A Valentine’s Day ceremony and luncheon is being organized by the League of Women Voters of Hillsborough County to celebrate two women of distinction.
The 15th annual Lifetime Achievement Award Luncheon will honor Liana Fernandez Fox, Ph.D., and the late Dena Gross Leavengood, according to a posting on the Hillsborough County website.
The event will take place on the day that coincides with the 100th anniversary of the founding of the League of Women Voters.
Fox and Leavengood are being honored for their contributions to the local community, and to the state of Florida.
The Feb. 14 event is set for 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., at the Bryan Glazer Family JCC, 522 N. Howard Avenue, in Tampa. Lorna Taylor, president & CEO of Premier Eye Care, will serve as emcee.
Fox represents the fourth generation of her Cuban and Sicilian ancestors in Tampa.
She began her career as a statistician for Florida’s State Road Department in 1969.
She retired as full professor of mathematics, after teaching for five years at Tampa Catholic High School and 33 years for Hillsborough Community College in Ybor City, and at the University of South Florida.
She pioneered the offering of online mathematics courses for HCC.
She currently is a trustee for the Tampa Bay History Center and president of the board of directors at Champions for Children.
Fox remains active at USF, serving on the Dean’s Advisory Council of Arts & Sciences, USF’s Women in Leadership and Philanthropy (WLP) and the USF Latin Community Advisory
Committee.
And, those are just a few of Fox’s accomplishments.
Leavengood, who passed away last year, was a Florida native and a marine biologist who was known for her community activism.
She graduated with a zoology degree from the University of Florida and received her Masters from USF. Her education and training launched a career that would span decades of activism and professional accomplishments. Dena was a tireless civic volunteer and was affiliated with countless organizations, including past president and board member of the League of Women Voters of Hillsborough County, the Athena Society, Planned Parenthood of Southwest and Central Florida and the Greater Tampa Chamber of Commerce to name but a few.
Registration for the event is available at HCLWV.org/laa.
Published January 08, 2020
