Each year, the U.S. Department of State holds a ceremony in Washington, D.C., to present the International Woman of Courage award to women from around the world who are doing phenomenal work. One such woman, Dr. Feride Rushiti of Kosovo, was selected as an honoree due to her work in Kosovo as the founder and executive director of the Kosovo Center for the Rehabilitation of Torture Victims. She visited Pensacola after the award ceremony as a part of the U.S. Department of State’s International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP).
Her local itinerary included a speaking engagement in downtown Pensacola held in conjunction with the Institute for Women in Politics of Northwest Florida. Diane Mack and Pensacola City Council Member Sheri Myers presented her with honorary citizenship to Pensacola at the end of her presentation and before the floor was open to questions from locals.
Dr. Rushiti also visited a domestic violence shelter and discussed programs, education, and power dynamics with Marsha Travis of FAVOR House. She explored the services offered by Gulf Coast Kid’s House with Stacey Kostevicki and her team and shared her work with WUWF listeners and News Director Sandra Averhart.
Dr. Kimberly McCorkle, Dr. Richard Hough, and a dozen University of West Florida students met with Dr. Rushiti to explore domestic violence issues and to hear about her work in Kosovo. At a later appointment at AMIKids, Career Coordinator Natasha Rosado gave an overview of the school’s program and the variety of educational services offered to at-risk students while at the Baptist Hospital Rape Crisis Center, Victim Services Program Director Mack Moore shared his center’s programs.
Over the weekend, Linda Thompson and Gulf Breeze Sailing invited Dr. Rushiti, her interpreters, and Gulf Coast Citizen Diplomacy Council staff members on a leisure learning sail in Pensacola Bay which provided a much-appreciated break from the heavy subject matter of the IVLP project. That evening, Karen and Mike Jurkowich opened their home for dinner to the awardee, and throughout the project board members Linda Wade, E. Ben Posey, and Julie Tippins Parker assisted with driving.
You can learn more information about Dr. Rushiti through this link.
