Community leaders honored at awards program
This year marks the 25th annual 20 Under 40 Leadership Awards Recognition Program. The 2020 program brings the number of distinguished 20 Under 40 award recipients to 500. The 20 Under 40 program focuses on individuals who are making exceptional contributions to the community and/or have distinguished themselves in their careers. It is intended that the program will assist in motivating young leaders in the area. The awards program was done as a virtual event due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Chrys Peterson, a former news anchor for WTOL-TV11 who is a communications consultant and continues to be a significant community advocate, was the master of ceremonies for the awards event.
The list of past and present 20 Under 40 award recipients is a virtual who’s who of current and future community leaders. To become an award recipient, many candidates have been nominated two to three or more times in as many years. Nominations for the 20 Under 40 awards come from all segments of the community.
An outside panel of judges is selected annually, generally consisting of CEOs, officials, and community leaders. This year’s judges include: Tyran Boyd, managing director, Boyd & Associates Consulting, LLC; George Brymer, chief creative officer, The Creative Block; Whitney Rofkar, vice president, public relations, Thread Marketing Group; Anne Roman, vice president, communications and public affairs, Cooper Tire & Rubber Company; Jan Skunda, retired partner, FLS Marketing; Suzanne G. Sobel-Poage, founder, president, chairman, chief executive officer, Sylvania Graphics, Incorporated; and Mark Urrutia, general agent, Catholic Order of Foresters.
The event is sponsored by Eastman & Smith, Ltd; Fifth Third Bank; Plante Moran; The Andersons; The University of Toledo; and Dana Incorporated. Leadership Toledo is the community partner and Toledo Business Journal is the media partner. The Creative Block and UlrichPinciotti are serving as the creative partners. Buckeye Broadband / BCAN is the broadcast sponsor for 2020. Community supporters include EPIC Toledo, Imagination Station, The Toledo Repertoire Theatre, Toledo Alliance for the Performing Arts, Toledo Lucas County Public Library, Toledo Museum of Art, Toledo Opera, Toledo Zoo, and Valentine Theatre. Sponsors have worked over the past several months to organize the event.
