The finalists of the 2023 Brilliance Awards are: Brilliant Woman of the Year Zaneta Adams, JD | CEO & Owner | River Acres Development LLC Cara Anne Poland, MD, MEd, FACP, DFASAM | Michigan State UniversityMegan Schmidt | Senior Vice...
Recent Brilliance Awards Finalists Articles
Anna Baeten
Executive Director Scratch Branding and Funky Buddha Yoga Brilliant Connector Anna is generous of spirit, committed to community and a champion of others. She created the West Side Artists Project in order to connect the west side business community with area artists....
Mary O’Neill
Vice President Atomic Object Brilliant Team Player Although she is rarely the public face of projects, Mary skillfully brings her workplace experience to bear on a wide range of initiatives at Atomic Object and in the broader community. For example, she used her...
Meredith Bronk
CEO & President OST Brilliant Woman of the Year To start as a project manager on a team of six people, to eventually running a company of over 200 people with offices in GR, MN and Detroit is amazing. Meredith somehow manages to personally connect with everyone on...
Leslie Pelkey MD, FACP
Chief Medical Officer/Internal Medicine Cherry Health Brilliant Team Player Dr. Pelkey is the biggest advocate of her patients and staff, frequently going above and beyond the call of duty. She is passionate about serving the community who are often unable to access...
Christy Buck
Executive Director Mental Health Foundation of WM Brilliant Woman of the Year Christy has worked in mental health for over 30 years in West Michigan. Her life’s mission is to educate people about mental illness and reduce stigma. Christy is the creator and founder of...
Shelby Reno
Owner CKO Kickboxing Brilliant Entrepreneur In 2015, Shelby decided to go all-in on entrepreneurism. She left her job as a marketing executive and started a commercial real estate practice. At the same time, she began the process to buy a fitness kickboxing franchise....
Michael Cazer
COO Amway Brilliant Best Supporting Man As a male ally to women and gender equity, Mike understands the significance of his role as COO to enable other male leaders to be advocates and champions of gender equity, where male leaders step up beside women to fix the...
Emily Richett
Founder and Lead Publicist Happy PR Brilliant Tenacity Like most budding young entrepreneurs, Emily has encountered everyday challenges of launching and growing a business. In the midst of this, she was dealt a devastating life challenge that few could imagine. Emily...
Shannon Cohen
Founder and CEO Shannon Cohen Inc. Brilliant Connector As the Founder and Principal and Shannon Cohen, Inc., she offers speaking engagements in areas such as emotional intelligence, and equity and inclusion that transform the lives of leaders. Also, she is the...