The Golden Ribbon Awards were the brainchild of Brooke Kinzer, Director of Infusion. Inspired to find more ways to recognize and celebrate the amazing people who deliver excellent care to every person, every day at the Parkview Family Cancer Institute (PFCI), she submitted her recognition concept to the Ideas Board. From there, a committee was formed, and work on the project got underway. The committee reviewed several renditions of the awards and the number of awards until they finally settled on four designations.
Nominations for each award were then submitted by fellow stakeholders in the PFCI. All nominations were reviewed and ranked by PFCI leaders, and a winner was selected for each award. It was a difficult process since there were so many great nominations! The awards were given to the recipients by surprise, usually in their work areas or during a team meeting. The reactions were amazing—total surprise and tears shed by all four.
Here are the 2026 Golden Award winners:
The Golden Heart of Compassion Award recognizes an individual who exemplifies empathy, emotional strength, kindness and compassion in every interaction.
Winner: Shannon Olwin, front desk concierge, PFCI
The Golden Ribbon Voice of Change Award recognizes an individual who is not afraid to challenge the status quo, advocate for progress and help move the PFCI mission forward through innovation, collaboration and action.
Winner: Emily Powell, Precision Health, Parkview Mirro Center
The Golden Visionary Award recognizes an individual who demonstrates visionary thinking, servant leadership and collaborative excellence while helping shape the future of the PFCI.
Winner: Jennifer Boleyn, BSN, RN, Nurse Manager, GI, GU Teams
The Golden Ribbon GOAT Award recognizes an individual whose impact reaches far beyond their own department—someone who consistently exemplifies collaboration, leadership, compassion and excellence across the entire Cancer Institute; someone who is the Greatest of All Time (GOAT).
Winner: Kara Stackhouse, RN, MSN, FNP-BC, ACHPN, Palliative Care.
