POLAND, Ohio – Hard work, compassion and dedication to community were common attributes cited by nominees of the three MVP award winners from the Mahoning Valley Young Professionals’ 25 Under 35.

The Wednesday evening event, in its 16th year, honored young professionals across multiple industries, including health care, finance, education, broadcast journalism and economic development.

“I’m just humbled and appreciative,” a choked up Ashley Vidale, the first MVP, told a full banquet room at The Lake Club. 

The CEO of Sapphire Aesthetics and Wellness was nominated by MVYP board member Tyler Wolfe, who said Vidale embodies what it is to be one of the organization’s 25 Under 35 MVPs.

Vidale’s husband, Terrill Vidale, said his wife is always willing to give back and is involved in several community events and organizations.

Griffin Todd of HBK CPAs & Consultants was selected as the second MVP. He called the honor unexpected and said he tries to help others as much as he can.

“I greatly appreciate it,” he said in accepting the award.

Michael Kapics, a principal at HBK’s Youngstown office who nominated Todd, called him a cornerstone of the firm.

“He works tirelessly to support our client base – some of the biggest and most complex accounts that we handle,” Kapics said. 

He’s also a leader with younger team members and involved with many community organizations, he said.

Jessica Gaskell, director of first-year student success at Youngstown State University and the third MVP award winner, was nominated by Lexi Levonyak, who works in the office. 

Levonyak called Gaskell a mentor, role model, everyone’s greatest cheerleader and one of the kindest and most compassionate people she’s ever met.

“Jess is constantly doing different service projects for the community,” including Relay for Life, Guins Against Cancer and other organizations, Levonyak said. 

Gaskell said she was surprised by the award.

“I’m going to keep doing what I do and giving back every day that I can,” she said.

YSU President Bill Johnson was the evening’s keynote speaker and pointed out that over half of the 25 nominees were YSU alumni.

He said each of his careers – working on a farm, serving in the U.S. Air Force, working as a small business owner, a corporate executive, member of Congress and YSU president – taught him something different about leadership.

“Leadership is not a title,” Johnson said. “It’s not about being in charge. It’s about affecting the outcome.”

That means understanding that you’re in the people business, he said, which means service above self.

That’s part of what MVYP embraces, according to its leaders.

Betterment of the community is MVYP’s main goal, said Justin Metzel, its vice president.

“We want to empower the young professionals of our area to reach higher, do more and believe in themselves,” he said. “That goes for years and years to come.”

And MVMP is growing, Metzel said. 

“The first mixer I was ever involved in, we had eight people,” he said. “Now we host mixer events with between 50 to 60 people on average. I think that’s a huge accomplishment.”

MVYP sold more than 350 tickets for Wednesday evening’s event.

The other honorees are:

  • Amanda Rivera, EDM Management/Briarfield Health Care Centers.
  • Andrew Eschman, One Health Fit.
  • Austin Sambuco, JFS Wealth Advisors.
  • Chris Gunther, The Chris Gunther Show!
  • Danielle Adair, Help Network of Northeast Ohio.
  • Dante Bernard, Mahoning Valley Historical Society.
  • David Wilaj, Lake to River Economic Development.
  • Emily Moran, Trumbull County Planning Commission.
  • Jeffrey Jiang, Ashtabula County Planning & Development Department.
  • John Ryan, Mediate Financial Services.
  • Kaitlyn Camp, Moose International.
  • Kurt Hurdley, Morgan Stanley.
  • Madison Tromler, WFMJ-TV 21.
  • Mariah Wesson, Allegheny Health Network.
  • Michael Bleggi, Bodine and Co., CPA’s.
  • Nick Morchak, Mill Creek Metropolitan Park District.
  • Nicholas Romeo, Bury Financial Group.
  • Paige Fortner, Axess Family Services.
  • Rebecca Catlos, JLC Services Inc.
  • Terrance Reardon, Higgins-Reardon Funeral Homes.
  • Wyatt Beck, #1 Cochran Chevrolet.
  • Zachary Gay, Farmers National Bank.

Pictured at top: The  25 Under 35 honorees.