Local business and community leaders were recently recognized when they were presented with awards: the 2012 Top 199 Minority Business Enterprise (MBE) Awards and The Daily Record’s (TDR) Maryland Top 100 Women.
The MBE Awards, which honor minority and women entrepreneurs, were created to recognize businesspersons that fuel the nation’s economy through innovation, sacrifices and dedication. The following MBE award winners live or work in Anne Arundel and Howard counties.
• Virginia Callahan, president and CEO, VA Associates, Columbia
• Betsy Cerulo, CEO, AdNet/AccountNet, Columbia
• Purnell Chapple, president and CEO, Dejuan Enterprises, Ellicott City
• Sharon Gilbert, owner, Crowning Alternatives, Linthicum
• Barbara Hutchinson, owner/managing partner, Chesapeake Cardiac Care, Annapolis
• Gloria Larkin, president, TargetGov at Marketing Outsource Associates, Columbia
• Thomas Laskowski, president, GANTECH, Columbia
• Terrence Porter, president, Dynamic Technology Group, Annapolis Junction
• Megan Pulliam, CEO, ArcSource Group, Columbia
• Rhonda Ulmer Shackleford, founding director, University for Parents, Severn
• Terry Sherman, founder/president/CEO, Delmarva Trailer Sales and Rentals, Elkridge
• Jo Ellen Soesbee, CEO, Reliable Repairs, Pasadena
• Josie Thompson, owner, Thompson Design, Ellicott City
• Ravi Waldon, president, principal, Waldon Studio Architects & Planners, Columbia
• Alvin Williams, owner/operator, Williams Enterprises, Odenton
• Margaret Wood, president/CEO, WOOD Consulting Services, Fulton
• Anthie Zairis, president, Group Z, Columbia
Maryland’s Top 100 Women
TDR’s Top 100 Women designation is awarded to candidates who have excelled professionally, in the community and with mentoring. Several local women were recognized this year.
• Gayle Economos, owner, GVE Media/Public Relations, Pasadena
Vicki Finkelstein, Senior Real Estate Counsel, W. R. Grace & Co., Columbia
Kate Hetherington, president, Howard Community College, Columbia
Ann Karpoff Sober, director, Special Beginnings Birth & Women’s Center, Arnold
Lorene Lake, executive director, Chrysalis House, Arnold
Trudy Perkins, Office of Congressman Elijah Cummings
Katherine Rensin, board chair, Howard Community College, Columbia
Rosa Scharf, senior vice president, Howard Bank, Ellicott City
Courtney Watson, Howard County Council and Rossmann-Hurt-Hoffman, Ellicott City
Joan Webb Scornaienchi, executive director, HC DrugFree, Columbia
