Co-owner, TommyCar Auto Group, age 28

Tommy Cosenzi always knew he would follow in his father’s footsteps. But when Tom E. Cosenzi died from brain cancer in 2009 at age 52, Tommy and his sister found themselves at the helm of their father’s company long before it was expected.
“He worked extraordinarily hard to build everything we had, and I knew how important it was to him,” said Cosenzi. “So it was extremely important to me to continue his work as a lasting legacy to him.”
Since that time, he and his sister, Carla (a 40 Under Forty winner in 2012), have driven the company down new roads and taken their father’s charitable bent in new directions. “He made a huge impact on my life and is behind everything I do,” Tommy said.
He is in charge of the company’s marketing and played a strong role in the success of Northampton Volkswagen, a new dealership for the auto group.
He also co-founded the Thomas E. Cosenzi Driving for the Cure Charity Golf Tournament, which has raised more than $304,200 to date. The money is given to the late Cosenzi’s neuro-oncologist at the Dana Farber Cancer Institute to conduct research on brain cancer.
“We saw first-hand what an awful disease it is and that researchers really needed help,” Cosenzi said, adding that there are not enough good treatments for the disease. “People who deal with cancer have a special place in my heart because I know what they are battling.”
Recently, he and Carla established the Tom Cosenzi Scholarship Fund for students who plan to attend college, and he reads every application and helps to assess each student’s level of need, qualifications, and goals.
TommyCar also takes part in the Cruising for Miracles program, which benefits Baystate Children’s Hospital and the Children’s Miracle Network. “We thought it was a really good cause,” he said.
In addition, the company supports a host of other organizations, including the American Cancer Society and Relay for Life, the Jimmy Fund, the Ronald McDonald House, and the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, to name just a few.
Cosenzi’s other volunteer efforts include working with the National Automobile Dealer Assoc. to mentor the next generation of auto dealers — yet another way he’s carrying on a worthwhile legacy.
— Kathleen Mitchell

Community Engagement Coordinator, HAPHousing, age 31

Springfield is a long way — in many respects — from the U.S. naval station at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, where Kelvin Molina served during Operation Enduring Freedom as a National Guardsman. But when a tornado hit Western Mass. on June 1, 2011 and devastated a 40-mile swath of homes and businesses in three counties, the scenes of bleakness weren’t much different.
As he took in the devastation from the twister, he recalled, “I was surprised — actually, shocked — but energized in trying to figure out what I had to do.”
Within hours, his Guard unit had been activated to provide logistical support for soldiers in Springfield, Monson, and Brimfield, dealing with a disaster that truly hit close to home for Molina, as the twister rendered his sister homeless.
Three years before, having earned degrees in Regional Planning/Environmental Science and Geographic Information Systems from Westfield State University, he caught the attention of the Pioneer Valley Planning Commission, landing a transportation-planning position with the agency. Molina moved laterally into community development there, but in 2012, he left for a similar position with HAPHousing that deals exclusively with Springfield, his hometown.
Now, he engages the Springfield community though the nonprofit, which provides assistance for homeless families and various services for homeowners.
“If we can’t answer the questions of people regarding housing,” he said, “we know who to contact, because we’ve been around for 45 years.”
As a recently certified national Neighborworks America leadership trainer, Molina has an additional role helping to train and empower community partners, city leaders, and interested residents to create safe, collaborative, and productive neighborhoods.
“We’ll be conducting training over the next two months,” he said, “and recruit 20 to 25 residents from the South End, Six Corners, and Old Hill neighborhoods and their corresponding councils to meet each other and learn from each other about tools that will empower them to make change.”
Whether he’s in a business shirt or a Kevlar vest, Molina always wants to be there to support and engage people — and transform communities, one neighborhood at a time.

