Save the date!
2026 Annual Meeting &
Read the Family Difference Maker Award Reception

About the Read Famaily Difference Maker Award

The Read Family Difference Maker Award, created in July 2017, honors the Read family (Roger, Judy, and Scott) in recognition of their involvement in:

• Advancing the mission and work of Leadership Akron.

• Promoting community leadership.

• Strengthening the Akron community's well-being.

Roger, Judy, and their son Scott Read have all made a difference in extending the reach and impact of Leadership Akron. Roger and Judy were pivotal in the creation of Leadership Akron’s endowment fund, which enabled Leadership Akron’s initial expansion to reach additional audiences. One of those new audiences was senior leaders participating in Leadership Akron: NEXT, in which Roger served as a key member of the design team. Judy joined him in participating in the charter class and Roger chaired the steering committee for the first six classes. In 2003-2004, having recently graduated from Leadership Akron Class 19, Scott Read joined with fellow Leadership Akron grad Jefferson Satterfield to launch Torchbearers, which today has grown to serve a membership of over 100 young leaders and is the affiliated community partner with Leadership Akron for emerging community leaders.

Each year the award recognizes an individual or group of individuals whose efforts have been instrumental in expanding the scope or impact of Leadership Akron's mission and work.

The Read Family Difference Maker Award was created not only as a form of recognition but as an opportunity to create something meaningful for others. The resulting concept was an installation of Gingko trees, provided by the City of Akron, at Cascade Locks Park that would add to the environmental and scenic quality of the area for the benefit of all. At the site stands the sculpture crafted by Michael Marras (Mair – us) to honor the Read family and the award recipients. The sculpture, Together We Grow, conveys the growth and connectivity that benefits the Akron community. Each year, a new tree will be planted at the site in honor of the recipient(s).

Past Honorees

• 2017 - Roger & Judy* Read, recognized for establishing the Leadership Akron Endowment Fund, extending the reach and impact of Leadership Akron across the spectrum from Junior Leadership Akron to NEXT.

• 2017 - Scott Read, recognized for his efforts to launch Torchbearers, an independent affiliate of Leadership Akron that focuses on connecting, developing, and engaging emerging leaders to serve the Akron community.

• 2018 - Laura E. Culp, Ronald S. Kopp, Kyle Kutuchief, Amanda Leffler, and Brian Pollack, recognized for their work on the Leadership Akron and Torchbearers Partnership Agreement Team that forged the formal partnership between Leadership Akron and Torchbearers in 2009.

• 2020 - Dr. Cynthia Capers, John Williams, Jim Mullen, Roxia Boykin, Ethel Vinson, Robert DeJournett, Bernett Williams, & Dr. Steve Ash, were recognized for their work as the visionaries behind the Diversity on Board program.

• 2021 – Danny Zampelli, recognized for his role as the visionary behind the Lieberth Community Vision Award, and co-chair of the event committee which plans and executes the unique one-of-a-kind event experience that raises awareness and significant funds in support of Leadership Akron’s mission and vision.

• 2022 – Ken Babby & the Akron RubberDucks, recognized for launching a monthly speaker series for Leadership Akron Alumni members and Torchbearers called Leadership on Main. This speaker series highlights change-making leaders from different sectors each month, and it has become an essential monthly event for many Leadership Akron alumni members. Moreover, he and the ARD’s host hundreds of Leadership Akron participants each year thereby advancing Leadership Akron’s work in a significantly experiential and immersive way.

• 2023 – Dan Rice, recognized for cementing more than 150 community partnerships over 30 years and having been instrumental in the development of the Ohio & Erie Canalway National Heritage Area and Towpath Trail. A Diversity on Board Coach, and a key Subject Matter Expert for our Leadership Akron programs, his commitment to organizational development, public/private partnership building, and community betterment is nothing short of exemplary.

• 2024 – Mark & Sandy Auburn, Mark & Sandy have been instrumental in the coaching portion of DOB. They have “created what we know it as today” and have mentored almost every coach who is/has been a part of coaching. Before DOB 7, the boardroom experience did not exist. When Henry presented his idea of real and practical use on a program day, Mark dove in and wrote each of the scenarios used. That went so well, we used them for class 8 and are already preparing to use them for class 9.

• 2025 – Tony* and Toby Gorant, worked for Ohio Edison for 42 years. After retiring in 1995, he served for 15 years as Senior Vice President of Community Affairs for Akron General (now Cleveland Clinic Akron General), where he became a tireless advocate for healthcare and hospitals across Ohio. But caring for his community was as important to him as his business career. Throughout his life, Tony held leadership roles in many organizations, including the Akron Regional Development Board, American Diabetes Association, Akron Public Schools Business Advisory Council, Akron Symphony Orchestra, Akron City Planning Commission, and the Salvation Army Advisory Board. His wife, Toby Gorant, known for being the “first to say yes” when a need arises, hasa fingerprints are on some of Akron’s most treasured institutions: American Diabetes Association, Akron General’s Women’s Board, the Salvation Army, the Akron Symphony Orchestra, and the Akron Art Museum. Together, Tony and Toby lived out a shared philosophy of servant leadership – giving consistently, connecting generously, and making sure the right people were at the table, even when they didn’t sit at it themselves.

*deceased