June 2017 - Independence Business Alliance

At the 2017 IBA Annual Meeting, IBA Member Berner Klaw & Watson was awarded the Business Integrity Award, presented by Integrity Staffing Solutions.

The award honors a local IBA-member business that upholds high standards of behavior towards LGBT customers, suppliers, shareholders, community, and/or employees. In partnership with Integrity Staffing Solutions, the IBA developed the award to honor the strong work that its member businesses do. Sean Montgomery, co-founder of Integrity Staffing Solutions, the largest LGBT certified business in the nation, was on hand for the second annual presentation of the award.

Berner Klaw & Watson has a long history of representing Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer clients in family matters, going back to the days when non-biological parents lacked standing to even seek custody rights and up until the present when our LGBTQ clients in both New Jersey and now Pennsylvania can marry and divorce. Their representation includes child custody cases, child support actions, second parent adoptions, surrogacy and sperm donor agreements and transgender name changes. Learn more about BKW’s LGBTQ Practice Area on their website.

Congrats, Berner Klaw & Watson!

Staff of Integrity Staffing Solutions, Berner Klaw & Watson, and IBA. Photo by Kelly Burkhardt.

On June 26th, over 150 IBA members gathered in the Philadelphia Marriott Downtown for the Annual Meeting. It was here that the new slate for the IBA Board of Directors was unanimously approved, and so we congratulate the following new IBA board members:

Marc Coleman – The Tactile Group
Diana Lu – HOTPOT and Plan Philly
Jone Magagna – The Magagna Company
Brian McGinnis, Esq. – Fox Rothschild
Tiffany Newmuis – Thomas Jefferson University

In addition to these five new members, the IBA membership voted to re-elect the following IBA board members for another 2 year term.

Michael Albany – Michael Albany Photography
Mark Bradford, CPA, CFE – Asterion, Inc.
Jeremy R. Gussick, MBA, CFP® – LPL Financial
Rich Horrow – Law Offices of C. Richard Horrow, Esq.
Marcus Iannozzi – Message Agency

Returning board members who were not up for re-election include:

Jonathan Barnes – Integrity Staffing Solutions
Brad Button – Berkshire Hathaway Home Services
Gregory DeShields – PHLDiversity
Mike Fanelle
James Gaddy – PAFA
Samantha Giusti – DVLF
Cecilia Isaacs-Blundin – Comcast
Robert Nonemacker – Headlight Events
Rafael Perez – The Business Route/Do It Better Wellness
Mary Sparacino – Kershner Furniture
Rosalind Sutch – Drucker & Scaccetti

“A small LGBTQ nonprofit organization like the IBA gets one chance every year to bring a limited number of our members onto our board, so we need to make the most of the opportunity,” says IBA executive director Zach Wilcha. “I’m proud that this year, we took important steps toward making our board more diverse and inclusive.”

Congratulations to the 2017/2018 IBA Board!

Month: June 2017

2017 Business Integrity Award Presented to Berner Klaw & Watson

IBA Announces New Board for 2017/2018