Category: Announcement

Akron, OH – (January 4, 2024) – Torchbearers is proud to announce that 40 of Greater Akron’s emerging leaders have been selected from an exceptionally competitive field to join Torchbearers in 2024.

Applicants completed a detailed process to be considered for membership, including completion of a written application and an interview with current Torchbearers members. The entire process spanned three months and culminated with a group of diverse candidates from various backgrounds and experiences.

“When I joined Torchbearers in 2017, I had no clue what I adventure lies ahead of me and now as I enter a year of leading this organization I know the adventure is the destination,” says current Torchbearers President Zinga Hart. “I am so excited to see how our members explore their own professional terrain while connecting to their inner capacity to shape their city for the future.”

Sierre Oden, 2024 Vice President, is also optimistic about this year’s class. “Good leaders stay curious and these 40 dynamic change makers will continue the Torchbearers tradition of learning and growing through our Leadership & Development curriculum, while keeping our community at the center of their work. I look forward to seeing the impact they leave not only on our organization, but on the Greater Akron community for years to come.”

The new class met for a social event in mid-December and commence their year-long leadership and development cohort program in January. Applications for the Class of 2025 will be available in the spring at TorchbearersAkron.com.

Torchbearers is delighted to announce the following outstanding leaders for the Class of 2024:

Kaitlin Adkins, Frito Lay
Michelle Banis, The University of Akron
Grace Barnard, Akron Municipal Court
Justin Bober, Fawcett Co
Jazzmin Bowman, Summit County Childrens Services
Leesa Bruback, United Way Of Summit Medina County
Shaniah Chilton, FirstEnergy
Maria Ciccolini, Ciccolini & Associates Co. LPA law firm
Hilary DeSaussure, Brennan, Manna & Diamond, LLC
Anthony Didion, State and Federal Communications, Inc.
Olivia Eastly, Akron Community Foundation
Alexandra Eliopoulos, Old Trail School
Vincent Eritano, Signet Jewelers
ShaKeela Gary, KeyCorp
Sharonda Gilbert, Kalibri Labs
Stephen Gross, Buckingham Doolittle & Burroughs
Melissa Hopkins, Covalon Technology Ltd.
Jillian Jewett, Brouse McDowell, LPA
Sekoya Kendrick, Akron Art Museum
Laura Littman, Sikich, LLP
Ryan McCoy, Akron-Summit County Public Library
Erin Milano, Akron Children’s Hospital
Ali Miller, Playhouse Square
Brittany Moore, Restorative Touch and Beauty
Brittany Nader, Kuno Creative
Willa Neale, The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company
Maddie Nicholas, PNC
Erin Patch, Dominion Energy
Ben Pickens, Development Finance Authority of Summit County
Betsy Robb, Bober Markey Fedorovich
Julia Sidwell, Akron Summit Convention and Visitors Bureau
Kayla Sparks Hodge, Akron Children’s Hospital
Karla Straus, ACCESS, Inc.
Sue Tran, Fair Housing Partnership of Greater Pittsburgh
Jessica Travis, Summit County Community Partnership
Samuel Trela, Alpha Technologies
Kelly Unger, CLA
Ciera Walker, Allied Universal Security
Dominique Waters, UNKNWN Akron
James Young, Akron Zoo

For more information on Torchbearers, please visit torchbearersakron.com.

Torchbearers is an organization of emerging leaders focused on enhancing the Greater Akron community through leadership development, talent attraction and retention, and community service. Founded in 2003, Torchbearers work to enrich the community by connecting, developing, and engaging leaders in our community and leaders of the future.

In 2009, Leadership Akron and Torchbearers signed an agreement to work more closely together to foster leadership across generations. Today, the membership is over 100 strong and reflects the diversity found across the community. To learn more about Torchbearers, please visit torchbearersakron.com.

Akron, OH – (December 1, 2022) – Torchbearers is proud to announce that 40 of Greater Akron’s emerging leaders have been selected from an exceptionally competitive field to join Torchbearers in 2023.

Applicants completed a detailed process to be considered for membership, including completion of a written application and an interview with current Torchbearers members. The entire process spanned three months and culminated with a group of diverse candidates from various backgrounds and experiences.

