Michael Ravosa

Age 32: Associate Vice President, Financial Advisor, and Certified Financial Planner Certificant, Morgan Stanley

Michael Ravosa is bullish about life.

“I’m in the stock market, and the bull and bear are always going at it. The chips are not always stacked in your favor, so you have to work through adversity and go forward,” he said.

The former captain of Longmeadow High School and American International College football teams knows that getting to the goal demands change. “Most people get nervous when they hear the word,” he said. “But change is a good thing.”

Ravosa went to college via a football scholarship and has forged ahead on and off the playing field as president of the board of directors of American International College’s Varsity Club, the only non-trustee of AIC’s Capital Campaign Fundraising Committee, a member of the board of the YMCA of Greater Springfield, and at Morgan Stanley in Springfield, where he serves as an associate vice president, financial advisor, and financial planner certificant.

AIC’s Varsity Club is composed of athletic alumni, and its annual Spring Fling was born under Ravosa’s leadership, along with other valuable initiatives. Ravosa believes in supporting students and says that, in order for Springfield to regain its vitality and for positive changes to occur in Western Mass., people need to focus on youth.

That’s why he spends so much time working with the YMCA and AIC.

The 32-year-old has received numerous awards from a variety of organizations, including the March of Dimes. But his focus is always on the next game. “I want to help out and be part of things getting better and better,” he said.

He is thankful for his wife, Theresa, who is his “backbone”; his 9-month-old daughter, Caterina; and his parents, who served as role models and taught him to engage in daily self-examination.

“I always like to push myself to do more,” he said. “I evaluate myself on a daily basis and ask, ‘what did I accomplish today?’”

Which is most certainly a bullish attitude.

—Kathy Mitchell

 

Mychael Connelly Sr.

Age 27: Founder, Stinky Cakes

Stinky Cakes, Stinky Cakes, Stinky Cakes …

It’s a mantra that 18-month-old Aidan Connelly launches into when he sees a pile of disposable diapers rolled into the arms of a stuffed animal.

It’s a mission for his father, Mychael Connelly Sr., who had long had entrepreneurial urges, and experienced the sweet smell of success one day when his older son, Mychael Connelly Jr., walked into the room and announced, “I did stinkies.”

“I knew it was what I was born to do,” said Connelly, adding that people expecting babies need practical gifts.

The former graphic artist handles the marketing and dresses in a baker’s suit to deliver stacks of Stinky Cakes to homes and businesses. The diapers are formed into towers of fun — complete with personalized, colorful ribbons — by his wife, Adrienne, in their Springfield home.

Connelly, who grew up in the Bahamas, always wanted to own his own business, and became motivated to do so after Mychael was born.

“Everyone should be able to get a Stinky Cake,” he said, adding they keep their prices reasonable.

But no one should have to use diapers before they are ready, and Connelly is also working to address the issue of teen pregnancy.

He and his wife have been foster parents to two children, and are still involved in their lives. “We are dedicated to doing foster care and devote a lot of time to it,” he said. “These kids really need help and need to be in a loving home.”

Many of the childen in foster care are born to teens, Connelly said, and his next goal is to start a foundation to combat teen pregnancy and provide teens with life skills to help them secure a bright financial future.

“Stinky Cakes is more than diapers. It’s about empowering parents and mothers. It’s a movement,” he said.

Not such a stinky idea.

—Kathy Mitchell

Kristi Reale

Age 37: Manager, Audit and Accounting Division and Business Valuation Department, Meyers Brothers Kalicka, P.C.

Kristi Reale says she has two “anniversaries” to mark and celebrate. One is her wedding date (August 8), and the other is the day (May 3) she donated a kidney to her husband of 12 years, Joe.

“They determined that I was the most effective match, better than either of his sisters,” said Reale when discussing how she was the chosen to be the donor, thus giving her another date to circle on the calendar.

There are many such circles to track, given Reale’s personal life and the birthdays of her seven nieces and nephews, but especially her chosen field — accounting, which keeps her busy all year long, moreso in the winter and early spring — and the large volumes of work she does within the community, particularly with the Advertising Club of Western Mass.

And recently, more was added, as Reale was chosen by the partners of Meyers Brothers Kalicka to participate in a three-year leadership program that has been limited mostly to partners and senior managers, a clear sign of the firm’s confidence in her leadership abilities.

Based on the tenets of Stephen Covey, the program is “intense,” said Reale, who used that word early and often to describe her experiences thus far.

All these activities and dates to track do not bother Reale, a self-described workoholic who told BusinessWest, in no uncertain terms, “I don’t like to be bored.”

Suffice it to say, she isn’t, not between her work, which involves everything from business consulting to corporate tax planning; her travel (“I like any place that’s warm”); her 100-pound Akita, Kira; and extensive work in the community.

In addition to her duties with the Ad Club, where she’s known as the “creative accountant” and is heavily involved with the Pynchon Awards, she also donates time and energy to the American Heart Assoc., the Springfield Boys and Girls Club, Holy Name Church, and many other organizations and causes.

—George O’Brien