— Elizabeth Taras

Holyoke City Councilor, age 29

Brenna Murphy McGee was waitressing and tending bar when she got the call into politics, accepting a job as chief of staff for former state Rep. Michael Kane six years ago.
“He was looking for a second staff member, another legislative aide,” said McGee, who had earned a degree in Psychology at UMass Amherst and hadn’t seen herself in politics before working with Kane and also supervising the research staff for the Joint Committee on Municipalities and Regional Government. However, “I liked the whole political world so much that I later became interested in running for City Council, and he encouraged me to do it.”
Her first campaign in 2010 was a successful one, as she finished third among 13 candidates. She currently chairs the Charter and Rules Committee and is vice chair of the Public Safety Committee, working with residents to address traffic and speeding issues. She also helped establish a crime-watch program.
“My home was broken into in May 2011, when I was home sleeping,” she said. “It really freaked me out. I helped the Ward 6 councilor — who is now my husband — to establish the Ward 6 Crime Watch. They don’t simply talk about crime; it’s a way for people to get together and discuss what’s going on in the ward and in the city.”
She and her husband, Todd McGee — who recently welcomed their first child, Myles — are the first married couple to serve concurrently on the Holyoke City Council, and they are now both 40 Under Forty winners as well; Todd was honored in 2011.
But McGee doesn’t get involved in civic life just for the safety of her own home; her passion for Holyoke extends to her volunteer efforts for the Holyoke Boys and Girls Club, the Holyoke St. Patrick’s Parade Committee, and the Innovation District Design and Development Task Force, which has worked to generate economic-development progress in the city’s ‘Innovation District’ around the Massachusetts Green High Performance Computing Center.
“Holyoke is a really close-knit community,” said McGee, who was born and raised in the Paper City and is running for city clerk this fall. “When I was working for the representative, I was helping people in the city I love so much, and on the City Council, I’m still able to help people move the city forward.”

— Joseph Bednar

Director of Community Engagement, WGBY-TV, age 38

Like most of those who work in public broadcasting, Vanessa Pabon has been caught up in the phenomenon that is Downton Abbey. She took a behind-the-scenes role in helping to stage an elaborate ball themed after the show in January, and, like everyone else, is eagerly awaiting season four.
But her work with WGBY-TV is far more focused on the here — meaning Greater Springfield — and now, as opposed to the 1920s. As her title, director of Community Engagement, suggests, she’s responsible for engaging people in communities within WGBY’s service area who are underrepresented in its audience and membership. And she does this by developing new engagement strategies and also overseeing and expanding existing programs, such as the Latino Youth Media Institute and something called TOLD (Telling Our Legacies Digitally).
“People get to share a personal story about themselves that they ultimately feel may make an impact within the community,” Pabon said of TOLD, adding that the five-minute videos have involved individuals primarily from Springfield’s North End, and of all ages. “It’s not just sharing, but something that becomes public, and the stories range from overcoming battles, like finding out they have HIV, to happy moments, such as someone who didn’t think they’d be going to the prom ultimately going and being named prom queen.
“They get to produce these pieces and then either share them with their family or in a public forum, as conversation starters,” she went on. “And for me, the power isn’t just the video you watch at the end of the workshop, but what happens within the process — the community building, relationships, and the healing that happens when people share stories.” Other job responsibilities include everything from recruiting interns to providing media training to researching and writing grants.
In addition to her work with the station, Pabon is very involved in civic life, through work with the North End Campus Coalition; the Greater Springfield YMCA, which she serves as a member of its Community Services Branch, Charter School Committee, and Hispanic/Latino National Health Initiative; the Springfield Promise Neighborhood; and the Stay in School Campaign, which she serves as head of its youth committee.
In other words, she emphasizes community engagement both on and off the job.

