SACRAMENTO—Assemblywoman Anna Caballero (D-Salinas) honored Salinas resident Joey Lasnik as the Woman of the Year for the 28th Assembly District during the annual ceremony held today in the State Capitol.    

Joey Lasnik has served Monterey County residents for over three decades as President of the Board of Trustees for Hartnell Community College, the executive director of Meals on Wheels, and the executive director for the Alliance on Aging in Monterey County.  Ms. Lasnik has been an advocate for the rights of senior citizens and a mentor for other women across Monterey County.  Ms. Lasnik earned her Bachelors Degree from the University of Wisconsin and a Masters Degree from Purdue University.    

“Joey Lasnik has been a tireless promoter of quality education, and advocate and mentor for senior citizens and women,” Caballero said.  Her extensive service to the community simply can not be measured — her work continues to touch thousands of lives everyday.  I am pleased to honor Joey as the 2007 Woman of the Year, in recognition of her life-long commitment to community service.”   

The Woman of the Year awards are sponsored by the Women’s Caucus of the California State Legislature. The annual Woman of the Year event was started in 1987 by former Assembly Members Bev Hansen and Sally Tanner.  In celebration of the contributions to society made by remarkable women throughout California, Hansen and Tanner arranged to invite one woman from each Senate and Assembly district to come to the Capitol and be honored for their accomplishments. The women were to be recognized as Woman of the Year in a formal ceremony on the floors of the Senate and Assembly.

Ms. Lasnik attended the 2007 Woman of the Year ceremony accompanied by her daughter Leslie and her sons Jay and Mark.