LPC Honors Suzi Pomerantz with The Gordon Lee Salmon Sustainable Leadership Award and Event

Ten years ago, the Library of Professional Coaching established the Gordon Lee Salmon Sustainable Leadership Award, in appreciative memory of our dear friend, Lee, an exceptional colleague who contributed to the sustainable leadership of the coaching profession. Lee passed away after serving as one of the leaders of the professional coaching movement of the first two decades of the 21^st century. Lee was noted for his stewardship of this field and for always pointing to the ultimate purpose of an effective professional coaching practice – sustaining our world.

While Suzi has played a major role in establishing this award and honoring people who deserve it, it is also important to recognize that Suzi Pomerantz herself is fully deserving of being a recipient of this honor. On April 6, 2024, Suzi Pomerantz received this award in recognition of her work as a steward of the field of professional coaching and her ongoing support for all activities that can lead to a sustainable world.

Following is a recording of this Zoom-based celebration, where her colleagues, clients, family and friends shared comments on the impact of Suzi’s work and presence.  If you prefer to read the transcript, there is a small icon on the bottom of the video screen that you can click to access the transcript of the ceremony.

The Gordon Lee Salmon Sustainable Leadership Award Ceremony that celebrates the life and work of Suzi Pomerantz began with the following comments made by Agnes Mura (previous recipient of the Salmon Award):

I was honored to receive the Lee Salmon Sustainable leadership award in 2022. For context: I had met Lee during our young spiritual quest to become the best humans we could be.  He would become a health physicist for the EPA, and an executive coach supporting fed. government staff in DC. Suzi and many others here today remember him for helping us build the International Consortium for Coaching in Organizations (ICCO), as a board member with unwavering belief in the transformative power of coaching.

Our friend Lee Salmon passed away ten years ago. The award in his name was created to recognize the lifetime achievement of coaches like Suzi Pomerantz, who guarantee the sustained continuity of our profession, thanks to a solid spiritual foundation (“done the work”), profound caring for others’ success, and a contagiously collaborative generosity towards their colleagues of different generations. Lee would be very proud of the way we all came together today – as friends – in appreciation for the tireless and inspiring Suzi Pomerantz.  —Agnes Mura, MA MCC

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Commentary

More than 20 of the roughly 40 participants who dropped in and out during the ceremony from around the world spoke up regarding their connection to, and experience of Suzi.  On the next pages are a dozen written comments and a video that were submitted by those who could not attend the celebration.  Feel free to add your comments in the section below called “leave a reply”.

Commemorative Bowl

In conjunction with the Zoom-based celebration pictured above and in the Photo Gallery on page 3, a commemorative bowl was given to the recipient, Suzi Pomerantz. As described by Dr. Jeannine Sandstrom, “there’s a lot of thought that goes into that. Within this particular time frame that we’ve heard so many wonderful comments about you, so much truth, we wanted an open bowl — an open container that every time you look at that you know all these statements and all this love is sitting in it.”

 

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