— George O’Brien

Vice President of Marketing, Excel Dryer Inc., age 36

William Gagnon was schooled in professional and personal values by his father, Denis Gagnon. “We have a family business, and he taught me to have strong business morals and ethics, do the right thing, be honorable, and be a person of my word, not only in business but in life,” he said, adding, “I have a strong belief that it’s important to be involved in the community and give back once you become successful.”
Which is exactly what he does in both arenas. Gagnon was involved in the development and marketing of the XLERATOR hand dryer, which has had a positive impact on the environment in addition to leading to a large expansion of Excel Dryer, allowing it to double its staff. “It uses 80% less energy than conventional hand dryers and lowers the carbon footprint of hand drying by 70%, versus even 100% recycled paper towels,” he said.
He is working with the U.S. Building Council on its Green Apple Program through its Center for Green Schools, an initiative to help build healthy and environmentally friendly learning environments for the nation’s students. “I have a passion for sustainability,” Gagnon said.
He is also involved in the local community and is a member of the board of directors for the Children’s Study Home. “It’s a great program that gives children in troubled families an opportunity to succeed in life and school and move on,” he explained. He is also a member of the Young Professional Society of Greater Springfield and coaches football and basketball teams at Minnechaug Regional High School.
Gagnon also helped organize and market a golf tournament sponsored by the Anero Sports Agency to benefit victims of 9/11. Closer to home, he helped the New England Patriots Charitable Foundation raise money for families in Western Mass. after the June 2011 tornado. “I wanted to get involved,” he said. “We have family members who lived on the streets of Springfield that were most affected, so it really hit home, and I wanted to help in any way I could.”

— Kathleen Mitchell

Assistant Director of Communication, Commonwealth Honors College, UMass Amherst, age 38

Shonda Pettiford believes everyone has potential, and she takes pride in using her writing skills to tell the stories of students at Commonwealth Honors College. “I really enjoy being in the educational environment,” she noted. “It’s amazing to see students grow and develop over the years, and I enjoy giving voice to other people’s stories and accomplishments in the Honors College.”
But the mother of two daughters is especially vested in helping women realize their potential. “I think everyone should be treated equally and have equal access to opportunities,” she said. “And I’m passionate about supporting women and helping them to build their leadership skills, because historically, culturally, and socially, women have not always been valued for their gifts. So I do everything I can to make sure that every girl and woman recognizes exactly how powerful she is.”
Pettiford funnels much of that effort through the Women’s Fund of Western Mass. She has been involved with the organization since 2001 and has served in many roles there, including board member, vice president, and president. In fact, when her two-year tenure as president ended, she was asked to serve an additional year. “It’s been a significant part of my life,” she said.
Pettiford was recognized as the youngest board president in the organization’s international network, and says the fund offers grants and strategic initiatives that help girls and women, such as programs aimed at developing leadership skills.
She was one of 20 women selected for membership in the international Women’s Funding Network Bridge Builders Cohort, and was chosen to be the group’s spokesperson at one of the plenary sessions during its international conference in New York.
Pettiford has also served on the statewide advisory board for the Massachusetts Women’s Pipeline for Change. In addition, she was selected to be part of the Women’s Professional Fellowship Program, funded by the U.S. State Department, that focuses on women’s health and leadership.
As part of the exchange, she went to Brazil in January, and plans to continue her personal mission of helping women to succeed, because, as she said, “everyone deserves a voice.”

