Friel Awarded Women of Excellence Honor by RBJ
Rochester, N.Y. — Mary Therese Friel, President of The Mary Therese Friel Modeling Agency, was recognized by the Rochester Business Journal, with a group of high achieving women, for their professional accomplishments, contributions to the community, leadership and commitment to mentoring.
“The 2023 Women of Excellence are trailblazers. They are committed to professional excellence, and they enrich our communities by inspiring change and mentoring others,” said Suzanne Fischer-Huettner, managing director of the Rochester Business Journal/BridgeTower Media.
Friel is a well-known Rochester native who won the title of Miss USA 1979 and had a successful international modeling career. For 35 years she has been leading the company she founded here in Rochester, sharing her expertise and making positive contributions to the community.
“I am very grateful for this acknowledgement," said Friel. “It inspires me to continue on my life’s mission of making a difference and encouraging others to do the same, by being a role model and leading by example.”
Gretchen Gerbic, who has been a model with the Mary Therese Friel Modeling agency for 23 years, said, “I have always looked up to Mary Therese for the level of commitment that she gives to her work and the positive energy that she brings every day. She encourages women to be ladies and men to be gentlemen, meaning to be examples of greatness in the world, both in beauty and poise, as well as humanitarian efforts. She demands the best from her models, but simply to make each person the best they can be.”
The winners were honored at a celebration on May 2 at the Joseph A. Floreano Rochester Riverside Convention Center.
Winners were also profiled in a special magazine that was be inserted into the May 5 issue of the Rochester Business Journal and is also available online at RBJ.net.
About the Rochester Business Journal
The Rochester Business Journal has served as the leading source of business news and information in Rochester, N.Y., for 36 years. In addition to its website, RBJ.net, and weekly print publication, the Rochester Business Journal publishes more than 25 special products a year including Book of Lists, Explore Greater Rochester, RBJ 75 and Schools Report Card. The Rochester Business Journal also hosts 11 annual events to recognize excellence and provide leadership opportunities. Those events include Forty Under 40, Icon Honors, Women of Excellence and Reader Rankings. In addition, the Rochester Business Journal facilitates virtual panel discussions bringing local experts from the business community together to discuss current topics and trends. Its Digital Marketing Solutions helps customers with social media, search engine marketing and optimization, retargeting, email marketing and more. The Rochester Business Journal and its sister publication, The Daily Record, which covers law and real estate in Western New York, are part of BridgeTower Media, the leading provider of B2B information, research, events and marketing solutions across more than 25 U.S. markets and industries.
2023 Women of Excellence Honorees
Jennifer Arbore, The Bonadio Group, Christine Barnes, Excellus BlueCross BlueShield, Shannon Baudo, Allendale Columbia, Mollene Benison, CPA, DKB Business Advisors & CPAs, Christine R. Birnie, R.Ph., Ph.D., St. John Fisher University, Lori Sussle Bonanni, ELSSUS LLC, Jennifer L. Boutte, Goodwill of the Finger Lakes, Destini K. Bowman, New York State Unified Court System, Dr. Tammy Butler, House of Mercy, Diana R. Clarkson, Harter Secrest & Emery LLP, Gina Cuyler, M.D., FACP, Excellus BlueCross BlueShield, Kristina Dengler, Bank of America, Alecia Fisher Dougherty, Echelon Wealth Advisors, Krystle Ellis, Ellis K Consulting, Molly Flaherty, M/Body, Mary Therese Friel, Mary Therese Friel LLC, Melanie M. Funchess, Ubuntu Village Works LLC, Kristy Gonzalez, IntegrateXpress LLC, Shane Grant, Dixon Schwabl + Company, Ryann Guglielmo, Dixon Schwabl + Company & Red Bird Market, Flossie Hall, Fhall Consulting, Janice Harbin, D.D.S., Anthony L. Jordan Health Corporation (Jordan Health), Kaitlin Hildebrandt, Leo J. Roth