Have party, will travel – that could be the motto of the Fort Worth Business Press 40 Under 40 event. The annual program honoring Fort Worth and Tarrant County’s outstanding young business and civic leaders has been held in ballrooms, event centers and even, a few years ago, at a drive-in movie theater.
This year the event landed at the perfect venue for party animals – for animals of all kinds, in fact: the renowned Fort Worth Zoo. A crowd of about 500 gathered for the June 21 event at The Reserve, the zoo’s tented outdoor venue located within gawking distance of giraffes, rhinos and hippos, among other marvels of the wild.
The 40 Under 40 party wasn’t all that wild but there was no shortage of fun as the Business Press handed out awards and accolades to rising stars of the community representing a wide spectrum of businesses and nonprofits.
“Those of you being honored this evening, you are a special group,” said Richard Connor, president and publisher of the Business Press and also master of ceremonies for the evening.
“You’re meeting a group of incredibly special people,” he told the audience.
As each honoree took the stage, the video screen next to it scrolled through pictures, affording the audience a chance to get a glimpse of the each outside of the business world – from standing on snow-capped mountains to desert terrains to a variety of family settings. The photos were greeted with spontaneous murmurs of approval including plenty of “awws,” and “how cutes.”
Connor introduced each honoree with an interesting fact or amusing tidbit garnered from questionnaires they filled out for publication in a special 40 Under 40 issue of the Business Press.
Taking note of the event’s unique setting amid one of Fort Worth’s leading tourist attractions, Connor thanked the zoo staff and offered words of praise for Ramona Bass, chair of the Fort Worth Zoological Association.
“When I came here, if you saw the zoo, you’d think about calling animal control,” he said. “Ramona Bass raised $300 million to build (renovate) this zoo. This zoo, in my opinion, is an incredible contribution to Fort Worth.”
Coincidentally, 40 Under 40 was held on the eve of the debut of the zoo’s newest exhibit, “Predators of Asia & Africa.” It’s the third phase of a $130 million capital campaign designed not only to improve the zoo experience for visitors but to gurarantee the survival of species that could become extinct in the wild.
Connor also made a point of thanking the sponsors of the event.
“We are so grateful to them,” he said. “We couldn’t do this without them.”
The sponsors were:
- Presenting Sponsor: Texas Christian University
- Gold Sponsor: Goff Capital
- Sustaining Sponsors: Kimbell Art Museum, United Way of Tarrant County, Rod Patrick Boots
- Silver Sponsor: Varghese Summersett
- Bronze Sponsors: Goodwill North Central Texas, Artemis Equity, Dickies Arena, M.Gale and Associates
The complete list of 40 Under 40 honorees:
DANIELA DIMAYUGA ARROYO
Senior Tax Manager
JTaylor
MATT AUTRY
President of Oil & Gas
Valor
JENNI BARNETT
Audit Partner
Whitley Penn
SHANNON BEARDEN
Managing Director, Architect, Interior Designer
Tryba Architects
WHITNEY BECKWORTH
Partner
Kelly Hart & Hallman
ALLISON BLAKEWELL
Founder, Owner-Operator
Fort Worth Wellness
MELONDY DODDY-MUNOZ
Senior Director of Strategy & Growth
Tarrant To and Through (T3).
LESLEY DUPRE
Senior Account Director, PR Specialist
Balcom Agency
AVERY ELANDER
Director of Marketing and Public Relations
Fort Worth Zoo.
LEON EVANS
Chief Financial Officer
Trinity Healthcare
DAVID FISHEL
Chief Partnership Officer, Managing Director
Higginbotham
ADAM FULKERSON
CEO
Decker Jones
TYSON GARFIELD
Assistant Professor Of Geriatric Medicine
University of North Texas Health Science Center
CHRISTOPHER GOFF
Vice President
Crescent Real Estate
TRAVIS GOFF
President
Goff Capital
JOSEPH (JOE) GREENHILL
Partner Appellate Section
Kelly Hart & Hallman
COLBY HALE
Partner, Co-Founder
High Water Strategies
LAURA HUTYRA
Vice President
M. Gale & Associates
CRISTINA JARAMILLO
Owner, President
St. Francis Veterinary Clinic
THERESA LAM
Director of Education Programs
Goodwill North Central Texas
COURTNEY LEAVERTON
Director of Community Engagement
Our Community Our Kids
ACH Child and Family Services
CHANEN LIVELY
Vice President for Human Resources
Employment Counsel
Envoy Air
BRITTANY LOVE
Assistant Professor of Geriatrics
University of North Texas Health Science Center
SAJADE MILLER
Superintendent
Rocketship Public Schools Texas
MATT MONTAGUE
Senior Managing Director
JLL
THOMAS NELSON
CEO, Founder
Trilogy Aviation Group
JEFF PARKS
Shareholder
Friedman, Suder & Cooke
ALBERTO PARRA
Medical Oncologist, Hematologist, Vice President of Finances
The Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders
HUNTER PARRISH
Partner
Dawson Parrish Springman
TRAVIS PATTERSON
Managing Partner
Patterson Law Group
WILLIE RANKIN JR.
Director
Institute to Advance Child Care
Child Care Associates
COLE REEDER
Vice President
Reeder Construction
KRISTINA ROBERTSON
Executive Director, Co-Founder
Project 4031
ANDREW SCHMIDT
Director of Technology
Trail Drive Management
JARED SLOANE
CEO
Accelerate DFW Foundation
MCKINZIE SMITH
Senior Vice President
CG Group
ROBERT (WILL) SNIDER
Director
Lowery Property Advisors
BEN STEWART
Executive Director, Market Team Lead
J.P. Morgan Private Bank
ANNA SUMMERSETT VARGHESE
Partner, Owner
Varghese Summersett
KARIN TAYLOR
Director of Interior Design
Quorum Architects
CHRISTOPHER TRINH
Sports Medicine Physician
Baylor Scott and White