— Kathleen Mitchell

Certified Public Accountant, age 33

One of those who nominated Shannon Reichelt for this year’s 40 Under Forty competition described her as a “new-age CPA.”
It’s a portrayal she didn’t disagree with. In fact, when presented with that phrase, she took the ball and ran with it.
“With the new-age CPA, it’s not just about doing the tax return — send me in your stuff, and we get it out like a factory type of thing. I like to help people be successful,” she said.
“I’m not afraid to get my hands dirty — I’ll go into people’s businesses and help them on the ground level,” she continued when pressed for a deeper explanation. “And I think that stems from the fact that I started as a bookkeeper, and I also run my own firm, so I know the pain points that business owners go through with their finances, their accounting, and their record keeping.”
Reichelt, whose company — S. Reichelt & Company LLC — has offices in West Springfield and Greenfield, describes herself as an entrepreneur first and a CPA second. That’s because she’s proud of the risk she took in 2006, when she left Springfield-based J.M. O’Brien and put her own name over the door and on the letterhead.
“I had reached a point eight or nine years into my career … and I just knew,” she said of her desire to go out on her own. “I wanted to be able to sit down and work with business owners at the ground level and have that be OK. I like big firms, but I had a different vision of how I wanted to help people.”
It was after she considered her business venture firmly established — and when it no longer consumed nearly all of her time — that Reichelt made a firm commitment to get involved in the community. This has been manifested by work with the Community Foundation, but especially her many contributions to the Dakin Pioneer Valley Humane Society.
A self-described animal lover (she has an English bulldog named Daisy, pictured, and a boxer named Katie), she now sits on the Dakin board of directors and stages a fund-raiser for the organization each tax season — just another way that passion for helping others shines through.

— George O’Brien

Manager of Community Relations and Community Benefits, Baystate Health, age 32

It’s called the Pioneer Valley Community Health Needs Assessment Coalition.
That’s the name given to an initiative involving a number of area hospitals — Baystate Franklin Medical Center, Baystate Mary Lane Hospital, Baystate Medical Center, Cooley Dickinson Hospital, Holyoke Medical Center, Mercy Medical Center, and Shriners Hospital for Children — that constitutes an imaginative response to state and federal directives requiring such facilities to compile comprehensive needs assessments involving the cities and towns they serve every three years.
And it was Annamarie Golden, in her capacity as manager of Community Relations and Community Benefits at Baystate Health, who saw the need for, and the benefits to be derived from, such a coalition, and actively engaged administrators at partnering institutions to make it reality.
“Many hospitals do not have dedicated community-benefits staff, and we don’t have a lot of resources lying around for this,” she said. “I looked at the region as a whole and said, ‘we have a lot of hospitals, and our service areas overlap, so let’s come together for the benefit of the community and the patients we serve and do a regional needs assessment.’”
Creation of the coalition is one of many undertakings Golden has led in her position at Baystate, which involves ensuring that federal and state community-benefit regulations and guidelines are met, and that community members are engaged and included in such efforts.
In addition to her professional duties, Golden is also involved in the community through work with the Young Professional Society of Greater Springfield, which she serves as clerk and executive committee member, and as a strong supporter of the Western Mass. transgender and gay community.
And she’s passionate about another issue — the matter of work/life balance.
As the mother of two, including a 6-month-old, she said she’s keenly aware of the challenges facing people as they try to manage both a family and a career. At Baystate, she’s one of a group of employees working to create a support network that would assist such individuals.
“I’m working with HR to start a group right now, and hopefully we can create a model that can be replicated throughout the organization,” she explained. “There is a definite need for such a program — there are many working mothers who need some support.”

— George O’Brien

President, Burgess, Schultz & Robb, P.C., age 39

Andy Robb can almost understand why some people would consider accounting work to be monotonous and perhaps not as rewarding as some other lines of work.
That’s almost understand.
He told BusinessWest that many of those not in his profession are of the mistaken belief that accounting is about numbers and taxes. Instead, it’s about people, Robb said, and because each individual and each company is different, there is a great amount of variety in this field — and rewards as well.
At a recent presentation he gave before the Berkshire Brewing Co. stockholders meeting, the rewards were immediate and refreshing. “At what other job can you get a draught beer, any type you want, and talk financials?” he joked, adding that his goals are usually far more substantial and involve helping business owners achieve their ambitions, aim higher, and, overall, take their businesses where they want them to go.
He’s been reaping such rewards since joining the profession after graduating from Quinnipiac College with a degree in Accounting, and especially since forming what has become Burgess, Schultz & Robb, an East Longmeadow-based firm that specializes in corporate tax work.
Robb also strives to create a balance between his business, his family (his wife, Amy, and four children), his multi-faceted work within the community, and, yes, his golf game. And sometimes he gets to mix these passions — using time on the course to talk with clients and network with potential new ones, and work as a member of the Ronald McDonald House Golf Committee.
He is also a member of the Chicopee Chamber of Commerce and the Chicopee Rotary Club, serves as treasurer for the Chicopee Visiting Nurses Assoc., and holds that same post with the Chicopee Fest of All Inc.
Doing all that wouldn’t be possible, he said, without considerable support from Amy, a stay-at-home mother.
“Amy allows me to do what I need to do to be out there networking, marketing, growing the firm the way I need to,” Robb said. “Thanks to her for all that she does, because she helps make me what I am.”

