Hundreds of colleagues, well-wishers, friends and family members gathered on Thursday to celebrate women honored as the 2025 Power Women of the Bronx, ranging from business to nonprofit and government.
Many had shattered glass ceilings and all were part of making a better Bronx. Some honorees have been with their organizations for decades and some newly arrived, making huge differences in their community, borough and the city.
Schneps Media, publishers of the Bronx Times, El Correo, Caribbean Life and amnyMetro, honored these women, connected them with other influential women and fostered an environment of support to do business and build community.
The honorees on Nov. 19 at Villa Barone Manor networked and walked a red carpet with raffle proceeds going to support Neighborhood Self Help by Older Persons Project (SHOPP).
In a borough where Vanessa L. Gibson serves as its first woman borough president, there were many signs of a changing world as female leaders from business, healthcare, education, government and a wide range of fields united.
Darcel Denise Clark, the 13th Bronx District Attorney and first woman to hold this post, talked about her role. as did bank executives, educators, businesswomen, administrators, leaders in law, healthcare and human resources.
“I just do what I do,” Clark said. “I think women lead differently with empathy and compassion, as well as knowledge of the law.”
Others talked about female leadership in the Bronx as a crucial part of the borough’s growth, present and future amid an entrepreneurship surge.
“The leadership of women is exploding. The whole glass ceiling is no longer applicable,” Bronx Chamber of Commerce President and Mistress of Ceremonies Lisa Sorin said. “They bring a different mentality.”
The first Hispanic woman to run the chamber, Sorin said a study by New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli found a 30% increase in entrepreneurship in the South Bronx over the past few years.
“The Bronx is seeing an incredible resurgence of small business and entrepreneurs,” Sorin said. “There’s a silver lining to the horrific pandemic. Post Covid, those doing business out of their houses grew their business. They became legal, got licenses. I think it’s phenomenal.”
Many healthcare and nonprofit leaders were celebrated, addressing social and healthcare needs.
RiverSpring Living Chief Operating Officer Deborah Messina said she has spent her entire career in the Bronx. While women dominate nursing, social work and caregiving, she said women in healthcare leadership are now becoming more common.
“It definitely evolved. We’re making a lot of strides” Messina said. “It’s up to us as leaders to help the next generation, being mentors and encouraging.”
Cheraine Case, vice president of administration and chief administrative officer of the Urban Health Plan, which provides primary and specialty services in the Bronx, talked about healthcare as a huge sector.
“This means a lot to me. It recognizes the hard work that Urban Health Plan has done in the community for the past 50 years,” Case said of her group, led by CEO Paloma Izquierdo-Hernandez. “I think in healthcare and in the Bronx, there are a lot more women in leadership.”
Trish Gathers, President and CEO of The Carmelite System, a Catholic not-for-profit health system sponsored by the Carmelite Sisters for the Aged and Infirm, was honored. The system includes senior care facilities that provide services to the aged and infirm.
Women in banking also were honored as part of an industry where women increasingly lead institutions, departments, and otherwise play key roles in lending and finance.
“In this day and age, women play a pivotal role in shaping the finances of the neighborhoods we live in,” Mercedes Castro, Ridgewood Savings Bank Assistant Vice President. said. We deal with customers from every walk of life. We have an influence in those different areas.
Others talked about challenges in professions where high-ranking women sometimes face disproportionate doubts if not outright discrimination.
“When I started, the men did not want to talk to me,” said Jessica Ortiz Gonzalez, vice president of operations for American Maintenance Janitorial Services and Supplies and chairwoman of Bronx Chamber of Commerce’s foundation. “I’m aggressive, in your face. I’ll keep coming to you and give you my business card, so we can sit down and talk about business.”
One Fordham Plaza Assistant Building Manager Jacqueline Diaz said more women are going into traditionally male professions such as construction, architecture and engineering.
“You definitely see a shift,” Diaz said. “Women are becoming engineers and architects. You see women doing construction work. You see women creating and leading construction companies.”
Katherine Martinez, a social worker and president and CEO of Neighborhood Self Help by Older Persons Project (SHOPP) talked about a Latina leadership surge.
“Culturally, for me, it’s important. As a Latina, there were norms in terms of what your role is and was. We’ve combatted that,” Martinez said. “We’ve overachieved that and have now been able to become who we are in our respective fields.”
SHOPP served as the charity partner for the event where 100% of raffle proceeds and a portion of the live and silent auction were donated to the important local cause.
Thekra El-Rowmeim, Director of Family and Youth for the Yemeni American Merchants Association, said many Yeminis, including women, have opened businesses.
“They used to be only housewives staying home. Now they entered many jobs like education, nursing, and businesses,” El-Rowmeim said. “We have a lot of Yemini working as business women.”
Rowmeim said her group has provides a wide range of resources to men and women, who went on to start and grow businesses
“I know a lot of women empowered by our organization who opened their own business from home,” Rowmeim said. “Some of them have their own shops. Some still work from home.”
John Zaccaro Jr., Assemblyman for the 80th district, in the Bronx, said it’s important for male elected officials to join in “elevating the voices of women” and celebrating their work.
“This event is a great opportunity to see and celebrate women who are in business, entrepreneurs, from all different industries and walks of life,” he said.
