ATHENA International Awards Brought to You by Female Entrepreneurs Share Bridget Martin
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ATHENA International Awards brought to you by Female entrepreneurs share Bridget Martin ........................... 13 Lori O’Brien ............................... 18 secrets to success .................... 4 Angela Panzarella ..................... 13 Sarah Rutherford ....................... 18 The art of taking over ............. 6 Hilda Rosario-Escher ................. 14 Michelle Schleher ...................... 19 Finding ways to help Pamela Schickler ....................... 14 Karen Webber .......................... 19 Jane Shukitis ............................. 15 Melissa Wentland ...................... 20 others is rewarding ................. 8 Sara Taylor................................ 15 Caroline Whelan Tolbert ............ 20 ® 2019 ATHENA Award Finalists 2019 ATHENA Young 2019 ATHENA Organizational Jill Cicero .................................. 10 ® ® Amy DelCorvo .......................... 10 Professional Award Finalists Award Finalists Megan Alchowiak ..................... 16 Broadstone ................................ 21 ATHENA International Awards brought to you by Andrea DeMeo ......................... 11 Cheryl Dinolfo ........................... 11 Shaquana Patrice Divers ............ 16 Capstone Information Mary Jo Gugino-Colligan .......... 12 Jennifer Dunivent ....................... 17 Technology ............................. 21 Mary Alice Liotta ....................... 12 Leticia Fornataro ........................ 17 HCR Home Care ........................ 22 reater Rochester Chamber of Commerce and its Women’s Council affi liate are pleased to present the 33rd Annual International ATHENA Award® fi nalists, the fi nalists of Rochester’s ATHENA Young Professional Award®, Gand the ATHENA Organizational Award® fi nalists. The awards are designed to recognize outstanding leader- ship and organizations in the Greater Rochester region, as well as empower the next generation of women leaders. Each fi nalist represents the ATHENA leadership model at its best, and our community benefi ts greatly from their excellence, service, and vision. In addition, we appreciate the tremendous generosity of our sponsors whose contributions allow us to present the ATHENA Awards program each year. The women and organizations profi led in this special supplement of the Rochester Business Journal represent nearly every sector of our business community including corporate, entrepreneurial, education, legal, health care, and nonprofi t organizations. The contributions of each fi nalist to her organization have produced exceptional results. Their work in our Suzanne Fischer-Huettner, Publisher community as leaders and individuals who recognize and embrace the importance of assisting other women in their per- Ben Jacobs, Editor sonal and professional development cannot be overstated. The internationally recognized ATHENA Awards program was founded in 1982 in Lansing, Michigan by ATHENA Lisa Granite, Associate Editor International Founder Martha Mertz. The award was originally established to honor the achievements of exceptional wom- en leaders. More importantly, it was established to inspire others to achieve excellence in their professional and business Bill Alden, Copy Editor lives. Since 1982, more than 7,000 top leaders in over 500 communities have received the prestigious ATHENA Inter- national Award in the United States, Bermuda, Canada, China, Greece, India, Russia, the United Arab Emirates, and the Jean Moorhouse, Account Manager United Kingdom. By honoring exceptional leaders, the ATHENA International Awards program seeks to inspire others Michelle Sanfi lippo, Account Manager to achieve excellence in their professional and personal lives. The program was introduced to the Rochester community in 1987 by Greater Rochester Chamber of Commerce and Jessica Sims, Events & Marketing its affi liate, the Women’s Council. The ATHENA International Awards program is a tribute to all who participate, in- Coordinator cluding our outstanding fi nalists and their nominators. As the only international awards program in Rochester dedicated solely to recognizing outstanding female leadership and organizations, we thank the community for its continued support and participation. Rachel Zachary As you read and learn more about the ATH- ENA International Awards fi nalists, we know Public Notice and Advertising Coordinator you will agree that they are outstanding exam- Tracy Bumba ples of achievement and leadership. We invite you to join us for the 3rd Annual ATHENA In- Audience Development Manager ternational Awards dinner, Thursday, January Robin Graves 24, 2019 at the Floreano Convention Center, as we honor and celebrate the accomplishments of Graphic Designer this