— Elizabeth Taras

Chief Operating Officer, Harold Grinspoon Foundation, age 31

‘Business savvy’ and ‘entrepreneurial skills’ are phrases that some might not associate with the management of a nonprofit. But Harold Grinspoon — one of the region’s most successful business leaders, a true entrepreneur, and a philanthropist — certainly knows better.
And that’s why he hired Adrian Bailey Dion to help lead the foundation that bears his name and become “a partner in my philanthropic work.” In his letter nominating Bailey Dion for the 40 Under Forty Class of 2013, Grinspoon had high praise for her entrepreneurial approach to operating and growing PJ Library, one of the foundation’s signature programs, which supports literacy and values development in children ages 1-8 through the purchase and delivery of age-appropriate Jewish books.
“When it started in 2006, it was my hope to grow the program and send Jewish books to 5,000 families in five years,” he wrote. “With Adrian on board in 2008, she was able to strategically think through the operations side of these growth goals. She helped build this program, which now has more than 200 partners across the globe, sends more than 100,000 books per month, and has given away more than 4 million books!”
This was accomplished through Bailey Dion’s efforts to create a new model of doing business within the publishing industry, as she positioned PJ Library to work like an agent as well as a client by proactively and collaboratively finding new manuscripts and story ideas, and structuring a purchasing process and timeline that allowed new books to be published for both PJ Library and the trade market.
“Having more families get more books is the way we measure success, and the way we do that is through efficiencies and economies of scale,” she explained. “The same principles that apply to business can also be applied to philanthropy.”
Personally, she’s been applying those entrepreneurial principles and passions to benefit local food pantries and kitchens. She worked tirelessly to make Share the Bounty, a program that supports shares in local farms, a more viable business; it was eventually adopted by Berkshire Grown, a nonprofit Berkshire County program that supports local agriculture.
In her home life, she and her arborist and horticulturalist husband plan on growing gardens and an orchard at their new, 13-acre home in Granville. Chances are, she’ll exceed growth goals there as well.

— Elizabeth Taras

Senior Project Manager, City of Springfield, age 31

Samalid Hogan majored in economics at UMass Amherst and was recruited by a major financial-services firm. But a chance meeting with state Rep. Cheryl Coakley-Rivera at one of the many conferences she attended ultimately altered her career path — and her life.
“She was very impressed with me, was looking for a chief of staff, and offered me a job,” Hogan recalled, adding that she accepted and quickly grew into a position with many facets, especially constituency work, that intrigued her.
“I would be the connector, and I really enjoyed that work,” she said, noting that she would eventually move on to a position with the Pioneer Valley Planning Commission, handling many similar duties, but on a region-wide basis.
Today, she’s still connecting, but in mostly different ways, involving what she really likes — bricks and mortar. Indeed, in her role as senior project manager for the city of Springfield, she likes to say that she’s “connecting neighborhoods, piece by piece by piece.”
She’s doing this through a number of projects and initiatives, all aimed at revitalizing the city and specific neighborhoods. Her résumé highlights are many, including:
• Serving as project manager for the South End revitalization project, an ongoing, $15 million endeavor;
• Acting as co-lead project manager for the Court Square redevelopment project;
• Serving as Springfield’s Small Business Assistance Program manager, overseeing an initiative that has awarded more than $200,000 in storefront grants to Springfield businesses; and
• Acting as the city’s brownfields redevelopment coordinator, handling environmental site assessments and cleanup projects at Union Station, the Gemini site, and other city-owned properties.
Her involvement in the community is just as extensive and diverse. It includes service on the boards of the Young Professional Society of Greater Springfield, OnBoard, the Horace Smith Fund, the Girl Scouts, the Brightwood Community Center, and many others. She’s also District 1 co-chair for DevelopSpringfield/Rebuild Springfield.
Summing up both aspects of her résumé, she said, “I like getting stuff done, and I like being helpful to others and helping improve the lives of other people.” In other words, she’s still connecting, and in ways that are having a profound impact on Springfield and the entire region.

