News release
The Santa Clarita Valley Man & Woman of the Year Organization has announced the 2026 list of Man and Woman of the Year nominees, in advance of the annual gala dinner event scheduled Friday, May 1, at the Grand Ballroom of the Hyatt Regency Valencia.
All local 501(c)3 charitable nonprofit organizations were invited to nominate one man and one woman from the ranks of their dedicated volunteers to be considered as the community’s Man or Woman of the Year for 2026, according to a news release from the organization. Selected honorees, one man and one woman, will be announced at the gala.
“An important feature of the Man & Woman of the Year process is the recognition of all the nonprofit organizations that participate, and the highlighting of the ‘winning’ organizations throughout the year,” the Man & Woman of the Year group said in a news release. “The generous stipend awarded to them by the Man & Woman of the Year Organization, which is made up of all previous awardees, makes a tangible difference in the budgets of those organizations as well as in the lives of those they serve.”
All those interested in attending the event and supporting the nonprofit community are invited to visit the website, www.scvmanwomanoftheyear.org. Table sales, sponsorships and advertising opportunities are scheduled to be available beginning March 5.
The nominees for this year’s awards are as follows:
Woman of the Year Nominees 2026
• Dawn Abasta, College of the Canyons Foundation.
• Maria Slotsve, WiSH Education Foundation.
• Sharlene Johnson, JCI Santa Clarita Foundation.
• Kari McCoy, LEAP Children’s Museum.
• Carol Rock, Raising the Curtain.
• Pamela Verner, Boys and Girls Club, and Circle of Hope.
• Debbie Holbrook, Empowering Women in Leadership.
• Carolina Orozco-Hernandez, Samuel Dixon Family Health Center.
• Linda Teeter, Fostering Youth Independence.
• Stephanie Danyluk, Santa Clarita Veteran Services Collaborative
• Missy Carter, Carousel Ranch, and Soroptimist International Valencia.
• Kathleen Pavard, American Cancer Society.
• Patricia Horanberg, Santa Clarita Valley Historical Society.
• Holly Hanlin, Soroptimist International of Greater SC, and Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital Foundation.
• Melanie Meyer, SCV Senior Center.
• Amber Rodriguez, Salvation Army.
• Cherise Moore, Zonta, and Bridge to Home.
Man of the Year Nominees 2026
• Taylor Kellstrom, College of the Canyon Foundation.
• Alex Hafizi, JCI Santa Clarita Foundation, and Circle of Hope.
• Cesar Torres, LEAP Children’s Museum, and SCV Veteran Services Collaborative.
• Mike Fisher, Samuel Dixon Family Health Center.
• Scott Hoolahan, Rotary Club of Santa Clarita Valley.
• Michael DeLorenzo, SCV Sheriff’s Foundation.
• Dennis Verner, Boys & Girls Club.
• John Murray, Carousel Ranch.
• Guy Horanberg, SCV Historical Society.
• Dennis Sugasawara, Soroptimist International Greater Santa Clarita.
• Tom Hartmann, SCV Senior Center.
• Oscar Dominguez, Henry Mayo Newhall Memorial Hospital Foundation.
• Jason Gibbs, Salvation Army.
• Mark Young, Bridge to Home.
