2020 National Mature Media Awards Judges
We would like to thank our 2020 judges for their time and expertise in reviewing this year’s entries. Please note: Judges were not permitted to review any entries submitted by their organizations.
Interested in serving as a judge for the 2021 competition? Please complete our judging application form or contact Pat Henze, executive director, of the National Mature Media Awards program: phenze@seniorawards.com or 800-828-8225.
Laura Bennett opened her Florida-based PR and Marketing firm, Bennett & Company, in 1982 with dual offices in Miami and Orlando. Prior to opening her agency Bennett worked for A.T. & T, Hyatt Hotels and the National Restaurant Association among others. Her firm has represented marquee names and continues to believe that the mature audience should be a top priority and is too often overlooked.
Beth Carey serves as Corporate Director for Brand & Promotions for Acts Retirement-Life Communities. She is responsible for promoting the Acts brand through direct marketing initiatives and events; developing brand messages; creating publications, promotional materials, and advertising. In addition, she works with the sales team to manage marketing tactics and with departments throughout the organization on publications and outreach.
Beth joined Acts Retirement-Life Communities in 2016 from Kelsh Wilson Design, a strategic communications firm where she served as the Marketing Director for 10 years. In previous roles she served in leadership positions in marketing, admissions and fundraising for several institutions of higher education. She completed her undergraduate degree at Franklin and Marshall College in English and American Studies and graduate work at West Chester University.
Kim Cobb transferred her skills and expertise to the non-profit sector after a long career in marketing and communications in the business world. Since 2011, she has developed materials across media platforms for older adults and adults with disabilities for distribution at both the state and local levels. Kim understands the challenges of communicating with these audiences, and has completed a number of trainings, including healthy literacy and infographics, to address some of those challenges. She finds it rewarding to provide effective, clear communications to help older adults live rewarding, independent lives.
Kim is the Communications Coordinator for Greater Wisconsin Agency on Aging Resources and Resource Specialist for the Aging and Disability Resource Center of Barron, Rusk and Washburn Counties. She earned a B.S. in Industrial Design from the University of Wisconsin-Stout and a M.A.S.L. from Viterbo University, and continues to pursue new learning opportunities to provide better communication tools.
Christine Crosby is the Founder and editorial director of GRAND Magazine based in Tampa Bay, FL. She started her business career in 1976 as co-founder of Delta Business Systems. Named by INC Magazine as the 29th Fastest Growing Privately Held Company in America. After 12 years she sold her interest in the company to focus her passion as a child & family advocate. She launched a small chain of parenting magazines (Family Journal Publications) that was acquired by The Tribune Company in 1995. After a 7-year-retirement and becoming a new grandmother, Christine was inspired to launch GRAND Media and began publication of GRAND to serve today’s active grandparents and those who want to reach them.
Scott A. Davis, VP and Creative Director, AARP Media/Publications is currently the creative lead for publications, both print and digital, at AARP for the past ten years. He loves the work and the mission of the organization, which helps our 50+ members live their best life. Prior to that, Scott spent twenty years in NY at various magazine titles including People, Money, Time, Instyle, and Fortune Small Business magazines. He has over thirty years of experience in publishing and the magazine industry. Scott has four kids and lives in Gainesville, Virginia.
Erin Doherty is a Content and Communications Strategist at Professional Testing (parent company of the Society of Certified Senior Advisors) with over 9 years’ experience in the certification industry. Ms. Doherty’s role with Professional Testing includes project management, conference and program development, marketing administration and strategy, test development and publication, data analysis, policy development, meeting facilitation, and report generation. Ms. Doherty has been involved in preparing certification programs for accreditation by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) against ISO/IEC 17024, and continues to ensure compliance and completion for ongoing surveillance applications.
Ms. Doherty began her professional career with Professional Testing in 2011 after completing her bachelor’s degree at Metropolitan State University of Denver in business management. Ms. Doherty went on to complete her Masters of Business Administration (MBA) from the University of Colorado Denver in May of 2016 with a focus on internet marketing, brand communications, and marketing research. Ms. Doherty earned her Certified Senior Advisor (CSA) certification in 2014 and currently manages multiple committees of subject matter experts for the Society of Certified Senior Advisors.
Charlotte Doyle is a graduate of Trocaire College and Southern Illinois University Carbondale with degrees in Nursing and Healthcare Management respectively. She has completed post graduate work in workforce management at SIUC.
As a Registered Nurse, Ms. Doyle focused on working with children and adults with special needs prior to relocating to the Chicago area.
Since 1992, her emphasis has been on long term care, serving as a Clinical Care Coordinator, Clinical Analyst, and most recently, Director of Clinical Operations for a nation-wide Continuing Care Retirement Community. Now retired, Ms. Doyle continues to focus on needs of seniors by serving on the Senior Council Board of Libertyville, Illinois.
Richard Eisenberg is Managing Editor of Next Avenue, the public media website for people 50+. He is also the editor of the site's Money & Policy and Work & Purpose channels and a frequent blogger. He was formerly Executive Editor of Money magazine, Front Page Finance Editor at Yahoo! and Special Projects Director/Money Editor at Good Housekeeping. He was a Gerontological Society of America Journalists in Aging Fellow.
