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JENNIFER DeBRUHL
In 2021, Jennifer DeBruhl’s husband, Mark, passed away after a 3-month battle with cancer. Before this tragedy, DeBruhl was preparing to retire from her public service career and transition into the private sector. However, life had other plans for DeBruhl’s career path, too. The state’s transportation secretary asked her to become interim director of the […]
CAROLYN RAINEY
A 40-year veteran with Bank of America, Carolyn Rainey became president of all the bank’s banking and investment operations in the Charlottesville area last year after serving as the bank’s Charlottesville market executive since 2018. Under Rainey’s leadership, Bank of America’s market share in Charlottesville has grown, and she has helped numerous clients become homeowners[...]
ELAINE BEEMAN
Elaine Beeman recalls often being the only woman in the room when she started her career with Accenture in the 2000s. But she’s now an exemplar for leadership, with a title to match. “It’s very rewarding for me to be in a position now where I can help enrich the experience of the next generation,” […]
ALICE P. FRAZIER
In 2017, when Alice Frazier became president and CEO of Charles Town, West Virginia-based Bank of Charles Town and its parent company, she was among a select group of only 47 women nationwide who lead banks, and the first woman to run BCT. The bank has four offices in Loudoun County, including two in Leesburg; […]
TIFFANY RAY
Commencement season is Tiffany Ray’s favorite time of year. That’s when students walk across the stage to get their degrees, and she can see “live and in color” how her work is reshaping lives. In 2017, the year before Ray arrived at Germanna as its chief diversity officer, the Fredericksburg community college graduated just four […]
LORI COLLIER WARAN
As the first woman to lead NASCAR’s Richmond Raceway, Lori Collier Waran races circles around everyone — literally. In July 2022, Waran grabbed the steering wheel and took over as the raceway’s president. It marked a big career switch for Waran, who previously served as publisher of Richmond-based Style Weekly magazine and associate publisher and […]
REBECCA GELLER
Thirteen years ago, Rebecca Geller was a corporate lawyer who wanted more flexibility to work remotely so she could balance her work and family life. That aspiration led her in 2011 to found The Geller Law Group, a law firm dedicated to helping women like her balance parenting and their careers. Today, the firm employs […]
LAURA KOTTKAMP
As the executive director of three foundations at Virginia Commonwealth University, Laura Kottkamp considers herself to be a steward of both the city of Richmond and the commonwealth. Her work encompasses the university’s foundation, as well as those for the engineering college and the business school — managing and investing $250 million in assets, plus fundraising […]
AUTUMN R. VISSER
It’s relatively uncommon for an in-house corporate counsel to move to private practice, but Autumn Visser made this transition and has steadily ascended to leadership at Roanoke law firm Woods Rogers, which merged with Vandeventer Black last year. She joined Woods Rogers in 2014 as an associate attorney and is now a principal, focusing on […]
GRETA J. HARRIS
Greta J. Harris, a passionate affordable housing advocate, is the first Black woman to lead the Richmond region’s largest nonprofit community development corporation. Originally an architect, Harris shifted her focus to nonprofit community development after being laid off from her career as an architect in 1988. “That initial disappointment changed the whole trajectory of my […]
SUSAN R. RALSTON
Susan R. Ralston inspires people to do more than they think they are capable of. With more than 38 years of experience as a bank executive, she also holds an associate coaching certification from the International Coach Federation, which she uses as a work and life coach at the bank, helping employees set healthy boundaries […]
CASSIE HARTOGS
Cassie Hartogs became a partner at her regional accounting network when she was 33 and has continued to rise in the leadership ranks over the past 18 years. In May, Hartogs became BDO’s tax people operations managing partner, working with more than 3,800 tax professionals across the U.S. and streamlining operations and client offerings across […]
