Legal Momentum Honors San Francisco Police Chief Heather Fong at 2009 Women of Achievement Awards

June 8, 2009 -

For Immediate Release:
Contact: Erin Smith, esmith@legalmomentum.org, 212.413.7516; mobile: 512.203.6206

NEW YORK -- Legal Momentum, the nation’s oldest legal defense and education fund dedicated to advancing the rights of women and girls, announces Chief Heather Fong as a 2009 Women of Achievement.

Recognizing women whose personal leadership has broken new ground for women in business, law, and public service, Chief Fong will be honored at the Fourth Annual Women of Achievement Awards Dinner, at The Presidio in San Francisco on June 16. The fundraising event brings together hundreds of advocates, professionals, and supporters of women’s rights whose contributions support Legal Momentum’s work to promote women’s economic and personal security. Sponsorship and ticket information is available at www.legalmomentum.org/woa.

Through her life and work, Chief Fong has epitomized pioneering leadership in San Francisco. A native of the city, Chief Fong began her career in law enforcement in 1977. She has held various positions in her career with the city’s police department, including child abuse investigator, youth programs coordinator, Academy training instructor, and strategic planner, among others. In 1998 she was promoted to Commander, overseeing Traffic, Tactical, and MUNI Transit Companies. In 2000, she managed the uniformed patrol personnel of the SFPD. In 2002, she assumed responsibility for the Administration Bureau, followed by a promotion to Assistant Chief of Police in 2003.

Mayor Gavin Newsom appointed her Acting Chief of Police in January of 2004, and then Chief of Police in April of the same year, marking the first time that an Asian-American woman has stood at the helm of major metropolitan police force. Fong recently announced her intention to retire once the city names a successor.

Chief Fong will be recognized with Mary Huss, publisher of the San Francisco Business Times and Lynn M. Sedway, Executive Managing Director, CB Richard Ellis, a leading real estate and urban economics consulting firm.

Irasema Garza, president of Legal Momentum, notes, “From law enforcement to media to real estate, each of our 2009 Women of Achievement honorees is demonstrating the positive impact of women’s leadership in the Bay Area and throughout the nation.”

Legal Momentum inaugurated the Women of Achievement Awards in 2006 to recognize women whose personal leadership has broken new ground in law, business and public policy, thereby demonstrating the positive impact of women’s full and equal participation in civic and corporate life. Former recipients include: San Francisco District Attorney Hon. Kamala D. Harris (2006); Joanne Hayes-White, Chief of the San Francisco Fire Department (2007); and Anne W. Halstead, Vice Chair of the San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission (2008). Learn More

About Legal Momentum: Founded in 1970, Legal Momentum is the nation’s oldest legal defense and education fund dedicated to advancing the rights of all women and girls. www.legalmomentum.org

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