VIDEO: Dr Kathryn Ladano wins 2025 K-W Oktoberfest Rogers Women of the Year – Arts & Culture

Please join me in congratulating “visionary bass clarinetist” Dr. Kathryn Ladano on her recent win of the 2025 K-W Oktoberfest Rogers Women of the Year, in the category of Arts & Culture.  Dr. Kathryn, a professional musician and former teacher, suffered a devastating concussion that required five years (and counting) of therapy to function again, and the fight is still not over.

Hear all about it in her acceptance speech below.  It’s not just about her.

They even pronounced our last name right.  You can feel the emotion in the room.

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  6. I haven’t commented much on this, because I’m still trying to wrap my head around the fact that my kid sister is Woman of the Year in Arts & Culture this year. Now, my mom will tell you, I DID predict this. As soon as she was nominated, I did say, with my mother as witness, that she would win. When she did, the pride in my correct prediction was only overshadowed in my pride of Dr. Kathryn.

    It’s hard to express how important this recognition is. At the beginning of 2020, her excellent album Masked was released, and it felt like things were going to go her way! Then the pandemic, then a car accident and a concussion. They talk about brain injuries a lot in sports, but here is a musician and teacher now unable to play music or teach. What can you do?

    You can fight! You HAVE to fight! And she fought this, plus setback after setback, and now is celebrating the release of her new album Anatomy of the Recovering Brain. I know only a little bit about how much this concussion really knocked her down. I know there was a summer when she could barely come to the cottage because driving that long would knock her out for the day. It’s still not over, but you can tell that this champion is on the rebound.

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