Local physical therapist and community wellness advocate Cindy Merrick was named winner of the Athena Award Thursday night.

The announcement was made during a reception at the Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art. The award honors a person who has attained the highest level of professional excellence in his or her business or profession and has opened the doors of leadership opportunities for women.

Merrick was among a large number of nominees for the award which is sponsored locally by Ferguson Buick-Pontiac-GMC. She thanked God for giving her the opportunities she has had throughout her life.

Merrick, an owner of Therapy in Motion, has recently increased her focus on women's health, treating such things as incontinence, pre/post partum issues and post mastectomy patients.

She is one of a small number of physical therapists to treat these ailments. Her nominator singled out her work with interns and techs. She provides a hands-on learning environment and work space for interns from more than 20 universities nationwide.

Merrick was a co-founder of "Citizens Organized to Recycle Our Environment" and serves on the Norman Public School Foundation board of directors.

She established the EOS Award "Empowerment of Spirit" scholarship at the University of Oklahoma to help struggling young mothers who are pursuing their education. This award is given through the Department of Women's Studies.

She also established a Gayle St. John Scholarship to honor graduating seniors from Norman High School and the Vanderburg Children's Fund, a fund dedicated to help children whose parents have died.

Other nominees for 2009 were Robin Allen, Fancy That Caf?-Bakery-Takery; Rita Aragon, Major General (ret.) OU; Maxine Bates, Homesteaders Real Estate; Pam Clinton, community volunteer; Cara Ditto, retired from Moore Norman Technology Center; Janice Gray, Gray, Blodgett -- Company, PLLC; Anne Masters, Pioneer Library System; Sondra "Jennifer" Newell, Norman Police Department; Paula Price, Norman Regional Health System; Karen Rieger, Crowe -- Dunlevy; Linda Terrell, Center for Children and Families; Doris Wedge, retired, Moore Norman Technology Center/The Norman Transcript; and Cindy Zumwalt, First American Bank.

Past recipients of the award include Molly Shi Boren, University of Oklahoma; Dr. Kenneth Crawford, University of Oklahoma; Kathleen Drummond, Norman Regional Health System; Becky Payton, Johnson Controls, retired Norman Public Schools Superintendent, Dr. Nancy O'Brian and Joan Barker formerly with the Cleveland County Workforce Investment Board.