New England Women in Real Estate (NEWiRE) celebrated its 30th anniversary and honored the recipients of the NEWiRE 2012 Achievement Awards on April 25th, at a dinner held at The Fairmont Copley Plaza. Janet Wu, news anchor and reporter for WHDH-TV, NBC Boston, emceed the event.
NEWiRE has made great strides from when it was founded in 1982. Then, eleven women had the vision to form an organization to promote the advancement of women in the commercial real estate industry. Today, NEWiRE has more than 400 members and continues to provide a forum for education, networking and professional development to women in various commercial real estate disciplines throughout the Greater Boston area. Now in its fourteenth year, the NEWiRE Annual Achievement Awards recognize members, in six categories, who best embody the spirit and principles of NEWiRE.
"This year's NEWiRE Achievement Awards dinner is a very special event for us as we honor our award recipients as well as celebrate 30 memorable years of advancing women in the commercial real estate industry," said Janet Pirrello, senior vice president at BayNorth Capital, LLC and president of NEWiRE. "NEWiRE would not be the organization it is today without the energy and commitment of its members. We applaud the 2012 award recipients and look forward to continued success built on the strong foundation of our leadership and the dedication of our members over the past 30 years."
The follow members are this year's recipients:
Esprit de Coeur: Cheeta Lorian Miho Soga, Nitsch Engineering - The Esprit de Coeur Award recognizes a NEWiRE member who best embodies the spirit and principles of NEWiRE. This award is for that member who continually puts her heart and soul into NEWiRE and demonstrates a strong commitment to furthering its goals and purposes.
Leadership: Thomas Hynes, Colliers International - The Leadership Award recognizes a NEWiRE member who has inspired, motivated and supported NEWiRE year after year and contributed time, energy and talents - not just to NEWiRE - but also to the Greater Boston real estate community by taking on leadership roles.
Entrepreneur: Susan Shelby, Rhino Public Relations - The Entrepreneur Award recognizes a NEWiRE member who chose to strike out on his or her own, or with a few others, to start a new business. This award is for that individual who has taken the risk to take the next step in their career.
Suzanne King Public Service: Tabetha McCartney, Jewish Community Housing for the Elderly - The Suzanne King Public Service Award recognizes a NEWiRE member who either as a career or through volunteer activities has devoted their time and talent and is committed to strengthening the community through effective action and leadership for non-profit and public sector causes.
Professional Service: Sarah Lagosh, Eastdil Secured, LLC - The Professional Service Award recognizes a NEWiRE member who is a significant contributor or is an emerging leader in the member's company and/or field of expertise whether through consistent years of superior service and/or through specific notable accomplishments and success.
Networking: Aurora Cammarata, Spagnolo Gisness & Associates, Inc.; Patricia Forbes, Diversified Project Management; Kristin Poulin, Structure Tone, Inc.; and Ellen Rothman, Red Thread (formerly Office Environments of New England) - The Networking Award recognizes a commercial real estate networking experience that most clearly represents the goals and purposes of NEWiRE. These NEWiRE members worked together on the relocation of Communispace.
About NEWiRE
New England Women in Real Estate (NEWiRE) is the region's leading professional organization promoting the advancement of women within the commercial real estate industry. Since its creation in 1982 by a small group of women professionals with considerable vision, NEWiRE has been an important force behind the increasing success of women in New England's real estate community.

Shown (from left) are: front row: Cheeta Lorian Miho Soga, Nitsch Engineering and Janet Wu, master of ceremonies from Channel 7 News. Back row: Janet Pirrello, president of NEWiRE; Sarah Lagosh, Eastdil Secured, LLC; Susan Shelby, Rhino Public Relations; Thomas Hynes, Colliers International and Holly Nelson of NEWiRE awards commitee.