LAYTON—The Davis Chamber of Commerce Women in Business held its annual Athena Award luncheon on Tuesday to honor this year’s recipient, Layton Mayor Joy Petro. The prestigious award is given to individuals who demonstrate excellence in their business or profession and contribute their time to serve the community.

“Along with being an excellent mayor, Joy is a selfless community advocate,” said President/CEO of the Davis Chamber, Angie Osguthorpe. “She goes above and beyond to show up and help whenever possible.”

Petro became a Layton City Councilmember in 2013 and was elected as Mayor in 2020. She received the Ronald Reagan Community Award and sits on several boards. Petro is the Chair of the Davis County Board of Health and the North Davis Sewer District, as well as the Vice Chair of the Wasatch Front Regional Council Active Transportation. She is a past Chair of Wasatch Integrated Waste Management, Davis Council of Government, and the Layton Heritage Museum.

“Joy lives on Gentile Street in an amazing historic house,” said Osguthorpe. “She’s won an award for preservation. She went to Layton High and Weber State University and she’s had a couple of different careers. She was advertising director at Smith’s Food and Drug for about 16 years and then worked for Quad Graphics for 17 years as a national sales director. So Joy knows what she’s doing.”

She serves a lot, Osguthorpe said. “That’s why we’re here to honor her. But all that aside, Joy shows up for people. She’s not flashy, she’s authentic and where people need her she goes there.”

“She’s been a single mother for a number of years,” said Commissioner Bob Stevenson, who is a former Layton City mayor. “She’s very dedicated to her daughter. She’s very dedicated to her church and she’s very dedicated to those who work around her and also those who are willing to be by her side. To try and keep up with her is a challenge.”

Keep up the good work, he said. “Keep being that example to all of us. We need that in this community and in this state and in this country. You’re a very wonderful person.”

Wow, this is quite an honor, said Petro. “This award isn’t about me, it’s about all of us. There are three core elements which are community, civic engagement and hope.”

Community is about connection, she said. “It’s all about the relationships that are built. It’s about sharing a common purpose.”

It’s all about hope, said Petro. “Whatever you’re engaged in, hope gets you through the tough times. It helps you believe in the possibility for a better tomorrow.”

This is what this award is about, she said. “It’s about showing how all of us come together and how we make our environment the best we can. And I think in this day and age when there’s so much divisiveness and uncertainty going on, those of us in this room are the true leaders that can really step up and make a difference.”