveries to pregnant women who otherwise would have been subjected to substandard conditions.
In addition to service projects, speakers at our monthly meetings both enlighten and entertain us. Meetings are held on the second Thursday of each month at the Rivers Club. Membership in the Zonta Club of Pittsburgh provides an opportunity to meet women professionals, develop new friendships, and learn about issues affecting women in our region and work toward advancing the status of women around the world.
Membership information is available by contacting Carolyn Savikas at savikas @gmail.com.
Zonta Club of PittsburghThe Zonta Club of Pittsburgh unites women leaders from business, academia, healthcare, government, social services and the arts through a commitment to service. Chartered in 1934, the Zonta Club of Pittsburgh provides awards to women pursuing higher education in our region and financial assistance for local human services initiatives.
For the past 15 years, the Zonta Club of Pittsburgh’s signature event has been the Amelia Earhart award. This program recognizes ten young women from the Pittsburgh Public School System for their achievements as well as overcoming obstacles and their perseverance in graduating from high school to become contributing members of their communities and society.
Recognizing that more than half a million babies around the world die each year at birth, Zonta Club of Pittsburgh rallied support for a hospital in the Kisumu District of Western Kenya to assemble and provide more the 4,000 packages of supplies each year. These packages are known as birthing kits and have ensured sanitary deliveries to pregnant women who otherwise would have been subjected to substandard conditions.
In addition to service projects, speakers at our monthly meetings both enlighten and entertain us. Meetings are held on the second Thursday of each month at the Rivers Club. Membership in the Zonta Club of Pittsburgh provides an opportunity to meet women professionals, develop new friendships, and learn about issues affecting women in our region and work toward advancing the status of women around the world.
Membership information is available by contacting Carolyn Savikas at savikas @gmail.com.
Would you like to meet women from all over the world and welcome to Pittsburgh?
Bring the world to your doorstep by becoming of member of IWAP. Learn about different cultures and share your own with international
women residing in our city.
Interesting programs, field trips, cooking classes, and volunteer activities throughout the year.
For more information:www.IWAP.tk
Best Wishes MauritaCongratulations On Your Achievements
from
BILL MULLENALLEGHENY COUNTY SHERIFF
*Paid for by the Committee to Elect Bill Mullen Sheriff