The Houston Chapter of Hadassah has named Nancy Levicki and Renee Suchowiecky honorees of its 2010 Women of Courage benefit luncheon. The event, entitled “Building a Better World. . . Right Here at Home,” will be held Sunday, March 7, noon, (silent auction opens at 11 a.m.) at the Westin Oaks Hotel, 5011 Westheimer.

“Nancy and Renee are two courageous women who have continually worked to help to build a better world. Our community is so much richer thanks to their vision and initiative,” said Linda Tenenbown, event co-chair with Francine Beckman.

Levicki is president and co-founder of Dress for Success Houston (DFS Houston) a nonprofit organization that provides interview suits, confidence boosts and career development to more than 3,200 women annually. Houston Chapter of Hadassah has supported Dress for Success suit drives for four years.

Suchowiecky established The Nicole Katharine Suchowiecky Foundation (The NKS Foundation) with her husband, David, and daughter, Raquel, in honor of her 15-year-old daughter, Nicole, of blessed memory. The Foundation financially aids high school students in their pursuit of higher education, purchases and distributes Automated External Defibrillators (AED’s) to Houston-area schools and public facilities; and pursues pre-participation screenings for high school athletes.

In 1998, Levicki put her Sakowitz couture buyer skills back to work with her long-time friend Susie Cunningham. They collected women’s suits from friends and colleagues, and took them to three nonprofit organizations to help low-income Houston women enter the work force looking their best. By October, Levicki and a small band of founding board members opened the first Dress for Success chapter in Texas. Eleven years later, DFS Houston has served more than 25,000 women and accepts referrals from more than 110 local non-profit organizations.

Levicki’s work, compassion, and dedication to serving women have earned her such honors as speaking at PBS Public Television’s “Speaking of Women’s Health” Conference and recognition as a “PBS Hero of the Month,” recipient of the American Red Cross Humanitarian Award and Texas Executive Women “Woman on the Move.” During its 10th anniversary year, DFS Houston was recognized by KTRK-TV for its community leadership. The organization received Oprah’s BigGive of $10,000 presented on the steps of City Hall as Mayor Bill White proclaimed the official opening of “Send One Suit Week 2008.” In 2009 DFS Houston received the Greater Houston Women’s Chamber Economic Development Award.

The NKS Foundation has contributed $20,000 toward scholarships to freshmen students at The Emery/Weiner School. It has granted AED’s to 13 schools and facilities: five H.I.S.D. high schools (Westbury, Madison, Austin, Reagan, and Kashmere); Westbury Little League; Bo’s Place – A grief center; Bellaire Family Aquatic Center; and five Catholic schools and facilities (Pope John XXIII, John Paul II, St. Charles Borromeo, Holy Ghost School, and Holy Name Retreat Center.) The NKS Foundation is pursuing pre-participation screening for athletes who wish to play sports. The NKS Foundation lends its support to the HEARTS project of Memorial Hermann Hospital (which does heart screening tests on middle school students to check for heart health to help in the prevention of students collapsing from heart issues on playing fields) and The University of Texas Medical School at Houston.

Suchowiecky, a former teacher, is a motivational speaker and author of Love Letters to Nicole, (2005), a personal journal that follows the evolution of her grief as a mother and wife after her daughter’s untimely death. All proceeds from the book were donated to The NKS Foundation. In 2008 she published her first children’s book, Lollipup & Luvable, about two do-good dachshunds that emphasizes the importance of good deeds and friendship. A Life Member of Hadassah and past officer of her Emma Lazarus group, Suchowiecky is a past board member and officer of Congregation Beth Yeshurun. As Jewish Herald-Voice Party Planning Editor, Suchowiecky originated the “Let’s Schmooze” column that ran for ten years.

To salute these Women of Courage, please consider purchasing or putting together a table of ten. Tables are: “Grove” – $1,800, “Orchard” – $1,000 and “Field” – $750. “Stately Elm” premium reserved individual seats are $150 and “Live Oak” individual reserved seats are $50.

Hadassah, a 2005 Nobel Peace Prize nominee, is the largest volunteer women’s organization in the U.S. with more than 300,000 members, including 3,400 in the Houston area. Hadassah promotes health awareness, medical miracles through its world-renowned hospitals in Israel, humanitarian relief, advocacy and youth programs. Local programs include “Check It Out ®, breast and testicular cancer awareness program in Houston-area high schools; support of Dress for Success Houston; domestic abuse education and prevention, women’s health education seminars, Let My People Read ® children’s book drive for Ben Taub Hospital; and Meals on Wheels.

For further information on purchasing or putting together tables, tickets or donating items to the auction, please contact the Hadassah office at houstonadmin@HADASSAH.org or call 713-661-1022.

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