— George O’Brien

Credit Analyst, PeoplesBank, age 28

Xiaolei Hua deals with two kinds of green on the job, and has found success with both.
Hua joined PeoplesBank right after graduating from UMass Amherst in 2006 and joined the Commercial Lending department in 2010. “I’ve really found my niche there,” he said. “I love it — every day is a new challenge; every loan is different.”
But money isn’t the only type of green he handles. In 2008, Hua founded the bank’s Environmental Committee, which seeks to instill environmentally friendly, sustainable practices into all areas of company operations, from internal recycling programs and an annual environmental fair to a carpool program and support of local farms through a weekly farmers market at the bank.
He’s also been involved in PeoplesBank’s efforts to provide capital to new-energy initiatives, including working with commercial lenders to analyze a $6.5 million deal to finance a local solar project.
“The renewable-energy field is extremely energizing. Most people don’t really understand it, and it’s just kind of taking off,” he said, crediting bank President Doug Bowen and the senior leadership team with supporting a culture of sustainability.
PeoplesBank is no stranger to 40 Under Forty, with two employees in the Class of 2013 joining several past alumni. In fact, Hua was nominated by no fewer than three former winners, including his wife, Kristen Pueschel Hua — whom he met through his work on the Environmental Committee — making the Huas the latest in a growing crop of spousal teams to accept the honor.
“While Xiaolei has been successful with his career path at PeoplesBank,” his wife wrote, “he has also been extremely dedicated to helping support new initiatives at the bank that have gone on to benefit not only the organization and our employees, but also our communities.”
Speaking of communities, Hua is active in civic life, notably as a board member and volunteer with Habitat for Humanity.
“I’ve always felt that Habitat’s mission is extremely important, to help build affordable housing for low-income families. I think what really struck me when I was first introduced to Habitat was its philosophy of giving families a hand up, not a handout. That’s something I really believe in,” he said. “And when these families succeed, the communities they live in also succeed.”

— Joseph Bednar

Clinical Director, Center for Human Development, age 37

When she was in high school, Jenn Root took a test to determine her ideal career paths. The matches that popped up, she recalled, were librarian, teacher, and social worker. “I said, ‘what the heck is a social worker?’”
But in college, she took a psychology class and loved it; that piqued her interest in social work, which she eventually chose as her major.
In that field, she has sought out opportunities to help some of society’s most challenged constituencies, working with various organizations to provide social services to disadvantaged children, adolescents, and families. She’s doing the same today as clinical director in the Center for Human Development’s Terri Thomas Girls Program.
As a detention unit for adolescent girls, it’s not the most cheerful job. “They’re in a tough place in their lives, and they come from different places in terms of emotional stability and mental health,” Root said. “A lot of the girls have a history of trauma.
“It’s not the kind of job where you see immediate results, and if you need immediate gratification to feel good about your work, it would be hard,” she continued, adding that her work is focused mainly on stabilizing these rough situations. “I like to think of it as planting a seed; you don’t really see it grow, but it does, and even when the girls come back to us, we can see the change and the growth. And you’re supporting them while they grow and change.”
As her photo suggests, Root is an avid runner, who has competed in two marathons and countless road races. “This job can be very stressful,” she said. “Running is my outlet.”
Her physical fitness came in handy the time she climbed the roof of a building to talk a client out of hurting herself. But saving and changing lives is usually a less dramatic, more gradual process.
“This is a small chapter in their life,” Root said. “In the moment, it can be hard to understand that they won’t be in the system forever, but, rather, they have an opportunity to change. They don’t have to have the same life their parents did; they can blaze new trails and create their own future.”

