BROOKLYN MEDIA GROUP SEPTEMBER 29 - OCTOBER 5, 2017 23
Women rule the evening during annual Staten
Island Power Women in Business event
BY JAIME DEJESUS
JDEJESUS@BROOKLYNREPORTER.COM
Honoring the borough’s successful
women and raising
funds for a great cause, the
Star Network hosted its annual and
successful “Staten Island Power
Women in Business” event on Tuesday,
September 19.
To mark the occasion, hundreds
gathered at the Hilton Garden Inn,
1100 South Avenue, as some of the
island's most influential women were
honored for their work. Exhibitors
were also on hand for a networking
event and a raffle was held that benefited
the Florina Rusi Marke Cancer
Foundation. Rusi Marke died of
breast cancer at the age of 34 in 2003.
The Florina Rusi Marke Community
Leadership Award Recipient went
to Robin Lefkowitz, executive vice
president and director of business
development for Northfield Bank.
The Empire State Bank Change
Maker Award went to Holly Bonner,
owner and founder of Blind Motherhood
LLC and director of education &
outreach for IlluminArt Productions.
The other honorees were Diane
Campione, Office Associate II,
New York Public Library; Valarie
Contrino, Owner, Contrino Travel,
Inc.; Suzanne Demetrio, Mortgage
Loan Originator, Residential Home
Funding Corp.; Jacqueline Filis, Executive
Director, YMCA Counseling
Services; Elaine Gil, Licensed NYS
Real Estate Salesperson, Safari
Realty; Dari Guttman-Panzer, Sales
Consultant, Sansone Auto Mall; Dr.
Susan L. Holak, Founding Dean of
the School of Business and Professor,
College of Staten Island; Leslie
Kasegrande, Managing Partner,
Estate Planning & Administration
Department, Scamardella, Gervasi,
Thomson & Kasegrande, P.C.; Christina
Korkowski , Co-Founder and
Chief Operating Officer, Ounce Water
& Go Get It Life; Margaret LoCicero,
BROOKLYN MEDIA GROUP/Photos by Corazon Aguirre & Arthur de Gaeta
Creator and Owner, Michael’s Martinis
& Meatballs Restaurant; Josephine
Marino, Community Relations
Representative, Empire BlueCross
BlueShield HealthPlus; Cathy Muraca,
Owner, French Secrets Lingerie;
Antonella Pesce, Sales Manager, Bella
Mia Foods, Importers of Fine Italian
Products; Kimberly Pintus, General
Manager, The Hilton Garden Inn
Staten Island; Caryn Pollock, Senior
Director, Pampered Chef; Theresa
Pommerenk, AVP, Branch Manager,
Empire State Bank; Josephine Portuesi,
Second Vice President, Branch
Manager, Richmond County Savings
Bank; Tricia Rega, Owner, Limitless
Fitness Studio; Joan A. Risko, Senior
Vice President, New York-Corporate
Lending, Santander Bank; Suzann
Rizzo, Assistant Vice President and
Branch Manager, Investors Bank;
Angelic Sealy, CEO, ACALAN Corp;
Dr. Rita Shats, Pavlides, Benson, Shats
Ob/Gyn Associates, Richmond University
Medical Center, Department
of Ob/Gyn; Debra Surmanek, Partner/
Creative Director/ Graphic Designer,
Ivy Brand & Marketing Group;
Michele Tosic, President, Nexxus
Consulting Services & Verrazano
Kiwanis; Helene Purpura-Wieling,
Owner, Groom Go Round; and Luz
Maria Utrera; President/Founder,
Luz Maria Foundation.
Roseanne Venturino, an author,
fitness trainer and inspirational
leader who died of cancer just eight
weeks prior to the event, received a
posthumous award.
The presenting sponsor for the event
was Staten Island University Hospital/
Northwell Health; the other sponsors
were Empire State Bank, Northfield
Bank, Sansone Auto Mall, Investors
Bank, Richmond County Savings
Bank, National Grid, Broadway Stages,
JetBlue, Medcast Plus, Schneps Communications,
Star Network, the Staten
Island Chamber of Commerce and the
Staten Island Economic Development
Corporation (SIEDC).