The Point in Norwalk was the scene of a lively gathering of Fairfield County’s best and brightest on June 15. Westfair Communications, parent company of the Westchester and Fairfield County Business Journals, recognized 40 distinguished members of Fairfield County’s business and nonprofit community under the age of 40 for their innovation, perseverance, and accomplishments with a seaside ceremony.
The 2023 edtion of 40 Under Forty was emceed by Matt Scott, a meteorologist and cohost for FOX61 Morning News, who took credit for the evening’s fine weather by wisecracking “Let’s see them do that on News 12!”
Sponsors for the event included the Bridge House, a provider of mental health services for adults across Fairfield County, leading regional CPA firm CironeFriedberg, auditing and consulting firm Deloitte and the financial search firm Forum Group Connecticut. ONTHEMARC Events was also a sponsor and also provided the catering; Sacred Heart University and global real estate developer Wellbuilt also held sponsorship honors while Yale New Haven Health and Millbrook Winery rounded out the event’s supporters.
The honorees were selected by Nelson Merchan, a business advisor at the Connecticut Small Business Development Center, and Dr. Nikki Wingate, an associate professor of marketing at the Welch College of Business and Technology of Sacred Heart University.
“Incredible. Amazing. Fantastic. A pleasure to have in class,” Wingate joked as she explained the criteria for selecting the honorees. “Wait, that one might be for school children. Extraordinary. These are the adjectives that came into our heads.”
“I have to tell you that the judging for this year was particularly difficult because so many people were nominated that were literally off the chart,” Wingate added. “It was a challenging but very rewarding experience for us to be involved in the judging.”
The honorees were introduced by the leaders of their respective partner chambers of commerce, who also nominated the candidates. Nominees belonged to the Chambers of Commerce of Darien, Fairfield, Greenwich, Ridgefield, Stamford, and Wilton. The partnership also included Bridgeport Regional Business Council, the combined Westport-Weston Chamber of Commerce, the Greater Valley Chamber of Commerce, the Greater Danbury Chamber of Commerce and the Greater Norwalk Chamber of Commerce.
The candidates were each asked to answer three questions, one of which Scott would ask them to share with the audience as they receive their award.
Scott ribbed the first honoree , Joubin Bavarian, vice president of operations and nursing at Bridgeport Hospital , by first asking him if a train were leaving Chicago and another leaving New York would they meet if they left at the same time traveling different speeds.
The actual question posed to Bavarian after the laughter as he attempted to respond was “What business tip has been the most helpful to you?”
“I have to go back to my first managing director of my first consulting firm,” Bavarian told the audience. “He said, ‘They don’t make monuments to pessimists,’ and I have to remind myself that every day. Especially when you work in a post Covid environment in healthcare. It’s a challenging place to work, to be better, and remain optimistic we are going to make a difference.”
The honorees were also asked what motivates them in the morning, how they personally describe achieving success, and how long they are willing to fail before succeeding. More light-hearted questions were also included, such as whether honorees would rather go back in time with all their current knowledge or receive $50 million now, and what superpower they would like to have. The business interview standards of where they see themselves in a decade and what they can do to positively affect their communities were also put to the honorees.
Responses ranged from wry remarks about rambunctious kids making the decision to get up in the morning to earnestly thanking God for business success.
The wide range of responses reflected the many different paths to success followed by all 40 honorees. Latoya Fernandez, the first chief diversity, equity and inclusion officer for the city of Norwalk, thanked the nominators for recognizing the efforts of a highly diverse group.
“In these kinds of situations, I think about how you have to be very intentional about bringing diversity and making people feel like they belong,” Fernandez said. “And I think that they were very intentional about that.”
The 2023 Fairfield County 40 Under 40 winners are:
Ӣ Chris Andricopoulos, managing director, Northwestern Mutual
Ӣ Kathleen Atkins, new business development- private client services, Hub International Northeast
Ӣ Kevin Atterberry, web developer, Peralta Design
Ӣ Joubin Bavarian, vice president, operations and nursing, Bridgeport Hospital, Yale New Haven Health
Ӣ Joseph Britton, Board of Education Attorney, Waterbury Public Schools
Ӣ Tory Brown, founder and CEO, The Two Oh Three
”¢ Sadie Caccimelio, development manager, Alzheimer’s Association
Ӣ Lazaro Chavez, managing director, CityCenter Danbury
Ӣ Jessica Edward, CEO, Caring for Seniors Adult Daycare Center LLC
Ӣ Ashek Elahi, restaurateur, Mama Bella Cucina
”¢ Latoya Fernandez, chief diversity, equity and inclusion officer, City of Norwalk Mayor’s Office
Ӣ Christina Genz, director of education, Soundwaters
Ӣ Christine Guan, owner, The Learning Experience (Wilton and Newtown)
Ӣ Robert Guiry, vice president of investments, David Lerner Associates
Ӣ Jenifer Johnson, owner/event planner, Sweet Bean Events
Ӣ Ryan Kelly, area vice president, Arthur J. Gallagher Risk Management Services LLC
Ӣ Nicole Kelman, CEO and education consultant, New England Education Consultants
Ӣ Ellie Kirke, director of sales and marketing, Sunrise Senior Living
Ӣ John Kleinhans, government affairs and communications advisor, City of Danbury
Ӣ Scott Lumby, managing partner, Wellbuilt Company
Ӣ Vanessa Maczko, partner, Wiggin and Dana
Ӣ Lauren J. Mashe, attorney, LJM Law LLC
Ӣ Elizabeth Mattern, senior loan originator, Main Street Mortgage LLC
Ӣ Dr. Michelle Neves, owner, founder and pediatric dentist, Sasco Pediatric Dentistry
”¢ Megan Palmer Rivera, managing director, Palmer’s Market
Ӣ Ashley Paltauf, managing director, Ridgefield Playhouse
Ӣ Heather Peracchio, assistant extension educator, University of Connecticut
Ӣ Mark Pires, senior manager, CironeFriedberg LLP
Ӣ Shari Raymond, founder and CEO, Milton & Goose
Ӣ Adam Richichi, CEO, Dental Associates of CT
Ӣ Kevin Saunders, senior manager, workforce transformation, Deloitte Consulting LLP
Ӣ Sipho Simela, founder and CEO, Matrix Rental Solutions
Ӣ Andrew Stallings, agency president, Athelo Group
Ӣ Tim Topi, owner and master baker, Wave Hill Breads
Ӣ Porschia Turner, vice president and branch manager, M&T Bank
Ӣ John Varamo, director of development, The Norwalk Conservatory of the Arts
Ӣ Rosie Snow Voulgaris, founder, Pop Art! Kids
Ӣ Betsy Warfield, interim vice president of emergency programs, Americares
Ӣ Jessie Wong, executive director, Autism Behavioral Health
Ӣ Joanmarie Zoeller, insurance agent , sales representative, Comparion , Liberty Mutual Company
