THE SANTA CRUZ COUNTY WOMEN’S COMMISSION IS

NOW ACCEPTING NOMINATIONS FOR

TRAILBLAZER AWARDS 2026

The Trailblazer Awards recognize women in Santa Cruz County who, through their
professional or personal efforts, are making extraordinary differences in the lives of
women or girls. Honorees have worked to make a significant impact on and improve
the lives of women or girls, as well as inspiring and encouraging them. Those that are
recognized as Trailblazers may have a focus in (but not limited to) areas such as criminal
and economic justice, education, prevention of violence against women and girls, women’s
healthcare, political participation, and/or various organizations that support the interests of
women or girls. 

Trailblazer Award recipients will be recognized on International Women's Day, Sunday, March 8, 2026
in a special recognition gathering via Zoom.

To nominate someone for this award, you can:

• Fill out the form online at https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/KBVGD7F

• Download the form here, print it out, write in your responses and either

  • Scan and email it to commissions@santacruzcountyca.gov or

  • Print and mail it to Women’s Commission, 701 Ocean Street, Room 510, Santa Cruz CA 95060

Please note that you can nominate more than one person.

THE DEADLINE TO SUBMIT NOMINATIONS IS MONDAY, JANUARY 12, 2026.

2021-2022 TRAILBLAZER AWARD

Event Recording

Sentinel Article

2020 Centennial Women’s Suffrage Celebration Exhibit

In 2020 the Santa Cruz County Women’s Commission celebrated 100 years of suffage for women the United States with an exhibit featuring artwork from local artists and a suffrage timeline.

The Be The Voice art wall featured art from local women artists selected to re-create vintage suffrage posters with modern, inclusive imagery depicting issues that continue to impact marginalized groups.

The Voices Through Time timeline explored California’s diverse history which proved foundational to California’s early adoption of women’s suffrage and created the momentum needed to support adoption of the 19^th Amendment to the United States Constitution.

Take a Virtual Tour of the Exhibit

The Women’s Commission would like to thank artists Janet Allinger, Emily Aranda, Jan Carter, Ria Devine, Priscilla Martinez, and Jasmine Simone for creating the original artwork and donating its use to this project. Without your participation, this exhibit would not exist!

We would also like to express our sincere appreciation for the enthusiasm and insight of Professor Rosemary Brogan, Cabrillo College Women’s History Instructor, who provided source material and consulted with us on the Voices Through Time timeline.

Finally, we would like to extend a special thank you to Jennifer Wills at W+W Design, Inc., who created the virtual tour for the exhibit. If you are interested in a virtual tour for your business or event, you can reach Jennifer at jwills@wplusw.com, call (831) 332-3218 or visit www.wplusw.com.