“I am thrilled to welcome 40 new emerging leaders into the Torchbearers Class of 2023,” said Meghan Meeker, Torchbearers President. “This group of exceptional individuals come from many different industries and backgrounds and share a dedication to being an involved part of the ongoing improvement of Greater Akron through service. In 2023, Torchbearers will be celebrating its 20th anniversary and this class will be joining a long legacy of service-minded young leaders who, I know, are also celebrating their acceptance into such a life-changing organization.”

These forty up-and-coming leaders will join approximately 80 other active members in the journey to develop personally and professionally as they strive to make meaningful contributions to the Greater Akron community.

The new class will meet for a social event in mid-December and commence their year-long leadership and development cohort program in January. Applications for the Class of 2024 will be available in the spring at TorchbearersAkron.com.

Torchbearers is delighted to announce the following outstanding leaders for the Class of 2023:

Monica Andress, Brennan, Manna & Diamond, LLC

Theresa Attalla, Bounce Innovation Hub

Gina Betti, Edward Jones

Sean Blake, City of Akron: Water Distribution

Michael Bowman, Carter Lumber

Tiara Broady, Planned Parenthood of Greater Ohio

Kendall Bryte, Tramonte Distributing Company

Matthew Burke, Nestle

Joseph Carle, Huntington National Bank

Michael Carlson, TRIAD

Jason Chapman, The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company

Ayesha Cotton, Community Legal Aid Services, Inc

Charde Deans, The Akron Metropolitan Housing Authority

Alyssa Figueroa, Summit Education Initiative

Gabriel Forté, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC)

Nicole Hagy, Akron Municipal Court

Emanuel Henderson, Akron Preparatory School

Christina Jefferson, Unity Health Network

Tara Jefferson, The Self Care Suite®

Joshua Jones, Jopara LLC / Winery at Wolf Creek

Dee McCall, The Freedom BLOC

Darrick McGhee, Oriana House

Rebecca Miklos, FirstEnergy

Amanda Miles, Signet Jewelers

Deanna Miller, Brouse McDowell, LPA

Chloe Muir, The Intergenerational School

Sagarika Naik, Arcadis

Reyna Perez, Akron Public Schools

Keasia Ray, Americas Pharmacy Source

Ben Reker, Signal Tree Financial Partners, LLC

Chloe Russell, The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company

Erica Rymer, Akron Zoo

Brandy Scheule, OverDrive

Jeremy Seeden, Boys & Girls Clubs of Northeast Ohio

Allyson Smith, Ohio & Erie Canalway Coalition

Heather Steele, Buckingham, Doolittle & Burroughs, LLC

David Swirsky, AMATS

Arell Tee, Americorp Vista

Candace Tell, Self Employed

Bradley Wimer, Descartes Aljex

For more information on Torchbearers, please visit torchbearersakron.com.

Torchbearers is an organization of emerging leaders focused on enhancing the Greater Akron community through leadership development, talent attraction and retention, and community service. Founded in 2003, Torchbearers work to enrich the community by connecting, developing, and engaging leaders in our community and leaders of the future.

In 2009, Leadership Akron and Torchbearers signed an agreement to work more closely together to foster leadership across generations. Today, the membership is over 100 strong and reflects the diversity found across the community. To learn more about Torchbearers, please visit torchbearersakron.com.

TORCHBEARERS SELECTS ITS CLASS FOR 2022

Adds 40 new young leaders to its membership serving the Greater Akron area 

Akron, OH – (November 22, 2021) – After a competitive application and interview process, 40 young leaders have been selected to join Torchbearers in 2022.

The process to select the Class of 2022 began in July 2021 and involved numerous applications followed by a competitive round of interviews. Torchbearers’ Board of Directors approved the new class for 2022 on October 12, 2021. The 40 new members come from a diverse mix of professions and aspire to serve the Greater Akron area by volunteering and striving to find ways to better the community they live and work in. In the process, the Class of 2022 will get opportunities to improve their leadership and communication skills and network with other professionals in the Greater Akron area.

“I am excited for the future of Akron, and more specifically, I am excited for the future of Torchbearers. As always, we are able to draw in the best and brightest emerging leaders in Greater Akron, this class is no exception!” said Torchbearers president, Willie Cook. “The incoming board is incredibly strong, and full of newer Torchbearers with fresh ideas and fresh eyes. I fully expect this group to jump in and get their hands dirty, in a good way, in 2022.”