Zaccaro added women played a huge role in his life, citing a few heroes who helped him learn to lead.
“Women are the backbone of everything we do,” he said. “I’m a son raised by a single mother and a grandmother who I watched day in and day out struggle, but wake up every day and provide and do what they need to do for their families.”
Martinez said he works to combat ageism faced by clients and those she helps, ensuring older people are treated well and with respect.
“We want to make sure that older adults are not treated unfairly because of their age,” she said. “We’re all aging gracefully.”
Lashawn Butler-Francis, founder and CEO of Butler Services for Independent Living, talked about the challenge of starting her own organization.
“Without programs like mine, people would have to live in a nursing home,” she said. “We find a way to keep people in the community.”
Jennifer Montalvo, a social worker and assistant program director for the Stand Up to Violence Program at Jacobi Hospital, said young women today can find many female role models in the workplace.
“I think it’s important especially for young ladies in the Bronx to see women in leadership roles,” Montalvo said. “It’s really important to set that example for young women, to believe you can make it. It might take some time and effort. It might take tears.”
Martinez chimed in that successful women can lead to more successful women as the glass ceiling not only breaks but reveals the sky as the limit.
“Being mentors for so many other women in becoming leaders in male dominated fields,” Martinez said. “That’s critical.”
Diaz, meanwhile, took that to a personal level, adding it’s important for her daughter to see her and other women excelling in the workplace.
“I feel that it’s a great influence to my daughter, who’s 12, and other young ladies in the community,” she said. “To show we can be strong, powerful women, and do whatever we put our minds to.”
2025 Power Women of the Bronx
Davina Angus, Executive Director – Hunts Point Alliance for Children
Aleciah Anthony, Director of Community Engagement – The Bronx Defenders
Raye A. Barbieri, LCSW, Chief Executive Officer – Kingsbridge Heights Community Center
Lashawn Butler-Francis, LCSW, Founder and Chief Executive Officer – Butler Services for Independent Living
Jessica Cabrera, Manager of Online Programs and Academic Engagement – CUNY Bronx Community College
Cheraine Case, Vice President of Administration / Chief Administrative Officer – Urban Health Plan
Mercedes Castro, Assistant Vice President – Ridgewood Savings Bank
Darcel Denise Clark, District Attorney – 13th District Attorney for Bronx County
Sara Collins-Sedey, Principal Law Clerk to Judge – NYS Supreme Court
Farah Despeignes, Founder and President – Jacquelin Montalvo Despeignes Foundation & New York City Coalition for Educating Families Together
Jacqueline Diaz, Assistant Building Manager – One Fordham Plaza, LLC
Michelle Dolgow, Vice President – Allied Government Affairs
Taryn Duffy, Founder and President – Tarsam Public Affairs
Audrey Duncan, Director of Community Affairs – BronxNet
Thekra El-Rowmeim, Director of Family and Youth – Yemeni American Merchants Association
Irene Estrada, Former NYC Mayoral Candidate
Nathalia Fernandez, New York State Senator, District 34
Dawn M. Florio, Founding & Managing Partner – Dawn M. Florio Law Firm PLLC
Trish Gathers, President & CEO – The Carmelite System
Vanessa L. Gibson, Bronx Borough President
Ariela Heilman, Associate Broker – Brown Harris Stevens Residential Sales, LLC
Katherine Martinez, LMSW, President and CEO – Neighborhood Self Help by Older Persons Project (SHOPP)
Deborah M. Messina, Chief Operating Officer, RiverSpring Living
Jessica Ortiz Gonzalez, Vice President of Operations, American Maintenance 3 Janitorial Services and Supplies Co., Corp.
Ariela Heilman, Associate Broker, Brown Harris Stevens Residential Sales, LLC
Katherine Martinez, LMSW, President & CEO – Neighborhood Self Help by Older Persons Project (SHOPP)
Dr. Ana B. Mendieta, Advancement and External Relations – Bronx Community College
Deborah M. Messina, Chief Operating Officer – RiverSpring Living
Jennifer Montalvo, LMSW, Assistant Program Director – Stand Up to Violence Program at Jacobi Hospital
Maribel Montilla – Tax Director – Ariva
Jessica Ortiz Gonzalez – Vice President of Operations – American Maintenance 3 Janitorial Services and Supplies Co., Corp.
Ivelisse Ramos, Assistant Vice President of Deposit Services, Ponce Bank
Dr. Charlene Reid, Co-CEO, Excellence Community Schools
Desiree Sanchez – Human Resources Leader – Trilogy Business Solutions Inc.
Ninfa Segarra, JD, Senior Vice President, Community & Government Affairs, Marketing & Communications / Chief Diversity, Inclusion and Equity Officer, SBH Health System
Barbara P. Selesky, Director of Sales & Marketing, The Woodlawn Cemetery & Conservancy
Katherine Silverio, Parent Coordinator, Emolior Academy
ICON Lisa Sorin – President – Bronx Chamber of Commerce
ICON Dr. Camelia Tepelus – Executive Director – Morris Park Business Improvement District
Deborah Wong – Human Resources Leader – Trilogy Business Solutions Inc.
Learn more about the honorees at PowerWomenBronx.com and to nominate, sponsor or attend an upcoming event please visit SchnepsEvents.com
