Six Centenary community members among 40 Under 40 nominees
December 14, 2016
SHREVEPORT, LA — Six Centenary community members, including four alumni, were honored at the annual 40 Under 40 gala presented by the Greater Shreveport Chamber of Commerce’s Young Professionals Initiative on Saturday, December 3 at the Shreveport Convention Center.
The 40 Under 40 award recognizes successful young professionals from northwest Louisiana for their outstanding professional achievements, leadership, community involvement, and commitment to improving Shreveport and Bossier City.
Honoree Jesse Gilmore is a 2012 Centenary graduate and serves on the College’s Alumni Council. A native of Cape Cod, Massachusetts, he is the current Director of Development for the LSU Health Sciences Foundation and co-owns Pelican Blue Strategies, a political and public relations consulting firm. Gilmore is active in volunteer work across the state, serving as co-director of New Leaders Council Louisiana, a non-profit organization that recruits and trains the next generation of progressive leaders in Louisiana, and as board treasurer of the Louisiana Budget Project. He also holds the distinction of being the youngest Rotarian in the Shreveport Rotary Club.
"I've lived in Shreveport for nearly ten years, and I’ve never felt more a member of this community than I do today," said Gilmore. "It was a tremendous honor to be included in this year's 40 Under 40 cohort, and I was fortunate that my parents traveled all the way from Cape Cod to attend the gala Saturday."
Jason Holland ’07 was also recognized as a member of the 40 Under 40 class. Holland, a mortgage officer at Red River Bank, serves on the board of directors for Shreveport Common, the Bossier Arts Council, and the Southern Hills Business Association. He is the senior coordinator for the Greater Shreveport Chamber of Commerce Leadership Program and president of the College’s TKE-Iota Theta Alumni Association, also serving as advisor to the undergraduate TKE chapter at Centenary.
“There were some heavy hitters in this year’s 40 Under 40 class: start-up developers and non-profit founders, civic and industry leaders,” said Holland. “It was an honor to be included among them.”
Other Centenary community members honored in the 2016 class of 40 Under 40 are:
- Colton Kyle, MBA Candidate – ANECA Federal Credit Union
- Margaret McDonald ‘08 – Court of Appeals, Second Circuit
- Daniel Martin '10 – GastroIntestinal Specialists
- Amanda Simpson, MBA candidate – ANECA Federal Credit Union
The 40 Under 40 program is celebrating its 10th anniversary in 2016, and the Centenary honorees join an alumni network of 400 outstanding young professionals from the Shreveport-Bossier City area.