Brenda Peterson, CEO of The Wendt Agency, has been awarded the 2013 Athena Award. The award was presented to Peterson at the annual Great Falls Chamber of Commerce dinner on April 11. It celebrates women who exhibit professional excellence, community service and who assist other women in the community in achieving professional goals.

“I am so honored to receive this award,” said Peterson. “Instilling self-confidence in young women is critical in creating the next generation of business and community leaders.”

As the CEO of The Wendt Agency, Peterson leads an 85-year-old advertising, marketing and public relations agency headquartered in Great Falls, Montana. She certainly understands the importance of women leaders – eleven of the agency’s twelve employees are women, as are all three of Wendt’s board of directors.

“Everyone at The Wendt Agency believes she completely exemplifies the ideals of the Athena Award,” said Senior Vice President Carol Kruger. “We are all inspired by her each and every day.”

In addition to her leadership at Wendt and mentoring of young professional women, Peterson is dedicated to making her community and the entire state of Montana a better place to work and live. She has worked with and volunteered for groups ranging from Montana Special Olympics, the C.M. Russell Museum, Leadership Montana, United Way of Cascade County, the Great Falls Area Chamber of Commerce Convention & Visitors Bureau and the MSU-COT Web and Graphic Design Program Advisory Committee.

The Wendt Agency is Montana’s longest standing full-service advertising agency. It has clients across the northwest in industries ranging from travel and tourism to health insurance to retail to financial services.

Since it was established in 1982, more than 5,000 women across the U.S. have received the Athena Award. In Great Falls the award is sponsored by the Great Falls Chamber of Commerce, City Motors, Anderson ZurMuehlen and Embark FCU.