Pittsburgh North Regional Chamber celebrates 50th anniversary, honors local business community
The Pittsburgh North Regional Chamber recognized accomplishments in the business community and celebrated its 50th anniversary Thursday evening at the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel in Mars.
The event, led by Celina Pompeani of Pittsburgh Today Live as the master of ceremonies, presented six awards to the business community. It featured Carlos Carter, the president and CEO of the Urban League of Greater Pittsburgh, as the keynote speaker.
“The event honors all types of people in our organization with the awards,” chamber president Jim Boltz said. “There are so many of our business and partners that do so much, and it’s great to give them that recognition.”
The chamber, which has a presence in Butler, Beaver and Allegheny counties, presented the following awards: outstanding volunteer service award, women entrepreneur excellence, prestigious business leader, distinguished business, nonprofit excellence, and young professional of the year.
“All the winners are very deserving, but also all the nominees,” Boltz said. “It’s a selection that starts in February. We get around 60 nominations, but then we have to break it down.
“I could go on about all of them, but that would take up too much time. We sometimes feel guilty because there’s people who should also be nominated, but unfortunately, we can only do so many.”
The chamber’s membership consists of around 1,100 business, that employ about 24,000 employees. It is recognized as a top-three chamber in the country, Boltz said.
Sheila Talarico received the Outstanding Volunteer Service award for her work as executive director at the Glade Run Foundation in Zelienople.
“I was just in such good company tonight,” Talarico said. “I never thought I’d be the one selected.”
Talarico has been with Glade Run for 13 years and is working to further their marketing, fundraising, public relations and communications.
“It would be just about everything,” Talarico said. “It’s just whatever they tell me to do. I do enjoy the variety. We are such a complex organization with so many different services, but I enjoy seeing what we do come to life in the end.”
The Women Entrepreneur Excellence award went to Stephanie Scoletti, who is the executive director and founder of Young Adult Survivors United.
Her organization focuses on the health and wellness community for cancer survivors aged 18-39 when diagnosed.
Cancer experiences for young adults are different because the developmental stage of life they are in is different, she said.
“I’m responsible for anything from managing programs, managing events, to seeking funding,” Scoletti said. “We help a cancer population that doesn’t get much support elsewhere because there is not enough knowledge in society in what it means to be a young adult with cancer.”
The Prestigious Business Leader award went to Bob Sherwin, executive branch director of Bethany Christian Services in Wexford.
His organization helps to empower youth, protect children and strengthen families in his community.
The Distinguished Business award went to AHN Wexford Hospital, which was opened during the pandemic as a 160-bed hospital to provide advanced comprehensive health services close to home.
Jen Riley, the food and nutrition services director at the hospital, has worked closely with 412 Food Rescue to help donate over 3,200 pounds of food to the area.
The Nonprofit Excellence award was taken home by Northland Public Library, which was represented by Amy Steele and Tom Kosmala at the event.
“Every day is different,” Steele said. “We always say we help every age. There is also more than just checking out books.
“You can check out board games, video games, radon detectors, virtual reality headsets, — it goes on.”
Northland had the highest circulation of physical items in Allegheny County with 945,082 items — almost double that of the next highest library.
The Young Professional of the Year award went to Jacqlyn Boggs, assistant director of programs and services at North Hills Community Outreach.
She oversees all the programs and services out of its Millville office and works to build strong relationships within her community and nonprofits.
“I like getting to meet people and help them,” Boggs said. “I started out with North Hills doing taxes, of all things, but I’ve got to meet a lot of interesting people over the years.”
The event also recognized a Board Champion of the Year. This year’s award went to Tracy Armstrong, owner of North Pittsburgh Greeting Company.
Boltz noted during his speech that the board itself is very competitive when it comes to fundraising, recruiting new members and board nominations.
