Gail Burrus Martin, a Bowling Green philanthropist and outgoing chairwoman of the Kentucky Foundation for Women Board, is the recipient of this year’s Sallie Bingham Award.

The award is presented by KFW each year to recognize an individual who has made outstanding contributions to women and the arts in Kentucky.

“The Sallie Bingham Award honors a woman who has made a difference in Kentucky. Gail is dedicated to education and the arts, and she has long been a respected community volunteer and activist on behalf of women,” said KFW director Judi Jennings in a news release.

Martin was born in Franklin and raised in Indianapolis. She graduated from Wilberforce University in Ohio. She worked as a social worker and then moved on to the advertising department of the Dayton Daily News.

She came to Kentucky when she married the now-deceased Cornelius Martin. In addition to raising three children, she has served on the Western Kentucky University Foundation, the Capitol Arts Foundation and the Hobson House. She also was the first chairwoman for Western’s Women’s Studies Fundraising Council, and the Martins endowed the Gail Martin Faculty Development and Lecture Series.

She joined the board of the KFW in September 2001 and served for six years.