Meet Wilmington’s 40 Under 40 Award winners for 2020
As our community grows and develops, we’re counting on young professionals to bring fresh ideas and to help the Cape Fear region prosper.
For the second year, the StarNews and the Wilmington Chamber of Commerce are teaming up to recognize young professionals who go above and beyond. The 40 Under 40 Award is designed to spotlight those who excel in their professional roles as well as in the ways they serve our community.
To be considered, nominees had to be younger than 40 years old as of Oct. 22, 2020, and live or work in Brunswick, New Hanover or Pender County. We had 170 eligible nominees from across the Cape Fear region.
A panel of judges, including myself as the StarNews news director; Natalie English, president and CEO of the chamber of commerce; Clifford Barnett, pastor of Warner Temple AME Zion Church and a Wilmington city councilman; Shane Fernando, vice president of advancement and the arts at Cape Fear Community College; Lisa Leath, president of Leath HR Group and a 40 Under 40 recipient last year; and Charlie Mattox, senior vice president / market president at Truist (formerly BB&T); reviewed all of the nominations and selected the recipients.
Picking just 40 recipients wasn’t easy. We had so many excellent nominations and I’m hoping some of the folks who didn’t get selected this year will be submitted for consideration again next year.
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This year’s honorees are from a variety of fields, including the healthcare industry, education, nonprofits, real estate, government and the arts.
“I am so encouraged and inspired by the achievements of our latest 40 Under 40 honorees,” English said. “These outstanding young leaders come from a variety of industries and backgrounds. Some may be climbing the corporate ladder while others are charting their own course as entrepreneurs. Others are focused on improving our community through the nonprofit sector. I’m thrilled to recognize their accomplishments and look forward to them leading our community in the future.”
The StarNews and the Chamber of Commerce are planning to recognize the recipients at a virtual awards ceremony on Oct. 22. The StarNews will also publish profiles on each recipient online on Oct. 22 and in a special print section of the newspaper on Oct. 23.
Here are this year’s 40 Under 40:
Kerri Allen, 31, Coastal Advocate, North Carolina Coastal Federation
Andy Almeter, 37, Manager of Business Operations for Regional and Specialty Services, New Hanover Regional Medical Center
David Anderson, 36, Owner, Anderson Family Foods dba McDonalds
Jordyn Appel-Hughes, 28, Local Motive Program Director, Feast Down East
Bradley Ballou, 36, Chief of Staff, University of North Carolina at Wilmington
Emma Baltezore, 36, Executive Director, One Christian Network
Elizabeth Barfield, 29, Health Equity Educator, New Hanover Regional Medical Center
Steven Barger, 35, Mayor Pro Tem, City of Boiling Spring Lakes
Alison Baringer, 38, Executive Director, North Carolina Azalea Festival
Cedric Boney, 31, Owner, CB Fitness and Athletic Training and The Youth League
Robert Carroll, 33, Broker in charge and partner, RE/MAX Southern Coast
Elizabeth Cooper, 31, Director of El Cuerpo, Christ Community Church
Chandler Davis, 35, Artistic Director, Thalian Association Community Theatre
Olivia Dawson, 35, Tourism Assistant, Pender County
Aaron Granseur Dick, 39, Facility Director, Wilmington International Airport (ILM)
Jessica Edwards, 38, Realtor, The Carolinas Finest Team at Coldwell Banker Sea Coast Advantage; Global Luxury Ambassador, Coldwell Banker LLC
Caroline Fisher, 32, Co-Founder and Creative Director, Swahili Coast
Bobby Garcia, 35, New Teacher Mentor, Science Teacher, Community Activist, Aspiring School Administrator, Williston Middle School with New Hanover County Schools
William Gwathmey, 39, President and CEO, Gwathmey Residential Group, LLC
Lindsey Hallock, 31, Director of Public and Environmental Policy, Cape Fear Public Utility Authority
Tiffany Hansley-Jones, 36, Exceptional Children’s Teacher, Burgaw Elementary School; Owner, Jones Sunset Sauce, LLC
Cedric Harrison, 31, Founder and Director, Support the Port
Emilie Hart, 36, Regional Director, Catholic Charities of the Cape Fear Region
Astrid Keusseyan, 29, Laboratory Manager of Pre-Analytical & Client Services, New Hanover Regional Medical Center
Kevin Lackey, 37, Business Development Professional, Brunswick Business & Industry Development
Alexandra Lysik, 34, Owner, Cavik Insurance
Katelyn Mattox, 33, Program Director, NourishNC
Melissa Phillippi, 39, President and Co-Founder, Performance Culture, Inc.
Gustavo Rodea, 39, Owner, Mattress and Furniture Liquidators and Rodea’s Enterprise Inc.; Latino Business Leader, Latino American Business Council
Dane Scalise, 35, General Counsel and Insurance Producer, GriffinEstep Benefit Group
Derek Schmidt, 34, Founder and CEO, DesignLoud and Swell Systems
Aricka Sidbury, 31, Detective, Wilmington Police Department
Brooke Skipper, 31, Co-owner, Salt Air Heating and Cooling
Alyson Smist, 39, Assistant General Manager, Wilmington Sharks
Riley Stephenson, 27, Business Development Specialist, Pearson Patterson Smith Wealth Management
Nicholas Suggs, 39, Client Services Director, Voxpopme
Jillian Summers, 26, Wealth Advisor, BB&T
Shannon Swiger, 34, Internal Communications Manager, Novant Health
Josh Tucker, 35, Director of Radiology, New Hanover Regional Medical Center
Jessica Reed Williams, 38, Director of Practice Support Services, Southeast Area Health Education Center (SEAHEC) with New Hanover Regional Medical Center (NHRMC)
Sherry Jones is news director for the Wilmington StarNews and executive editor for Gannett’s NC East Group. You can reach her at Sherry.Jones@StarNewsOnline.com.
