It is our pleasure to announce the YPK Impact Awards 2019 finalists! Each of the individuals and organizations represented have shown outstanding commitment to the Knoxville community and we can't wait to celebrate with them at the Impact Awards on November 15th. Show that you support our amazing group of finalists by attending the Impact Awards on Friday, November 15! Get your ticket at ypknox.com/impact-awards.
Outstanding Young Professional Finalists
Rhoni Basden
Rhoni Basden serves as the executive director at Girls Inc. of the Tennessee Valley. In spring of 2013, Basden originally relocated to East Tennessee to manage the Oak Ridge location. Soon thereafter, she recognized a high percentage of low-income girls in the Knox community were largely underserved. A year later, Basden established an outreach program at two school sites in Knoxville, instantly filling to capacity. Now serving over 1,100 girls annually across three counties, Girls Inc. of the Tennessee Valley is a leading nonprofit in the Knoxville area.
Outside of work, Basden serves as VP of the OR Computer Science Girls and scholarship chair for Altrusa International, participates in Knoxville Chamber events, is a member of the Alliance for Better Nonprofits, and was a YPK member in 2016. Additionally, she led a national conference in Dallas this September on Women in Leadership and Management.
Claudia Caballero
Claudia Caballero is the executive director of Centro Hispano, the cultural and educational hub for the Latino community in Knoxville. A Honduran-American, Caballero is bilingual and moved to the US as a teenager. In just three years with Centro Hispano, she has redirected the organization’s mission and significantly grown her team. The organization is now seen as an empowering community center where Latinos have the tools and support needed to thrive culturally, educationally, and economically.
Cabellero immerses herself in the community in order to better connect Latinos to the Greater Knoxville area. She participates in panels at universities, community associations, and civic organizations; partners with other organizations such as the YWCA, Urban League, Girls Inc., and Knoxville Gay Pride; and serves on the East Tennessee Foundation board, Tennessee Education Equity Coalition committee, and Johnson University’s advisory board.
Dustin Crouse
Dustin Crouse owns Knoxville Elder Law, a firm focused on helping Tennessee families navigate the legal issues surrounding estate planning, long-term care planning, probate, and managing care of those in need. Crouse often lectures on estate planning and administration and is a member of many organizations: the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys, Knoxville Bar Association, Tennessee Bar Association Estate Planning and Elder Law Sections, YPK, and the Girls Inc. advisory board.
Not only does he help those in his community through his business, but he also enjoys assisting the Christian Academy of Knoxville’s boys soccer program for the last seven years, helping them reach three state championships. Additionally, his work with the Girls Inc. advisory board especially resonates with his dreams of encouraging all girls, including his young daughter, to have the confidence to be whatever they want to be and accomplish their dreams.
Justin Fields
Justin Fields saw a need for the Knoxville community to have a recreational sports league that provides young professionals an outlet to be active and socialize, which is how Smoky Mountain Social was formed.
Through the sports league, Knoxville community members sign up to play sports such as kickball, softball, volleyball, bowling, football, and even corn hole/can jam, which has revitalized Badgett Fields, now known as Tri-Star Park. The experience is customer-centric with an easy to use app that tracks scores and even pictures, and all guests are welcomed at the on-site craft beer and food concession area that boasts fans/shade, fire pits, ping pong, and a shack to watch your favorite professional team on TV. Most importantly, it also donates ten percent of each registration fee to a nonprofit of the player’s choice.
Becca James
Becca James is the afternoon radio DJ for Star 102.1. Before making her way to Knoxville, James began as an off-air promotions coordinator in Houston, TX. She connects with her listeners by reporting on local news, events, pop culture happenings, and lifestyle stories. Additionally, she’s taken on more responsibility, including working with record label reps to identify new music, creating music schedules, and ensuring the quality of all musical elements.
James enjoys giving back to the Knoxville community in a variety of ways, such as volunteering with the YWCA, Big Brothers Big Sisters, and Michael J. Fox Foundation; serving on the Domestic Violence Awareness Month Committee; coordinating Star’s annual Adopt-a-Family promotion; and repelling down the 12-story Langley Building for Restoration House’s ‘Over the Edge’ event.
Jim Lapinska
Jim LaPinska is a former YPK president and a current financial planner with Northwestern Mutual. Joining Northwestern in 2008, he observed one of the worst economic markets in history. Today, he has assembled a team that specializes in financial planning for physicians, business owners, and other highly skilled and adaptable professionals. His primary goal is to help families reach total financial security while protecting what is dearest to them. In order to do so, he has is a Certified Financial Planner, Chartered Life Underwriter, and Chartered Financial Consultant.
