Silver Medal recipient Rick Krochka with his team at TRIAD.
Photos by Jacob Thomas Scott
Annual Meeting Presenting Partner
The 80th AAF-Akron Annual Meeting was held on Thursday, October 23 at the Knight Stage in downtown Akron. President JD Dumire presided over the annual meeting and updated members on highlights from the past year and recognized our 2025 honorees.
Silver Medal recipient, Rick Krochka, gives his acceptance speech.
SILVER MEDAL AWARD
Rick Krochka is the 2025 recipient of the Silver Medal. This lifetime achievement award celebrates exceptional creative leadership, community impact, and service to the profession. Krochka is the founder of TRIAD Communications, a leading Northeast Ohio advertising and marketing firm known for its award-winning creative work and deep community commitment. There he has spent over three decades helping local businesses, nonprofits, and public agencies bring their messages to life through innovative design and communications. Under his leadership, TRIAD’s Design4Good program has donated nearly $900,000 in pro-bono services to area nonprofits since its inception.
Silver Medal presented by Tracy Burt, VP of Marketing, Akron Community Foundation.
City of Akron Ward 9 Councilperson Tina Boyes presents proclamation.
Cuyahoga Falls Mayor Don Walters presents proclamation.
The Silver Medal award was presented by Tracy Burt, VP of Marketing and Communications at the Akron Community Foundation. Krochka also received a congratulatory letter from Akron Mayor Shammas Malik, proclamations from City of Akron Ward 9 Councilperson Tina Boyes, and Cuyahoga Falls Mayor Don Walters.
Watch his Silver Medal video here and listen to his acceptance speech here.
APPLAUSE AWARDS
Our membership points program recognized and rewarded our members’ service and engagement with the chapter. Members earned points for attending events, joining a team, making donations to our scholarship and more. Points from Oct. 2024–Oct. 2025 were tallied up and top tier earners were recognized.
James Waters, Member of the Year.
Member of the Year
James Waters, Producer and Director of Waters Media, earned Member of the Year. Our most active member, Waters attended many events, helped on programs, sponsored an event and contributed to our scholarship. He earned 165 points and received one free membership.
First Tier Winner
The following member earned 150+ points and received an AAF cooler bag and gift card to our catering partner, Big Eu’es BBQ.
Ryan Rimmele
Second Tier Winners
The following members earned 100+ points and received AAF cooler bags.
Todd Biss
Michael Carlson
Kerri Crawford
JD Dumire
Janae Droder
Dave Flynn
Justin Gamble
Brianna Kelly
Tim Klinger
Mario Micale
Alissa Newberry
Melissa Olson
Mario Ricciardi
Tom Scott
Mark Szczepanik
Eric Vaughan
James Waters
Cecilia Sveda
Josh Weisgarber
Kaylie Yaceczko
Kel Rininger, Volunteer of the Year.
VOLUNTEERS OF THE YEAR
Two volunteers were recognized for their contributions.
Kel Rininger and Sophia DelCiappo worked around the clock designing all of the eye-popping creative for the 2025 American Advertising Awards.
Alissa Newberry, Board Member of the Year.
BITCHIN’ BOARD MEMBER OF THE YEAR
Communications Chair Alissa Newberry earned 370 member points and won the distinction of Bitchin’ Board Member of the Year.
Paul Lauck, President of Star Printing, Partner of the Year.
PARTNER OF THE YEAR
Star Printing has continuously supported our efforts for the last two decades: from printing multiple postcards to sponsoring students and everything in between.
HIGH FIVE AWARDS
The High Five Awards recognize those advertising and marketing professionals who go above and beyond the 9-to-5 workday in big and small ways.
ACCOUNT SERVICES AWARD
Emily Richmond
Account Manager
Pritt Entertainment Group
“Emily exemplifies what it means to be an outstanding Account Manager. She is highly organized and efficient, ensuring that projects stay on track and run smoothly from start to finish. At the same time, she builds and maintains strong client relationships. Her willingness to go the extra mile and her ability to balance strategic thinking with day-to-day execution make her an invaluable asset to both our clients and our team.”
MARCOMM AWARD
Olivia Eastly
Marketing & Communications Specialist
Akron Community Foundation
“In addition to her role at ACF, Olivia serves on the MARCOMM team for Torchbearers. She is quick to offer suggestions on ways to further Torchbearers’ mission with the use of social media and various news organizations. Her expansive knowledge of marketing, communications, and copy writing has been invaluable. Olivia is a natural leader and deeply cares about the city of Akron.”
