Around the world, many women are working to improve the lives of women and girls. Some women work to improve conditions for women and girls through their personal or volunteer efforts; others do so through professional avenues. The Soroptimist Ruby Award, formerly Soroptimist Making a Difference for Women Award, is designed to honor these women. Although not Soroptimists, their work helps promote issues that are important to Soroptimists, while offering inspirational stories about how to make a difference in the lives of women.

This award honors women who are making extraordinary differences in the lives of other women. Examples would be a woman who helps to establish a domestic violence shelter, a woman who starts a mentoring program for at-risk girls, or a woman who lobbies her company to provide on-site child care. This program gives the club and the entire organization the opportunity to say “thank you” and encourage others to explore ways to assist women. A Ruby Award recipient is a woman who:

• has worked to improve the lives of women and girls,
• has had a significant impact on the lives of women and girls,
• would inspire and encourage other women.