Despite her prominent regional role at Harvard Pilgrim, McEvoy-Zdonczyk is a behind the scenes force of nature behind major developments and organization in the city and the region.
Her power lies not only in her unstoppable willpower and impossible-to-refuse attitude but also in her ability to connect people to make projects happen, whether it is large undertakings like helping Discover Central Massachusetts find a new voice to market the region to little things like roping in volunteers to wrap presents for the Boys & Girls Club of Worcester.
Q&A
What will the next year bring for the regional economy?
Continued development will drive the value of Worcester as the one, true, CityBurb in the commonwealth. We need to embrace our locally owned smaller businesses so the things that make our community great sustain our growth.
Gathered below are the other Central Massachusetts’ 2016 Power Players:
Standard Bearers: Long-time forces in the business community
- Timothy P. Murray, President & CEO of the Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce
- Mike Angelini, Chairman of Bowditch & Dewey
- The Crowleys, Owners & Shareholders of Polar Beverages & Wachusett Mountain Ski Area
- Sandy L. Dunn, General manager at the SMG/DCU Center
- Don Irving, President of Black Point Realty & Nichols Square LLC
Trail Blazers: Pioneers setting the latest economic trends
- Karim El-Gamal, Co-owner of the Rail Trail Flatbread Co./New City Microcreamery/
- Ed Moore, President & CEO of Harrington HealthCare System
- Girish Navani, CEO of eClinicalWorks
- Kevin O’Sullivan, President & CEO of Massachusetts Biomedical Initiatives, Worcester
- Alec Lopez & Sherri Sadowski, Owners of Armsby Abbey/Crust Bakeshop/The Dive Bar
Behind the Scenes: People in the background who keep the wheels turning
- Cheryl Lapriore, Chief of staff & chief marketing officer at UMass Memorial Health Care
- Gordon Lankton, Retired president of Nypro Inc.
- Ann T. Lisi, President & CEO of the Greater Worcester Community Foundation
- Jim McGovern & Karyn E. Polito, U.S. Congressman & Lieutenant Governor
Next Wave: Forward thinkers ushering in the new economy
- Travis McCready, President & CEO of the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center
- Che Anderson, Project manager at the Office of the Worcester City Manager
- Jeannie Hebert, President & CEO of the Blackstone Valley Chamber of Commerce
- Dean Rohan, Co-founder & owner, Tree House Brewing Co.
- Christine Thomas, Development partner at XSS Hotels and Colwen Management
Gear Shifters: Up-and-comers breathing new life into old ideas
- Meredith Harris, Executive director of the Marlborough Economic Development Corp.
- Tarek Elsawy, MD President & CEO of Reliant Medical Group
- Justin & Ashleigh Gelinas, Attorneys at Gelinas & Ward, LLP
- Cliff Rucker, Owner of the Worcester Railers Hockey Club and Worcester Sports Center
- Matthias Waschek, Director at the Worcester Art Museum