— Joseph Bednar

Vice President, Westfield Electroplating Co., age 32

When Jonathan Stolpinski sold his 16 alpacas because he and his family just couldn’t devote the time to them and run the family business, Westfield Electroplating Company (WEPCO), it was a sad day — for all those involved.
“Out of everyone, my dog, Brewski, misses them the most,” said Stolpinski of the furry friend he comes home to after long hours in the electroplating business, which is the process of coating various substances (nickel, chrome, zinc, and others) by electricity or chemical conversion onto everything from aircraft parts to medical devices.
In 1984, his father purchased the business, which was founded in 1946, and Stolpinski essentially grew up in the company as it expanded. And while he worked summers in the plant — and at the now-shuttered Foster House restaurant next door that the family also owned and operated — he was never pushed into the business.
“My father did a pretty good job at keeping me away, to not influence me; he wanted me to make the decision for myself and see what was out there.”
And what was out there, after earning a degree in Business Administration at St. Michael’s College in Vermont, was Lake Tahoe, Nev., where he “sowed his oats” for a year, working at a casino and skiing three to four times a week. In 2004, he decided, on his own, that the family business would be a good fit.
Learning the electroplating business on the job, he now serves as vice president under his father, playing a significant role in ongoing growth, from 140 employees to 155, from $11 million in annual sales to more than $17 million, and with a portfolio now boasting more than 2,000 customers.
Stolpinski and WEPCO are good business neighbors, supporting Noble Hospital, the Westfield Chamber of Commerce, and myriad nonprofits in the city. But it’s his position on the board of directors for the Westfield Boys and Girls Club that is a newfound civic passion.
“The more we do for boys and girls now,” he said, “when they get older, the more they will be able to do for others.”

— Elizabeth Taras

Associate Professor of Pharmacy Practice, Western New England University College of Pharmacy, age 39

Kam Capoccia says she has two passions, teaching and patient care — activities that one what might not associate with someone who is a pharmacist by trade. But Capoccia, by bringing her passions front and center in an intriguing mix of career endeavors, is changing some attitudes about those in her profession.
She has a business card from Western New England University identifying her as a clinical associate professor and residency program director for the Department of Pharmacy Practice. Meanwhile, she is the director (and the heart and soul) of the Consultation and Wellness Center at the Big Y on Cooley Street in Springfield, a unique program created in a partnership between the school and the corporation.
In both settings, she gets to teach. At WNEU, she’s educating students about everything from conducting blood-pressure screenings to how to listen to a heart. And at the consultation and wellness center, she’s educating patients about such matters as monitoring their blood sugar, controlling hypertension, and achieving weight loss.
And there are ample rewards from both endeavors. “I enjoy the interaction with learners — I love watching the lightbulbs go on,” she said of her work with WNEU students as they assimilate the skills and knowledge needed to succeed in that challenging profession. At the clinic, meanwhile, she has helped one patient lose more than 40 pounds over the past year or so and assisted countless others with a host of issues, especially Type 2 diabetes.
“I love going to work every day — the clinic is what really drives me,” she told BusinessWest, noting that the facility is open three days a week. “With the patients, the numbers continue to increase, and we’re seeing some great results.”
Her many career pursuits — she also takes shifts in a Walgreens pharmacy on a per-diem basis — consume much of her time, but she also focuses on achieving work/life balance, making time for her family and especially her three children, Jacob, Marissa, and Jack.
The creators of the Big Y center describe it as a program featuring “the pharmacist as educator.” That’s a very accurate depiction, and one that brings Capoccia’s twin passions clearly into focus.

— George O’Brien