People on the Move is a rundown of recent hirings, promotions, appointments and other notable movements by professionals in the state. If you’re interested in submitting an entry, please contact news@delawarebusinesstimes.com.
Matt Patton has been promoted to vice president of Surf Bagel.
Back row, left to right: DJ Forcucci, John Sapienza, Matt Patton and Guillermo Montalvo. Middle: Katie Frederick, Gail Plummer, Jen Bradour, Karen Johnson and Liz Vitella. Seated: Emmi Lux, Enid Gutierrez, Taylor Quillen and Wes Books. | PHOTO COURTESY OF SODEL CONCEPTS
“Matt’s background and experience makes him the perfect person to grow Surf Bagel,” Scott Kammerer said. “Matt knows all aspects of our operations — he’s overseen the construction of three of our restaurants. He is also well-versed in renovations and town and county codes.”
As a child in South Carolina, Patton developed an early interest in cooking. When he was 14, he became a dishwasher in a fine-dining restaurant in Columbia, his hometown.
While earning a bachelor’s degree in business administration from the University of Florida, Patton continued to work in restaurants as a server and bartender.
After college, Patton took a job with a national restaurant franchise in Atlanta and worked his way up to store general manager in just eight months. He moved to Baltimore to further his career as a corporate restaurant manager.
Patton joined SoDel in 2013 as general manager of Catch 54 in Fenwick Island. In 2015, Patton became a director of operations, overseeing the daily operations of three restaurants. In 2021, he was promoted to vice president of construction. His duties included architectural planning, permitting, vendor coordination, progress reporting and interior buildout.
Patton will serve as the Vice President of the bagel company with Wes Books serving as the Director of Operations.
Bayhealth announces Certified Nurse Midwife Theresa Piper, CNM, joins the Obstetrician-Gynecologists (OB-GYN) team.
Theresa Piper | PHOTO COURTESY OF BAYHEALTH
“We’re very excited to welcome our first midwife with Bayhealth Women’s Care. Theresa brings a wealth of experience providing attentive and compassionate care to mothers during and after childbirth,” Vice President of Physician Services and Clinical Integration Lawrence Ward, MD, MPH, FACP, said. “With her skills as a midwife, we’re glad to be extending upon the women’s health services available to our community.”
With a more than 10-year career in nursing, Piper worked as a registered nurse in labor and delivery nurse at Bayhealth for most of that time. She earned a Master of Science degree in Nursing/ Midwifery from Frontier Nursing University.
In addition to obstetric services and deliveries, Piper also provides a range of women’s healthcare in the office setting. This includes prenatal care, postpartum support, family planning and contraception counseling, and other education and treatment to keep women well.
Piper is a member of the Association of Women’s Health, Obstetrics, and Neonatal Nursing (AWOHNN) and the American College of Nurse-Midwives (ACNM). She sees patients at the Bayhealth Women’s Care, Sussex Campus practice at 101 Wellness Way, Suite 300 in Milford. Visit Bayhealth.org/Medical-Group to learn more about the practice. To schedule an appointment please call 302-424-6511.
RateMyAgent, a client review and digital marketing platform for real estate professionals, has announced Lisa Mathena of Milton, Delaware as the winner of its Agent of the Year Award for the entire state of Delaware in 2023. Mathena was ranked #1 in the entire state, and was also a Top 5 Agent of the Year in Sussex County.
Lisa Mathena | PHOTO COURTESY OF RATEMYAGENT
Mathena, who is principle broker and owner of The Lisa Mathena Group, Inc., said “Throughout my career I have always made customer service, ethics and professionalism my top priority. I am incredibly grateful to my clients, and this award is a testament to the trust they have placed in me.” Mathena also was honored in 2022 by RateMyAgent as a Top 10 Agent in Delaware as well as a Top 5 Agent in Sussex County.
With 30 years of award-winning real estate experience, Mathena is ranked in the top 1% of realtors nationwide and rated as one of America’s Top 100 Agents. She holds the Certified Residential Specialist (CRS®) designation, the Short Sales and Foreclosure Resource (SFR®) certification, and Real Estate Negotiation Expert (REN) certification, the premier negotiation credential in the country. Lisa has also received the prestigious FiveStar Award every year since 2019.
For the past year, Mathena has served on the Board of Directors of the Delaware Association of Realtors (DAR) and was recently appointed to serve again in 2023. Since 2019, Mathena has been an active member of the Board of Directors of the Sussex County Association of Realtors (SCAOR).
Neil Stalter and Jeffrey Marsico have earned the Retirement Income Certified Professional® (RICP®) designation from The American College. The program provides an extensive and intensive retirement income education, ensuring that clients receive the same level of expertise as they move into the next phase of their life.