Wendy Foster is Vice President of IVY Marketing Group. An award-winning company founded in 1990, IVY Marketing is a full service public relations, marketing, and advertising agency specializing in the senior housing
industry. We have also developed and are marketing a crisis
communications management system for senior housing. Wendy has been with
IVY Marketing for 10 years, and is a PRSA certified content marketing
manager.
Christina Hall is a skilled fundraising professional with over a decade of experience in the nonprofit sector. Her primary focus is building donor relationships, soliciting major gifts and creating strategic programs, with a goal of inspiring high levels of philanthropic support to meet the needs of an organization's constituents. Specializing in fundraising for health-related causes, annual funds, and events, Ms. Hall's fundraising background shows strength in its diversity.
Ms. Hall is also an active Reservist with the United States Air Force and has been in the military for over 18 years, including four years on active duty. She has served our country in areas such as South Korea, Portugal, Colorado, and Delaware.
Ms. Hall holds two business degrees, a degree in Information Management, and a Master's Degree in Public Administration with a concentration in Nonprofit Management from Northeastern University.
Lindsay Hebert has been with Devaney & Associates, Inc. for over 12 years. With an extensive background in public relations, she currently serves as the agency's PR Director. In this position, Lindsay handles all aspects of clients' reputation management— this includes assisting private companies, non-profit organizations, and state services in the healthcare, finance, consumer service, and more with their PR initiatives. Lindsay works diligently to ensure that Devaney & Associates' clients are known, noticed, and respected by all their audiences for all the right reasons.
Shelley Holt has been at The Hartford Financial Services company for 28 years and has served as a corporate gerontologist at The Hartford Center for Mature Market Excellence for 17 years. As the Director of Education, Shelley is responsible for The Hartford’s industry-leading mature market education programs. She directs the strategy, development, and delivery of the center’s core curriculum, utilizing multiple formats and platforms to achieve optimal learning outcomes that translate to exceptional customer experiences and business success.
Since joining Devaney & Associates, Inc. in 2017—an award-winning advertising, marketing and public relations firm in Owings Mills, Maryland—as an account executive, Renee Landis is responsible for managing and overseeing projects for clients in a variety of industries, including state agencies, public awareness initiatives, leadership programs and more. Renee handles every detail for Devaney & Associates' clients—including schedules, budgets, and metrics.
Wes Meltzer, Director of Communications, Westminster Communities of Florida
Meghan Militello joined the Devaney & Associates, Inc. team at the beginning of 2020 as a copywriter. Whether it's advertising, blog writing, or social media marketing, Meghan handles the creative components of producing compelling copy for Devaney & Associates' clients. In her position, Meghan is also responsible for managing clients' social media platforms, creating content that speaks to clients' brands, and assisting the PR department at Devaney & Associates with maintaining clients' reputation.
Di Patterson, MSG, CPG is a Credentialed Professional Media Gerontologist, founder and author at her companies: Success in Aging Centers®, Inc. and Season of Life® Conferences, Inc. Since 1979, Di has co-produced several music albums and co-owns Matters of the Heart Music Publishing Company. Since 2008, Di has won 10 National Mature Media Awards for her online work at dipatterson.com and successinagingcenters.com and her app: SeasonofLifeConferences. Di has guest-judged for seniorawards.com for several years.
She was Orange County’s 2012 Senior Care Hero Awards Advocate, Gerontologist and Educator of the Year. In 2015, Di was guest Gerontologist on NBC’s The TODAY Show, speaking about caregiving and Senior Day Programs. Di worked as an Aging consultant on several movies; most notably for Jerry Lewison his last movie, Max Rose, released in 2016.Most days, Di works at her development company, Success in Aging Centers®, Inc. designing senior social/recreational day programs. Currently, Di is co-authoring Book #2 for her work in Family Aging Consulting.
Kim Peel is the Director of Philanthropy and Communications for the Jefferson Area Board for Aging (JABA), the Area Agency on Aging that serves seniors and adults with disabilities in central Virginia. With dual responsibilities in strategic marketing to both clients and donors, she oversees the organization’s multi-channel marketing initiatives and advertising campaigns, as well as appeals, newsletters and other donor communications. In a previous position, she directed the marketing and capital campaigns for a nonprofit assisted living community. Over her 25+ year career in the nonprofit arena, Kim also served as a national review panelist for the AFP Awards for Excellence in Fundraising and the AFP Award for Outstanding Foundation. She is a proud graduate of Boise State University with a degree in business management.
As the Creative Director for Porter One Design, a graphic design company based in southeast Michigan for over ten years, Karen Reasoner has created numerous newsletters, logos, marketing collaterals, and collaborated with her design team on countless more projects for clients nationwide. She enjoys the close-knit environment and the variety of projects that help to make each day fresh and new.
When she's not in the office (or working remotely from home like much of 2020), Karen enjoys attending a local art club, reading for book club, playing video games or camping with her husband, training for half marathons or triathlons, and cuddling their cat or dogs. Among her many active hobbies, she also enjoys many fine arts, such as photography, drawing, and her favorite medium of oil pastels.
