Summerwood’s State of the Union Concludes with Award Winner Reveal!
Last week we hosted our annual State of the Union event on Zoom, bringing together our fantastic restaurant leaders for a special presentation and celebration. The virtual get together kicked off with highlights from 2022, which included several notable restaurant openings and the 40-year service anniversary of a beloved New Jersey RGM.
Along with Summerwood’s own, we were pleased to have the following guests:
- Mike Grams, President and Global Chief Operating Officer, Taco Bell Corp.
- Mark King, Chief Executive Officer, Taco Bell Corp
- Jill Wiechert, National Account Sales Manager, PepsiCo
- Lisa Christian, Senior Operations Consultant, Taco Bell Corp.
The State of the Union event gives us the chance to recognize individual and team accomplishments, of which we are proud to admit, there are always many!
Your position and title don’t make you a leader … it’s all about one life, inspiring and motivating another to become the very best version of themselves.
We honored great leaders in the following categories:
Most Improved
- Bryant Evans, Downingtown, PA
*Moved up 97 spots and won time at our Shore House vacation condo (scroll here for virtual glimpse)!
KFC GM of the Year
- Gabby Arizaga, Pennsville, NJ
Taco Bell GM of the Year
- Gaurav Gupta, Falls Church, VA
Top 2-10 Taco Bell GMs – recipients of destination award trip!
No. 2 Allae-Deen Yaghmour, 36547 Fairfax, VA
No. 3 Larven Johnson, 34949 Hickory, MD
No. 4 Chris Albright, 24414 York, PA
No. 5 Ahmed Mihfad, 36548 Alexandria, VA
No. 6 Ervin Parker, 24759 Dover, DE
No. 7 Sunil Katuwal, 32673 Towson, MD
No. 8 Emily Dodson, 32667 Jessup, MD
No. 9 Miguel Ramos, 36541 Germantown, MD
No. 10 Tyreeta Chester, 32666 Pasadena, MD
Top 11-20 Taco Bell GMs – won PTO week at Shore House condo with up to 8 guests + cash reward!
No. 11 Jamal Mohandise, 36549 Ashburn, VA
No. 12 Barbara Gonzalez, 29783 Hammonton, NJ
No. 13 Berhane Hailemichael, 36544 Arlington, VA
No. 14 David Asomuyide, 32669 Millersville, MD
No. 15 Amitkumar Dhruva, 40035 Fredrick, MD
No. 16 Mayra Soriano, 40054 Aspen Hill, MD
No. 17 Miriam Ventura, 32676 Nottingham, MD
No. 18 Brandon Weaver, 40044 Aberdeen, MD
No. 19 Michael Dobrzykowski, 32675 Cockeysville, MD
No. 20 Maria Zavalacortes, 36255 Avondale, PA
Area Coach of the Year
- Kofi Ohene-Okae, Area 18
Region Coach of the Year
- Bryon Tierney
Admin of the Year
- Grace Yang
Congratulations to our 2023 Signature Restaurants:
- Shrewsbury, PA, GM Jason Frame
- Jessup, MD, GM Kierra Harrod
- Bel Air, MD, GM Karen Cornett
- Alexandria, VA, GM Iris Ferrufino
- Silver Spring, MD, GM Mayra Soriano
- Market St, York, PA, GM Chris Albright
- White St, York, PA, GM Corey Davis
- Herndon, VA, GM Manju Thapa
- Hammonton, NJ, GM Barbara Gonzalez
- Cambridge, MD, GM Lisa Harman
- Alexandria, VA, GM Ahmed Mihfad
- Somers Point, NJ, GM Brian Evringham
- Arlington, VA, GM Berhane Hailemichael
- Reston, VA, GM Carlos Castro
2023 Golden Bell Winners – recipients of a trip for two to Hawaii!
- 36545 Leesburg, VA
- Gaurav Gupta, 36546 Falls Church, VA
- Sunil Katuwal, 32673 Towson, MD
Regional Awards
- Allae-Deen Yaghmour, Region 1
- Sarah Butta, Region 2
- Kenya Ramos, Region 3
- Erin Miller, Region 4
- Mallory Campbell, Region 5
- Maria Arizaga, Region 6
- Liza Hogans, Project Coach, Region 7 (from KFC Area 1)
Marketing Megaphone Award
- Destiny Giordano, Deptford, NJ
Ops Award to Admin
- Peter Toner
Mickey Noonan Award
“The strongest people are not those who show strength in front of us, but those who win battles we know nothing about.”
- Rebecca Keller
Jerri Toner Award
“People will forget what you said. People will forget what you did. BUT, people will never forget how you made them feel.”
- Ryan Hunsberger
John Monte Award
“A good life is when you assume nothing, do more, need less, smile often, dream big, laugh a lot & realized how blessed you are.”
- Cat Wade
COO’s Vision of the Year Award
- Cheryl McKee
- Kierra Harrod
- Kristin Ross
President’s Award
“The President’s Award is a hero award.”
- Chris Albright
- Michelle Horn