3 minute read
SPOTLIGHT
photo by Madeline Gray
SPOTLIGHTS FROM THE WILMINGTONBIZ 100 LIST
The annual WilmingtonBiz 100 list, published by WILMA sister publication Greater Wilmington Business Journal, includes the year’s Power Players, Influencers, Innovators, Connectors, and Rising Stars. Released in December, it features those working in a variety of fields and projects.
Wilmington Downtown Inc. President and CEO HOLLY CHILDS (from left), Genesis Block CoFounder TRACEY NEWKIRK, and Wilmington Chamber of Commerce President and CEO NATALIE ENGLISH were featured in the cover story about new economic development focuses.
Info: WilmingtonBizMagazine.com
CHRISTENSEN TO LEAD FEMALE CHEF TEAM WILMINGTON HEALTH WELCOMES PROVIDERS WHITTEN HEADS UP PLANTATION VILLAGE
James Beard Award-winning chef ASHLEY CHRISTENSEN will head up an all-female team of chefs for GLOW’s foundation fundraiser this month.
The seventh annual Celebrity Chef Events are scheduled for January 20 and 21, including a limited-seating dinner at a private residence and a luncheon at Country Club of Landfall.
Girls Leadership Academy of Wilmington, or GLOW, has a history of having celebrity chefs visit for fundraisers because of industry ties from the school’s founder JUDY GIRARD, former president of the Food Network.
The school, the state’s only single-gender public charter school, opened in 2016 with a focus to work with girls from underserved communities.
This year’s culinary team, lead by Christensen, includes Garland owner/ chef CHEETIE KUMAR from Raleigh; Aragosta owner/chef DEVIN FINIGAN from Deer Isle, Maine; and Monteverde partner/chef SARAH GRUENEBERG from Chicago.
The James Beard Foundation named Christensen Best Chef in the Southeast in 2014 and Most Outstanding Chef in 2019.
Wilmington Health recently welcomed SHAWNA BOYLE, board-certified urologist; CATHERINE DUNCAN, pelvic floor therapist; cardiac vascular nurse JOLENE BEAUMONT; and nurse practitioner KARA MARKER.
Boyle graduated from the University of Calgary’s Medical Degree Program in Alberta, Canada. She completed her urology residency at the University of Western Ontario in London, Ontario. She did her fellowship in urologic oncology at the National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland.
Duncan, who also joined Wilmington Health’s urology department, graduated from East Carolina University with a doctorate in physical therapy.
Beaumont is now part of the cardiology team. Beaumont has served on the Nursing Leadership Counsel representing the cardiac unit and cardiac cath lab and has been a Women’s Health Expo presenter educating women on heart attack and stroke prevention tactics.
And Marker joined Wilmington Health’s Transitions in Care department, where she plays a key role in chronic care management.
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Plantation Village, a nonprofit Life Plan Community in Porters Neck, hired JOLYNN WHITTEN as its new executive director.
Whitten replaces Zane Bennett, who had served in the role since 2015 and was recently promoted to director of business development for Life Care Services, Plantation Village’s management company.
Plantation Village is home to 300 residents who live independently in apartments and villas and have priority access to the health care services of the nearby Davis community.
Whitten has served as an executive director or administrator for many skilled nursing, assisting living, and Life Plan Communities in Maryland, Florida, and New Hampshire in her career.
As Plantation Village’s executive director she is responsible for overall operations of the community, including occupancy, finances, regulatory compliance, and resident and employee satisfaction. Whitten began her new position full time on December 1, the same day the community broke ground on a three-phase expansion.
“Prior to Plantation Village, I was executive director at Hillside Village, a brand-new Continuing Care Retirement Community in Keene, New Hampshire,” Whitten says. “Here, I oversaw all aspects of the startup, from construction to hiring to sales. This ground-up experience will serve me well as we head into our expansion program at Plantation Village.”