PRODUCTION AWARD
Tami Warlop
Graphics Manager
Excelsior Marking
“Tami provides exceptional customer service. She and her team have produced AAF-Akron’s ADDYs for years. She works hard to make the colors and production meet our high expectations every time – no matter the unexpected challenges. She jumps through every hoop to produce beautiful ADDYs.”
INTERN OF THE YEAR
Keyana Gales-Cook
Former intern, Ohio & Erie Canalway Coalition)
Telecommunications Student, Penn State University.
“Keyana assisted OECC with their website, social media, flyers, promotional materials and event implementation. She brings a high level of professionalism to her work, a strong work ethic and excellent communication skills. Several of Keyana’s strengths include her positive attitude, attention to details, and initiative. She will be a strong addition to any organization or team.”
MOST VALUABLE PEER
Josh Booth
Senior Producer,
red point
“Josh works tirelessly, is innovative and always evolving methods to find and attract new clients. He organizes projects internally and always pushes our artists to do their best work. He has performed incredibly even as economic factors create ever changing challenges. Red point would not be where it is without his contributions.”
AAF-Akron 2025 Board of Directors (l-r): Cecilia Sveda, Tom Scott, Brianna Kelly, JD Dumire, Kaylie Yaceczko, Janae Droder, Alissa Newberry.
HIGHLIGHTS FROM 2024-2025
- Akron won a National Club Achievement award: second place in Cornerstone Initiatives & Events
The category focuses on promoting diversity & multiculturalism, advertising education, awareness and activism with regard to government relations and championing creative excellence through the American Advertising Awards. - The University of Akron Graphic Design Senior Class of 2024 won two gold District ADDYs at the District 5 American Advertising Awards competition in March for their Taking Shape Senior Exhibition! Special shout out to professional members, Clever and Secret Creative and students Bailey Bee, Alex Miller, and Julia Zollinger for their Silver ADDY wins.
- Susan B. Kosich Endowed Scholarship for Marketing Communications was permanently endowed in Feb. at the Akron Community Foundation! We will award the first scholarship at the 2026 American Advertising Awards. We still need your continued support to build up the scholarship so it is around to serve students for generations.
- The MENT: Our second annual mentorship program launched in April. Mentors and mentees met at their own pace and inspired each other.
MENT Class of 2025:
Mentor / Mentee
Alexander Sprungle/Bailey Bee
Brittany Nader/Mica Heffner
Ryan Rimmele / Lauren Shrimplin
Christiana Cacciato/Mamie Green
Kim Wengerd/HaLim Song
Micah Heffner, MENT Class of 2025
Mamie Green, MENT Class of 2025
HaLim Song/Kim Wengerd, MENT Class of 2025
Lauren Shrimplin/Ryan RImmele, MENT Class of 2025
WHAT’S NEXT IN 2026
- We Celebrate Our 81st Anniversary in 2026!
We need your help to get to 100 and beyond! Become an AAF ADvocate. Did you know you can sponsor a category at the American Advertising Awards for $250. We have sponsorships for all levels and budgets as well as in-kind partnerships. - Looking for new board and team members to bolster succession and bring new ideas to the table.
- Increase collaboration with other organizations so we meet people outside our circles. From partnering with our sister chapter AAF-CLE to the BBB, Canton Creative Meet Up, NSME and Akron Black Artist Guild.
THANK YOU TO OUR 2024-2026 BOARD
JD Dumire, President
Senior Exhibit Designer, Formatech Exhibits
Owner/Designer, DesignxJD, LLC
Brianna Kelly, Board Chair
Marketing Manager, Pritt Entertainment Group
Kaylie Yaceczko, Vice President/Membership Chair
Digital Marketing Manager, Red Point Digital
Alissa Newberry, Communications Chair
Marketing & Operations Specialist, ANR Electric
Janae Droder, Programs Chair
NEO Pro Imaging, Graphic Designer & Prepress Operator
Jacob Scott, American Advertising Award Chair
Graphic Designer, Photographer & Videographer, The Jacobs
SPECIAL THANKS TO OUR ANNUAL MEETING EVENT PARTNERS
Catering: Eugene Wilson, Big Eu’es BBQ
Silver Medal Video Partner: Chad & Jake Ressler, Double Take Video
Event Photography: Jacob Thomas Scott
