Women in Toys, Licensing and Entertainment (WIT) held its 14th annual Wonder Women Awards Gala on Sunday, Feb. 18, coinciding with the North American International Toy Fair. The gala celebrated industry trailblazers for their contributions in toys, licensing, and entertainment across a variety of disciplines.
The 2018 WIT Wonder Women Awards Winners include Ali Mierzejewski of The Toy Insider and Stephanie Mendoza of Sesame Workshop for Wonder Woman Rising Star; Sydney Wiseman of WowWee for Wonder Woman Creator Inventor; Menal McGrath of Moose Toys for Wonder Woman in Licensing; Diana Young of Spin Master for Wonder Woman in Manufacturing; Julie Powell Christopher of Entertainment One for Wonder Woman in Marketing; Susan Murphy of Coyne PR for Wonder Woman in Public Relations; Cindy Levitt of Hot Topic for Wonder Woman Retailer; and Donna Moore of TTPM for Wonder Woman in Sales Award.
In addition to the Wonder Woman Awards, WIT celebrated honorees including Creata CEO Norma Rosenhain for the Lifetime Achievement Award; Spin Master executive vice president (EVP) and global chief marketing officer (CMO) Nancy Zwiers for the Elise Lachowyn Mentorship Award; and 12-year-old Toys “R” Us President of Play Ariana Gentry for the Wonder Girl Award. WIT also presented scholarships to 10 college students, made possible through the WIT Foundation’s Scholarship Program.
This year marked the second year of WIT’s Superhero Circle program, which is a means to make personal donations in support of WIT’s programming, initiatives, and scholarship program. Donations may be designated to honor the memory of loved ones. This year’s sponsors included Mattel, Nickelodeon, Disney, Spin Master, Hasbro, Bandai Foundation, Jazwares, PlayMonster, The Toy Book, and more.