“This year’s application and interview process was really tough! Greater Akron is blessed with incredibly strong emerging leaders and we received so many great candidates for the Class of 2022!” said Aaron Engelhart, co-chair of the Membership Committee. “The Membership Committee and interview teams worked hard to ensure that this next class reflects the mission and vision of our organization and I couldn’t be more proud.  Being Membership Committee co-chairs, Sierra Oden and I have a unique experience being able to watch interviews unfold and watch the next class take form. We feel that the Class of 2022 reflects our community and will do great things to contribute to the growth of this city. We’re all so excited to welcome the new Class of 2022 and even more excited to work alongside them!”

The following leaders will come together to form the Torchbearers Class of 2022:

Leigh Ann Andreani, Production Manager, Akron Civic Theatre

Sara Baldwin, Senior Data Analyst, OnQ Solutions

Alexis Becker, Assistant Vice President, Carleton McKenna & Company

Bessette Bland, Supervisor of Investigation Fraud at Job and Family Services

Avis Brown, Director, Office of Academic Support and Retention, The University of Akron

Julie Caruso, Director of Development, Stan Hywet Hall & Gardens

Ashley Cosher, Marketing Automation Specialist, Crum and Forster Pet Insurance

Abby Darin, Staff Development Specialist, Oriana House, Inc.

Ryan Dyke, Patient Service Representative II, Akron Children’s Hospital

Katelyn Freil, Marketing & Public Relations, Freelance

Ryan Friess, Supervisor, Transmission Project Outage Planning, First Energy

Nathan Fulmer, Associate Attorney, Buckingham, Doolittle & Burroughs, LLC

Spencer Gilgenbach, Senior Content Marketer, Sikich, LLC

Brendan Haggerty, Executive Director, Legacies of Success CDC

Alexandria Harris, Relationship Banker, JP Morgan Chase

Megan Harvey, Administrative Assistant and Producer’s Representative, Millennial Theater Project and Say It Loud, The Akron Civic Theater

Steven Hooten, Associate Attorney, Jones, Funk & Associates, LPA

ShaQeria Hunter, Coordinator, Family Resource Center, United Way of Summit and Medina

Daena Johnson, Office Manager, Countryside

Alexis King, Digital Media and Communications Coordinator, Akron Area YMCA

Tajha Laflore, Manager, Corporate Engagement, United Way of Summit and Medina

Andrew Leask, Associate Vice President, Marketing & Brand Management, United Way of Summit and Medina

Rachel Loza, City Councilperson, Ward 1, City of Cuyahoga Falls

Brian Merklin, Associate Attorney, Brouse McDowell, LPA

Mario Micale, Founder & Principal, Narrative Digital Media LLC

Lindsey Molnar, Judicial Attorney, Ninth District Court of Appeals

Crystal Murphy, Housing Supervisor, United Way of Summit and Medina

Natalie Peacock, Corporate Relations Specialist, Akron-Canton Regional Foodbank

Alexandra Potter, Director of Access to Care, Cleveland Rape Crisis Center

Austen Rau, Senior Design Engineer, Hubbell Power Systems

Monique Rice, Social Program Supervisor, Summit County Department of Job and Family Services

Robyn Robertson, Building Manager: Quirk Cultural Center, City of Cuyahoga Falls

Christine Rose, Associate Director, Office of Academic and Retention Support, The University of Akron

Courtney Ruggaber, Administrative Assistant, Project Outrun

Parinita Singh, Vehicle Dynamics Engineer, Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company

Margaret Spangler, Owner, Warehouse Eight

LaDarius Steele, Assistant Director Upward Bound Classic, Kent State University

Dean Stevens, Channel Manager, Donwil Company

Fran Wilson, Senior PR Account Executive, Chatham Strategies

Rachelle Yarbrough, Data Analytics, Visualization and Custom App Specialist, Nestle USA

The new class will meet for a social event early in December and commence their year-long program for leadership and development in January 2022. Applications for the Class of 2023 will be available in the spring at TorchbearersAkron.com.

Torchbearers is an organization of emerging leaders focused on enhancing the Greater Akron community through leadership development, talent attraction and retention, and community service.  Founded in 2003, Torchbearers work to enrich the community by connecting, developing, and engaging leaders in our community and leaders of the future.

In 2009, Leadership Akron and Torchbearers signed an agreement to work more closely together to foster leadership across generations. Today, the membership is over 100 strong and reflects the diversity found across the community. To learn more about Torchbearers, please visit TorchbearersAkron.com.