A lover of Knoxville and passionate about helping others, he remains active within the community volunteering with nonprofits such as United Way of Greater Knoxville, Metropolitan Drug Coalition, Dogwood Arts Festival, Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, Big Brothers Big Sisters, and the Fantasy of Trees.
Dasha Lundy
Dasha Lundy is a physical therapist for the Smoky Mountain Home Health & Hospice. Not only does she love her profession, but she is also passionate about making her hometown of Knoxville a better place. Lundy decided to get involved with organizations like the League of Women Voters of Knoxville, the Burlington Neighborhood Association, the East TN Community Design Center, Knoxville College board, Historic Zoning Commission, and the East Knoxville Business and Professional Association. Her most proud achievement is helping transform the Burlington community. She helped implement a neighborhood Vision Plan that included new lighting, sidewalks, crosswalks, and a Cal Johnson Mural in the park. The community has since been highlighted in publications such as The Knoxville Focus, and Mayor Rogero has dedicated funding for the area for the 2019-20 year.
Andrew McCreary
Andrew McCreary is a senior tax consultant with the region’s premier hospital system, Covenant Health. Working as a CPA in Knoxville for over six years, he initially started in public accounting, but more recently found a passion for the healthcare industry and made the transition. McCreary interacts with many of his peers by serving as vice president of membership for the Tennessee Society of Certified Public Accountants and assisting with the continued education programs.
McCreary also dedicates his time to the Knoxville community by serving as the professional development chair for YPK. In this role, the professional development committee plans six events per year focused on learning and development opportunities. He also sits on the board of Interfaith Health Clinic, which aids community members who do not have health insurance to receive necessary medical treatments and medication.
Wesley Wilson
Wesley Wilson works with H.T. Hackney in corporate marketing & design. Beginning as an intern, Wilson is now a graphic design and branding expert, reporting directly to the VP of marketing. Wilson enjoys living and working in the downtown community and was connected with H.T. Hackney through his tenure as a Knoxville Fellow in 2016.
Not only does Wilson give his all for his workplace, but he’s also passionate about improving and reinvigorating the downtown and surrounding areas. Sitting on the board of Centro Hispano de East Tennessee, he has transformed the organization by utilizing his graphic design expertise and implementing many new ideas, including an annual appeals letter campaign that brought in more than $14,000 its first year. In addition to volunteering with Centro, Wilson and his wife are active members of All Souls Church and foster parents to three young girls.
Kate Ziegler
Kate Ziegler is best known as the Olympic athlete who swam with Michael Phelps and the woman who represented Team USA at two Olympic Games, holds 15 international competition medals and broke numerous world records. Professionally, Ziegler serves the community as a consultant and trainer serving local nonprofits.
Working with the Alliance for Better Nonprofits, she facilitates the annual Young Professionals leadership cohort and numerous other trainings, and works with a prominent, local nonprofit as their strategic planner. Additionally, Ziegler teaches a professional development course that includes confidence building, productivity, and self-care. Outside of ABN, she delivers motivational speeches and educational workshops in Knoxville and around the country and works as a mentor to young women and athletes.
Most Impactful Business Finalists
51 Fitness
51 Fitness focuses on training healthy lifestyle habits to benefit daily activity. Comprised of a group of personal trainers and massage therapists, 51 Fitness strives for excellence in inspiring its clients to live well-balanced lives by encouraging them to be balanced in mind and body, incorporate a holistic lifestyle, and in turn impact their surrounding community.
Clarence Brown Theatre
Clarence Brown Theatre is committed to providing the East Tennessee region with cultural enrichment for all generations, while also engaging those 40 and under through a variety of means. CBT works with young professionals to encourage a new generation of patrons to attend the arts, like creating a new program called Stage Door Deals for those under the age of 35.
Covenant Health
Covenant Health serves the community by improving the quality of life through better health. It is the region’s top performing healthcare network and has more than 10,000 employees. It employs a significant number of young professionals and provides educational and career development programs through partnerships with local universities.
New2Knox
New2Knox strives to connect people to each other and help them fall in love with Knoxville. Being a young professional can be an especially volatile time in a person’s career where transitions and moving happens frequently. Being new to a city can be scary, especially without a guide. N2K serves as that “guide” for Knoxville through social media and in-person events.
Random Acts of Flowers
Random Acts of Flowers improves the emotional health and well-being of individuals in healthcare facilities by delivering recycled flowers, encouragement, and personal moments of kindness. It has delivered over 112,000 moments of kindness to the community’s most vulnerable members and pushes to be a zero waste organization.
Volunteer East Tennessee
Volunteer East Tennessee inspires service by equipping nonprofit organizations and mobilizing volunteers to connect with one another and strengthen communities. In just five years, it has garnered over 20,000 volunteer accounted and created more than 50,000 unique volunteer connections, resulting in over 260,000 hours served.