Chamber Names Athena Nominees; Acton to Speak at Dinner

YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – Dr. Amy Acton, director of the Ohio Department of Health and Youngstown native, will be the keynote speaker at the Youngstown/Warren Regional Chamber’s annual Athena Awards dinner May 14.

The dinner will be held at Waypoint 4180, Canfield, and will honor 28 women for their work in their field and community. The recipient of the $1,500 Athena Scholarship will also be named, as well as the winners of two $1,250 scholarships.

Acton was named director of the state’s health department in February 2019 by Gov. Mike DeWine. With more than 30 years of experience in practice, policy and nonprofit administration, she has become a household name as one of the state’s leaders through the COVID-19 outbreak. A recently created fan club on Facebook has gathered nearly 90,000 members and grows daily, the Regional Chamber noted. 

This year’s Athena Award nominees are:

• Danielle Adams, associate content manager, FactSet Research Systems Inc.
• Nicole Alexander, magistrate, Mahoning County Court of Common Pleas.
• Michelle Alleman, library director, McKinley Memorial Library
• Carla Baldwin, judge, Youngstown Municipal Court. 
• Mara Banfield, director, Mahoning County Career and Technical Center; superintendent, Valley STEM+ME2 Academy.
• Erin Bishop, commissioner, Youngstown City Health District.
• Ruth Bowdish, director of training and development, On Demand Counseling.
• Shelly Bradley, director, AT&T Customer Care Center.
• Jacqueline Burley, executive director, Protestant Family Service.
• Heather Craver, director of mental health, Cadence Care Network.
• Valerie Cubon-Bell, professor, Kent State University at Trumbull.
• Sara Daugherty, director of operations and economic impact, Brite Energy Innovators.
• Theresa Dellick, judge, Mahoning County Juvenile Court.
• Renee DiSalvo, judge, Youngstown Municipal Court.
• Angela Duskey, partner, HD Davis CPAs.
• Cynthia Marie Fernback, principal, Boardman High School. 
• Tricia Ferry, vice president of operations, VEC.
• Julie Green, director, Trumbull County Planning Commission. 
• Leigh Ann Greene, director, Youngstown Local Office on Minority Health, Youngstown City Health District.
• Vicki Haywood Doe, president and CEO, Haywood Doe Consulting Co. DBA Vicki Doe Fitness. 
• Stacy Howlett, president and CEO, Howlett Logistics.
• Brianna Komara Pridon, co-owner and president, Komara Jewelers. 
• Karen Larwin, professor, Youngstown State University; owner, REM Consulting. 
• Shirley McIntosh, IT feld tech, Laboratory Corporation of America; mayor, West Farmington. 
• Dr. Meredythe McNally, gastroenterology consultant, Gastroenterology Center of Salem; chief of staff, Salem Regional Medical Center. 
• Lisa Resnick, realtor, Burgan Real Estate. LaTisha Weaver Bennett, CEO, La La Love Healthcare. 
• Julia Wike, executive director, The Basement Outreach Ministries.

The dinner begins at 5:30 p.m. with a cocktail reception, followed by the dinner at 6:15 p.m. Tickets are $75 per person and will be available in April, pending restrictions due to COVID-19. If the event can not be held in May, it will be rescheduled for later in the year. 

For more information, contact Chelsea Pascarella at 330 744 2131.  

Published by The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.