People: Rita Williams wins 'Heart' award People: Rita Williams wins 'Heart' award (October 05, 2005)

More than 600 guests are expected to attend Pathways Hospice Foundation's One From the Heart Awards breakfast on Thursday, October 20, at 7:30 a.m. at the Crowne Plaza Cabana Hotel in Palo Alto.

Rita Williams of Portola Valley, a reporter for KTVU Channel 2 television, will be honored for her reporting of issues in the Bay Area, especially her segment, "Death with Dignity," featuring Pathways Hospice patient, William Cassidy, which aired in April, 2005.

Awards will also be given to Dr. Dean Edell, Linda Dano, and Marilyn and Tig Tarlton.

Ms. Williams has been mistress of ceremonies for the annual breakfast for six of its 15 years.

The recipient of many Emmy nominations, Ms. Williams won the Sigma Delta Chi Award for Best News Story of 1975 for her in-depth look at Mexican-American discrimination. She also holds an American Bar Association Award for the story of the legal battle of a mentally retarded child, as well as multiple Peninsula Press Club Awards.

In 1999, she was honored for sensitivity and compassion by Justice for Murder Victims.

Pathways Hospice is a nonprofit organization providing health care to patients in their homes. For reservations for the breakfast or more information, call 408-733-4100.

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