Roberto San Luis is Art Director for HumanGood, one of the nation's largest nonprofit providers of housing and services for older adults. HumanGood serves more than 10,000 older adults in more than 100 communities across six states. He received his Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from The University of Texas at Austin with a focus in Visual Communications. The multidisciplinary program encompassed graphic design, photography and illustration.
Throughout his career, San Luis received numerous awards for his design work. Among them are: Western Publishing Association Maggie Award; Council for Advancement and Support of Education, Silver and Bronze Medals; and University and College Designers Association, Bronze Medal and Award of Excellence. San Luis has also received National Mature Media awards for his work with California Christian Home and be.group. His designs have been cited in Folio magazine and Magazine Design and Production.
San Luis is a member of the American Institute of Graphic Arts and has served on the board of directors of Search to Involve Pilipino Americans. A lifelong-career graphic designer, Roberto San Luis is also a professionally trained chef.
"Designing for older adults presents some unique challenges, but in the end the basics are the same—designs should be eye-catching, easy-to-read, contain several entry points, and should have some element of surprise."
Kailey Schwartzhoff is a graduate from Illinois State University with a degree in Recreation and Park Administration. She currently oversees programs, trips, and special events for Adults and Seniors at the Rolling Meadows Senior Center. Kailey has worked in Rolling Meadows for just over a year, but has also worked at various Park Districts overseeing Adult and Senior programming throughout the past 5 years she loves what she does. When she’s not at work she loves spending time outdoors and walking her dog.
Amy Selle is Managing Director for corecubed. She acts as a strategic marketing partner to corecubed clients, helping them achieve results in an increasingly dynamic marketplace. She believes that in a competitive market where all businesses have services to sell, it is a company's brand and the ways it communicates with its constituents that set it apart from the pack.
Amy serves annually as a judge for the National Mature Media Awards, the nation's largest awards program recognizing the best marketing, communications, educational materials, and programs for adults age 50 and older.
Prior to joining corecubed, Amy was Director of Marketing for Cantata, a family of organizations focused on leading innovations that will enable Americans to live their best lives as they age. At Cantata, she was the recipient of a Public Relations Society of America Chicago Chapter Skyline Award for marketing healthcare services, and a Publicity Club of Chicago Silver Trumpet Award for consumer marketing campaigns. Prior to Cantata, Amy worked for various other senior care organizations and hospital systems in management, business development, sales, and marketing.
Amy earned a Master of Arts degree in Media and Organizational Communication Studies and a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism, both from Northern Illinois University, where she was also a graduate teaching assistant for the Department of Communication Studies. Amy resides in the Chicago area with her husband and children.
David Shamrock is the Manager of the Patty Turner Center; a Deerfield Park District Program for Adult Enrichment in Partnership with the Village of Deerfield. The Center is located at 375 Elm Street in Deerfield and is home to nearly 850 members 50+ years of age and older. David has been in his position for 9 years and continues to enjoy his role managing the center, its staff and assisting with providing high quality programs and services to members, guests and community residents.
Debra Sheridan, President, Ivy Marketing
Rob Siedenburg has been a soldier, a park ranger, a dairy farmer, a welding instructor, a mechanic, and a world traveler. After retiring from both the Army and a career in publishing 11 years ago, he walked across the state of Illinois, and resumed a career as a college professor of advanced academic writing at the University of Illinois.
He is author of the Glossary of Publishing Terms. Rob is copyeditor for the Prime Life Times, a NAMPA newspaper published in Champaign, Illinois, by the Great News Media Group.
Jamie Cendroski Vishwanat is a visual artist living in St. Louis, Missouri, working as the National Director of Marketing & Communications for The Oasis Institute, a nonprofit organization headquartered in St. Louis, whose mission is to promote healthy aging through lifelong learning, active lifestyles and volunteer engagement. She has a background in graphic design and photography, graduating from Missouri State University with a Dual-Emphasis BFA in Graphic Design and Image Production.
Jamie has 17 years of working experience as a creative professional within a diverse genre of companies ranging from higher education, publishing, corporate, and nonprofit. Her most notable career highlights include six years as a graphic designer for the renowned Missouri Botanical Garden, designing the visual identities and branding for signature events, and print materials. Jamie went on to work as Graphic Designer for an art museum in St. Louis county, Laumeier Sculpture Park, and after ten months, was promoted to Marketing & Communications Manager. In April of 2020 Jamie accepted her current position as National Director of Marketing & Communications with The Oasis Institute.
Jamie enjoys photography and had the honor of being published in National Geographic’s “Your Shot” story, where her photo was one of 17 selected among over 8,000 submissions. Applying her talents in photography and writing to social media, Jamie caught the eye of Target Corporation’s designers and marketing team, leading to an invitation to an exclusive in-house app called "Studio Connect” to collaborate with designers. After a year or so working with Studio Connect, Target invited Jamie to the company headquarters in Minneapolis, MN, where she teamed up with a handful of influencers, Target designers and the marketing team. Jamie still enjoys participating on Studio Connect.
Jamie lives in St. Louis city’s Historic Shaw Neighborhood with her Husband and three little boys. |
