Erie's 40 Under 40: Class of 2023

by Erie Reader Staff July 12, 2023 at 8:00 AM
Photos by Jessica Hunter

From a literary standpoint, numbers in writing are almost always significant. No writer worth their salt picks a number at random without it being a metaphor for something meaningful to the rest of the story. 

And so it goes with 40. Throughout history, in religion, science, literature, and pop culture, 40 keeps coming back around. Rain fell for "40 days and 40 nights" during that one big flood (there are scads of biblical and religious references to the number), there were 40 thieves in Arabian Nights, there are 40 weeks of pregnancy, popular songs are ranked by their standings on a scale of 40, and a standard workweek is 40 hours (to name a few).

The number 40 for the Erie Reader is always significant as summer rolls around, when we take the time to sift through hundreds of nominations to make the tough decisions on who to include in the newest class of Erie's 40 Under 40. This year, we read the incredible biographies of over 300 nominees and somehow whittled that list down to 40. We've got farmers and entrepreneurs, professors and scientists, historians and activists, artists and musicians. Essentially, 40 people who have had a hand in helping to make Erie a more knowledgeable, fair, and beautiful place by being themselves and doing what they believe in.

So please join us in welcoming the 11th class of 40 Under 40 inductees. The honor is greatly deserved.

 

Written by: Jonathan Burdick (JB), Ally Kutz (AK), Erin Phillips (EP), Matt Swanseger (MS), Cara Suppa (CS), Amy VanScoter (AVS), and Nick Warren (NW)

All photographs by Jessica Hunter

Do you know someone you would like to see in the 2024 class? Our online nominations are now open! Just visit eriereader.com/40under40nomination

Gabe Genua
Gabe Genua, 21
Vice Chair, Compton's Table

At age 16, Gabe Genua had six blood clots cleared from his lungs. Now, at just 21, he is opening up vital new channels between LGBTQIA+ youth and the larger Erie community as vice chair of Compton's Table Inc., a queer advocacy group founded by small business owner and mental health professional Tyler Titus (a 2017 40 Under 40 honoree). Gabe's job duties include event planning and execution, counsel and mentorship to queer youth, outreach, and connecting community members to resources. That's not counting his additional responsibilities as outreach coordinator and case manager at Central Outreach, a full-time college student at PennWest Edinboro (majoring in social work), a part-time retail worker, an occasional public speaker (most recently at Erie Pride 2023), and a corporate sensitivity trainer.

The young viola player from Altoona has already proven himself a prodigious orchestrator. He's co-authored two important research presentations on the challenges and exclusions the queer community faces in higher education, as well as helped facilitate the recent "As I Am" art exhibition at Penn State Behrend featuring young LGBTQIA+ artists. Gabe is passionate about the opportunities within art to allow for the creative exploration of identity — and the emotions and complexities that surround it. Really, though, he's adamant about exploring opportunities for everyone.

"I believe Erie is on track to be the wonderful place we all know it can be. We can reach our goal by supporting and funding politicians and projects that truly contribute to all communities. We need to be focused on the entire population of Erie, rather than select populations. We are strong because we are diverse."  We just have to work out the clots. — MS

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