year’s 25 fi nalists and announce the 2019 ATHENA Award®, ATHENA Young Profes- Kady Weddle sional Award®, and ATHENA Organizational Special Projects Supervisor Award® recipients. For tickets or more information, contact Great- er Rochester Chamber of Commerce Affi liate Li- Rochester Business Journal aison and Events Coordinator, Cassidy Franklin, Bob Duffy Stephanie Seiffert 16 W. Main St. Suite 341 at (585) 256-4665 or Cassidy.Franklin@Great- President and Chief Executive Offi cer President Rochester, NY 14614 erRochesterChamber.com Greater Rochester Cha mber Women’s Council (585) 232-6920 • www.rbj.net of Commerce A Greater Rochester Chamber Affi liate 2 2 JANUARY 11, 2019/ROCHESTER BUSINESS JOURNAL 2019 ATHENA INTERNATIONAL AWARDS® OUR GREAT LOCAL BUSINESS LEADERS MAKE AN Special congratulations to 2018 ATHENA Award finalist and IMPACT ESL Senior Vice President/Director of Operations, Mary Alice Liotta. esl.org > 585.336.1000 > 21 branches ESL is a registered service mark of ESL Federal Credit Union. 05897_488x788_Ad_F.indd 1 12/21/18 3:24 PM ESL05897_788x488_Ad, 7.88”w x 4.88”h, 4C CELEBRATE HER. NOMINATE HER. Nominations close February 15, 2019 Nominations can be made online at You know her. She’s that amazing woman you admire. rbj.net/events She leads by example, is involved in everything, and still finds time to mentor others. She is very successful and juggles all aspects of SAVE THE DATE: her life with ease. You’ve often thought she should win an award AWARDS CELEBRATION for being so outstanding. Well, now is your chance to nominate her. May 9, 2019 • Convention Center For more event or sponsorship information, email [email protected]. 2019 ATHENA INTERNATIONAL AWARDS® The finalists for the 2018 Athena Young Professional Award. Photo by Fernando Lou Gonzalez Female entrepreneurs share secrets to success By AMARIS ELLIOTT-ENGEL ple in recovery came out. you want to be happy,” Khashper says. “We weren’t thinking about how isolated “You want to make sure it’s not something hree years ago, Yana Khashper and we had been or how cold it was,” Khaspher that you resent.” her partner, Sean Smith, started to says. “We were just laughing and connect- When Lindsey McCutchen founded Ca- feel their sobriety slipping. ing and engaging.” reer Start, a recruitment and staffing agen- T That winter hike was the start of RO- cy, she says she had nothing to lose. Both Khashper and Smith are in recovery from addiction, and they were becoming Covery Fitness, an organization dedicated After graduating in 2006 with a degree more and more isolated, Khashper says. to bringing people interested in fitness and in communications and minor in sociolo- “We were really heading down to re- sober living together. Within six months gy, McCutchen got a contract position with lapse,” Khashper says. “We had both ex- of that hike, Khashper quit her job as a the Monroe County Department of Social perienced it before. We knew what was social worker to try to make the organi- Services working with people receiving happening.” zation a reality. public assistance to enter the workforce. Smith had introduced Khashper to ad- ROCovery now has four employees and When the 10-month position ended, Mc- venture fitness, and they decided to or- has received funding from the Office of Al- Cutchen founded her own business work- ganize a win- coholism and Substance Abuse Services to ing as a contractor with social service de- ter hike on expand peer recovery-based fitness to oth- partments and nonprofits to help people an unseason- er parts of the state. They also now serve with barriers to employability. ably cold day 1,000 people a year and had an angel in- “One of the things that helped me was in the winter vestor who had lost her son to an overdose that I was fearless,” McCutchen says. “I of 2015. They purchase a firehouse for ROCovery to es- really had nothing to lose by starting my posted news tablish a community center. business.” of the hike on Khashper says one of the takeaways of When Donna Shultz founded Mirror social media, her story is the importance of making sure Show Management, a company special- and they were the risk of launching your own business or izing in putting together trade shows, in surprised that nonprofit is truly what you want. 1993, she was inspired to do so because the YANA KHASHPER about 10 peo- “You want to find a purpose of life and president of the company she was work- 4 4 JANUARY 11, 2019/ROCHESTER BUSINESS JOURNAL 2019 ATHENA INTERNATIONAL AWARDS® 2019 ATHENA INTERNATIONAL AWARDS® ing for at the time said that if only she was ness model is necessary. not have the same people at the top with a man, she would be really successful in For McCutchen, she realized that fund- you. You have to have self-awareness and the industry. ing for grants for employment assistance organizational awareness.