Tyler Malek has earned the Chartered Financial Consultant (ChFC®) designation from The American College. The ChFC® designation is awarded to candidates who complete a prescribed program of study and exams and fulfill certain ethical and professional experience requirements. Designees receive in-depth industry training focused on the comprehensive financial process to help clients identify and establish their financial goals and implement a comprehensive program to achieve them.
Neil’s practice focuses on those nearing retirement and business owners. He helps them create strategies around wealth management, tax-advantaged distribution, retirement income, family planning, estate transfer, business succession, executive compensation, employee benefits and key employee retention strategies. Neil takes pride in his relationships with his clients and the community.
Jeffrey has developed a nationwide practice, passionately advising his clients on their wealth management needs. Utilizing a detailed client-focused process, Jeff helps clients confidently make educated decisions in an efficient and timely manner. He is a regular keynote speaker to medical groups and residency programs in the Northeast.
Tyler works to help medical professionals, business owners and pre-retirees make smart choices with their money and work toward their long-term financial goals.
Stalter, Marsico and Malek are Registered Representatives and Investment Advisor Representatives with Securian Financial Services, Inc.
Richards, Layton & Finger announced Nicole Pedi has been accepted into the 2023 Leadership Council on Legal Diversity (LCLD) Fellows Program, and Dorronda Bordley and Kinsey Lenehan have been accepted into the 2023 LCLD Pathfinders Program. The LCLD developed these programs to recognize diverse attorneys and to serve as a platform for the attorneys’ professional growth. The Fellows Program, designed for mid-career attorneys, and the Pathfinder Program, for early-career attorneys, offer tools and strategies focused on professional and personal development, relationship-building, and leadership training.
As a member of the LCLD, Richards Layton actively supports the organization’s goal to create a more diverse and inclusive legal profession in the United States. The firm participates in the LCLD’s 1L Scholars Program, under which Richards Layton hires, for its summer associate program, first-year diverse students who share the firm’s dedication to furthering the inclusion of underrepresented groups in the legal profession. Richards Layton attorneys also participate in the LCLD’s Success in Law School Mentoring Program, serving as mentors to diverse 1L students.
Bordley focuses on commercial and intellectual property litigation in Delaware’s state and federal courts. She serves on the board of TeenSHARP, a nonprofit organization that works to prepare Black, Latino, and low-income students for top colleges and community leadership. Dorronda is a member of the Rodney Inn of Court and was a mentor through the Big Brothers Big Sisters of Delaware. Before joining the firm, she served as an AmeriCorps VISTA veterans unit coordinator. At William & Mary Law School, Dorronda was secretary of the W.C. Jefferson Chapter of the Black Law Students Association and editor-in-chief for The Comparative Jurist.
Lenehan focuses her practice on transactional and advisory matters involving structured finance transactions, investment funds, and the formation, structuring, operation, and dissolution of Delaware alternative entities, including limited liability companies and partnerships. Kinsey is deeply involved in the Junior League of Wilmington, a nonprofit organization focused on improving the lives of adolescent girls in the greater Wilmington area. She is also on the Development Committee of the Ronald McDonald House of Delaware. Kinsey has served as a mentor through the Big Brothers Big Sisters of Delaware. In law school, she was managing editor for the Kansas Journal of Law and Public Policy.
Pedi handles commercial and intellectual property disputes, litigating contract, fraud, noncompete, trade secret, patent, and trademark infringement claims in Delaware’s state and federal courts. She also dedicates a significant amount of time to serving as a pro bono attorney in family court. Nicole is one of four lawyers nationwide chosen for the 2022-2024 Young Lawyer Leadership Program of the American Bar Association’s Section of Litigation, and she is listed among The Best Lawyers in America’s “Ones to Watch.” In law school, Nicole was an editor for the Villanova Law Review and argued in Villanova’s Moot Court Competition, where her team won first place and she was selected as the best oralist. Her numerous law school honors include Villanova’s Leadership and Scholarship Award.
The Board of Directors of DANA, the Delaware Alliance for Nonprofit Advancement, has elected new leadership for a two-year term beginning in 2023. Fayetta M. Blake succeeds Dominic Canuso as Board Chair. Blake is the founder and executive director of Pathways to Success, Inc. as well as an entrepreneur with businesses in Delaware and Maryland.
Jennifer Cho succeeds Patti Grimes as Vice Chair. Cho is head of Citizenship/Community Relations for Barclays US Consumer Bank.
Charles Vincent was re-elected as Secretary of the Board. He is the executive director of Spur Impact.
Vickie Young Beam was re-elected as Treasurer. Beam is a Principal of the Audit Department of Cover & Rossiter, where she leads many of the region’s most prestigious not-for-profit profit and for-profit audits.