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.