After being announced in the Owensboro Living magazine earlier this month, the Greater Owensboro Chamber of Commerce’s 40 Under 40 honorees were officially introduced Thursday. According to the Chamber, the recipients were chosen based on their leadership and potential to influence the community. Two Owensboro Times staff members were among the honorees.
According to the announcement in Owensboro Living, “Each nominee was recognized as hardworking, bold, innovative, and going above and beyond to affect change in the workplace and in the community.”
Applications were reviewed by an anonymous panel of judges on a selection committee independent of the Chamber staff and board members. Final selections were made by that independent committee based on the nominee’s experience, contributions, and essay answers.
The list includes educators, farmers, entrepreneurs, business leaders, and individuals shaping Owensboro.
The OT honorees are 31-year-old Managing Editor Ryan Richardson and 24-year-old News Associate Josh Kelly.
“It’s an honor to both be selected to this prestigious list among so many other talented young professionals working to make a difference,” they said in a joint statement. “We’re dedicated to telling the stories of Owensboro in innovative ways as we try to revolutionize local journalism. We’re always learning from community feedback, and we are grateful for the support during OT’s exponential growth over the last few years.”
The full list is as follows (short bios here):
- Edris Akbari, International Center
- Summer Aldridge, Kentucky Wesleyan College
- Chris Anderson, Sun Windows
- Stephanie Bertram, H.L. Neblett Community Center
- Jake Boswell, Independence Bank
- Megan Carter, Owensboro Health
- Katie Cecil, Katie Ann Flowers, LLC
- DeMarcus Curry, U.S. Bank
- Sharmy Davis, Owensboro Community & Technical College
- Dirk Dooper, City of Owensboro
- Tristan Durbin, Owensboro-Daviess County Regional Airport
- Ellen Ebelhar, Independence Bank
- Ashley Evans-Smith, CASA of Ohio Valley
- Jayson Fallin, Owensboro High School
- Brandon Gilles, Farm Credit Mid-America
- Jim Gilles, Hill View Farms Meats
- David Grinnell, Tanner+West
- Mason Head, Apollo High School
- Andrew Howard, Independence Bank
- Kara Howard, Wendell Foster
- Ross Hyland, Hyland Enterprises
- Jamie Johnson, Owensboro Small Business Development Center
- Josh Kelly, Owensboro Times
- Dave Kirk, Visit Owensboro
- Amanda Owen, Puzzle Pieces
- Travis Owsley, Beverly’s Hearty Slice
- Trey Pippen, Greenwell Chisholm
- Jared Revlett, Owensboro Public Schools
- Ryan Richardson, Owensboro Times
- Cody Russelburg, Sutton Elementary School
- Ben Skiadas, Lure Seafood & Grille
- Samantha Taylor-Ka’ai, Audubon Area Community Care Clinic
- Shaelie Velez, City of Owensboro
- Mario Vizuet, Old National Investments
- Ashtin Warren, Greater Owensboro Chamber of Commerce
- Dustin Warren, Warren Farms
- Sydney Warren, Brescia University
- Will Wathen, Southern Star Gas Pipeline, Inc.
- Sarah Williams, Riney Hancock
- Emmy Woosley, Daciel Safety Systems America