Corporation, Terria P. Jenkins, Bond, Schoeneck & King PLLC, Bridgette Jones-Waters, Rochester Institute of Technology, Maureen J. Lally, Paychex, Jean Maess, Thomson Reuters, Kit Miller, MK Gandhi Institute for Nonviolence, Kim L. Nugent, Sage Rutty & Company Inc., Hillary Olson, Rochester Museum & Science Center, Evelyn Parker, K12, Stride, Barbara Pierce, City of Rochester, Jyothsna Ponnuri, Jewish Senior Life, Maria Jose Cubillos Reed, Cubillos Reed Law PLLC, Yissette Rivas-Cotto, Finger Lakes Community Health, Tarryn Larson Rozen, Armbruster Capital Management Inc., Hon. Dandrea Lynn Ruhlmann, 7th Judicial District, State of New York, Darlene Ryan, Hillside, Naomi Silver, Rochester Red Wings, Susanna Speed, Trillium Health, Catherine L. Sperrick, Home Leasing LLC and Home Leasing Construction, Renee Swan, L3Harris Technologies, Britni Tantalo, Flower City Hydroponics Inc., Marcy Tiberio, Professional Notary Services Inc., Katie Titus, UBS Financial Services Inc., Diane D. Torcello, Tompkins Community Bank, Kimberly VanCamp, NYS Supreme Court and Monroe County Court - 7th Judicial Distrct Treatment Court, Leah George VanScott, Greater Rochester Enterprise, Latia Vaughan, The UNetwork, Stephanie Von Bacho, University of Rochester Medical Center
2023 Circle of Excellence Honorees
Chetna Chandrakala, Thundermist Health Center, Dresden Engle, Dresden Public Relations, Christina Marie Gullo, Villa of Hope, Diana R. Kurty, University of Rochester Medical Center, Carolyn G. Nussbaum, Nixon Peabody LLP, Tina Paradiso, Imprintable Solutions Ink, Kathleen Pringle, Kathleen Pringle Group Inc.
About Mary Therese Friel
Friel has been part of the advertising community in Rochester for 50 years. At age 11, she started modeling for Eastman Kodak and Champion Products. Friel worked her way to the very top of her field, winning the coveted Miss USA title and then modeling internationally for the prestigious Eileen Ford Agency. When she returned to her beloved hometown, Friel poured these experiences into the company that she founded. Her career has had multiple roles including: a model, celebrity, goodwill ambassador, author, TV and radio host, consultant, producer, coordinator teacher, agent and manager. All these roles have positioned her as a uniquely qualified professional in Rochester. Today, her goal is to provide the best possible services and people, that her company can offer to their clients. Friel inspires everyone on her team to do their best, on every assignment, for each client. The quality of their service exists within the expertise that they offer, the manner in which they interact and conduct theirselves with their customers and the people that make up this company.
Friel, however, prefers most, to be known for making a difference in her community and in the lives of others.
There is a saying that she has often repeated and shared...“Service to others is the rent we pay for our room in the hereafter.” Back in 1979, when she was Miss USA, Friel had the tremendous opportunity to meet the great Muhammad Ali. Talking with him privately for two hours completely changed the course of her life. Ali left Friel with this quote. The idea that she had the responsibility to use her celebrity to do good things, to help people and to be a role model became a focal point in her life, from that point forward. When she opened her company, this philosophy became a cornerstone of the business and today is still the most important thing Friel values.
Through her company, Mary Therese Friel, LLC, she commits a vast amount of resources to volunteering and fund-raising for non-profit causes and community initiatives and programs. Friel is committed to making a difference and instilling this philosophy into the lives of those around her. On her weekly radio show, ROC Image Radio on WAYO 104.3 FM, Friel interviews guests who are affecting the Rochester community in a positive way. She ends each broadcast by asking this same question to each of her guests: “what do you most want to be remembered for and why?” Friel's answer is "to make a difference in the lives of those I touch."
Inquiries:
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