PRSA

PRSA

National Capital Chapter

End of Year Message from PRSA NCC Chapter President Karin Drinkhall

Dear NCC Members and Colleagues,

As we near the end of 2024, I want to thank you all for being part of our national capital public relations community. We have a lot to celebrate this year.

2024 marked our chapter’s 75th anniversary, and with nearly 800 members, we maintained our status as the largest PRSA chapter in the country! For several decades, we have served as a foundational networking and professional development organization for communication professionals in the DC, MD, and VA area, working across agencies, associations, nonprofits, corporations, local government, federal government, military, and more.

I would like to give a special thank you to all our board and committee members who helped make this year a success.  After spending the past year as NCC President, I know first-hand that running this chapter is truly a team effort, with so many great volunteers working together. Notably, in 2024, we organized 24 professional development and networking events with nearly 1,000 registrants. Seventeen of these events were in-person, marking a noticeable return to in-person programming for our chapter following the Covid-19 pandemic years.

Earlier this week, we had the opportunity to come together at the Capital Yacht Club in Washington, D.C., to celebrate each other and our successes at our annual Hall of Fame Awards Reception and Holiday Party. We applauded the induction of Brenda K. Foster and Anne Woodbury into the National Capital Public Relations Hall of Fame, and also recognized eight chapter volunteers and five students with awards for their service. We acknowledged two chapter members for attaining their Accreditation in Public Relations (APR) certification this year, a testament to their high level of expertise and commitment to the field. Thank you to our Hall of Fame sponsor, AARP, for making this event possible. A big congratulations to all our chapter award winners:

  • Alex Budzynski, New Professional Award
  • Rhy Wiethe, New Professional Award
  • Jared Bowes, PRSSA Service Award
  • Alex Spencer, PRSSA Service Award
  • Reginald Burke, PRSSA Service Award
  • Thea Duc, PRSSA Service Award
  • Briana Marie May, PRSSA Service Award
  • Denise Douglas, Impact Award
  • Alicia S. Davidson, Impact Award
  • Larry Parnell, Senior Professional Award
  • Mike Smith, Senior Professional Award
  • Remi Lederman, Diamond Award
  • David Rodewald, Diamond Award

Thank you again for being part of our PRSA community. I look forward to seeing what’s in store for our chapter in 2025 and look forward to connecting with you all in the New Year.

Happy holidays!

Karin Drinkhall
2024 PRSA NCC President