Queens Bench Bar Association

       Chaired by First Vice President Sarah King, of Tufts, Stephenson & Kasper LLP, the Judges’ Dinner Committee pulled off a flawlessly organized event which ran like clockwork. Sarah was assisted by Queen’s Bench Board members Annie O’Donnell, Pauline Farmer-Koppenol and Mary Catherine Wiederhold, as well as Queen’s Bench member Hartley West. Additionally, no event can run smoothly without the assistance of the Queen’s Bench Administrator, Maurine Killough, who tirelessly took reservations and headcounts in preparation for the dinner. I have doubtlessly forgotten to mention one or more of those who helped.
       We also acknowledge and thank our wonderful keynote speaker, Dean Drucilla Stender Ramey. Currently heading Golden Gate University’s School of Law, Dean Stender Ramey took time away from her leadership duties at the law school to deliver an inspired talk about the challenges facing the practice of law. Accompanied by her husband and daughter (herself a newly minted lawyer), Dean Ramey spoke about her personal successes and failures on the road to a practice devoted to civil rights. Dean Ramey also recounted her mother’s experiences in the field of medicine as one of few career women in her day. Dean Ramey’s accomplishments in law and academics serve as a model of the many things we, as lawyers, can do in our communities. She has held positions with the Bar Association of San Francisco, the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund, and the San Francisco Commission on the Status of Women. Dean Ramey recently served as the Executive Director of the National Association of Women Judges in New York. She is extraordinarily generous with her time and we greatly appreciate her willingness to headline our dinner.
       Finally, we salute the judges for whom our Annual Judges’ Dinner is held. Many thanks to the members of the bench and bar who came out to honor the dedicated men and women of the judiciary who have maintained the high level of our courts despite challenging economic times. We are also tremendously grateful to our table sponsors for their generosity. Thank you all for your enthusiastic attendance! Keep an eye out for announcements of our coming events, including Past Presidents’ Dinner, the 2010 Membership Meeting and the always popular LEAADD Dinner. Best wishes for a wonderful summer!