By KJ Philp, January 2017 Issue.
As each year comes to a close, the EchoMagazine team takes pause to reflect on the events that defined the past 12 months and the exceptional individuals who led the way. To these local heroes, Echo bestows its Leaders of the Year recognition.
We’re proud to announce Sen. Katie Hobbs and Nate Rhoton as the leaders who have earned this recognition for 2016.
Not only are both of these individuals ongoing contenders for Echo Readers' Choice Awards, they also support our unofficial (coincidental, really) tradition of honoring a pair of outstanding community members who have crossed paths while supporting causes they’re passionate about.
Throughout the past few months we’ve had the pleasure of getting to know this dynamic duo a little better, and what we discovered is that they have a truly unique chemistry and their individual leadership styles complement each other well.
But don’t take our word for it. In the pages ahead, we invite you to get to know Sen. Katie Hobbs and Nate Rhoton and find out how their work in the community has earned them Echo’s highest honor.
But first, let’s take a look back at the past 22 years of honorees who paved the way!
Meet Echo’s previous Leaders of the Year:
1994:Bill MacDonald & Dianne Post
1995: Barb Jones & Mark Colledge
1996:Beth Verity & Ken Cheuvront
1997:Linda Hoffman & Neil Giuliano
1998: Kim Charrier & Steve May
1999:Amy Ettinger & Steve May
2000: Richard Stevens & Marti McElroy
2001: Kathie Gummere & Doug Klinge
2002: Don Hamill & Jeannie Metzler
2003: Kirk Baxter & Madeline Adelman
2004:Brad Wishon & Cathy Busha
2005:David Fiss & Kyrsten Sinema
2006: Bill Lewis & Brandi Sokolosky
2007:Tom Simplot & Regina Gazelle
2008: Gary Guerin & Annie Loyd
2009: Micheal Weakley & Tambra Williams
2010:Meg Sneed & Jimmy Gruender
2011:Caleb Laieski & Kado Stewart
2012:Greg Stanton & Nicole Stanton
2013:Trudie Jackson & Julian Melson
2014:Angela Hughey & Kit Kloeckl
2015:Katy June & Stacy Louis
