The 2010 ATHENA® Award Recipient is Michelle Richards.
      
Michelle Richards is the founding board member and Executive Director of the Center for Empowerment & Economic Development (CEED), since its inception in 1984.

Empowering business owners to begin and expand their busineses by providing administrative, financial, education and professional enrichment support services necessary for business success.

Under Michelle's leadership CEED was seleced as one of the first Women Business Centers and intermediary Microloan Program award recipients in the United States, award in excess of $4 million in microloans and creating jobs.

In line with her other committments to provide access to capital for women entreprenuers, she places efforts in bringing women business owners together in an atmosphere of networking, education, mentoring and marketing as founder of the Michigan Women's Expo. This is a very small representation of women whose lives have been touched by Michelle.

We congratulate Michelle with this honor!