Gunster attorney David Bates is a finalist for the 2018 annual ATHENA Leadership Award. Bates will be recognized at the upcoming awards ceremony on Friday, September 21, 2018 at 11:30 a.m. at the Palm Beach County Convention Center in West Palm Beach.
The ATHENA Leadership Award is to be presented to a nominee who is honored for professional excellence, community service and for actively assisting women in their attainment of professional excellence and leadership skills. Finalists include Sarah Alsofrom with GL Homes, Gabrielle Finley-Hazle with St. Mary’s Medical Center, Rachel Docekal with Lyrae Group, LLC., Mayor Jeri Muoio with the City of West Palm Beach, and Julie Swindler with Families First of Palm Beach County.
Bates is co-chair of Gunster’s technology & emerging companies practice and serves on the firm’s board of directors. He is actively involved in the Palm Beach County community as the co-chair of the Palm Beach Tech Association and serves on the board of directors of the Central Palm Beach County Chamber of Commerce, the Palm Beach Photographic Centre and the Wild Dolphin Project. Additionally, Bates is the former multi-term president of the Gold Coast Venture Capital Association and two-term chairman of the Enterprise Development Corporation.
Although Bates has had many professional accomplishments to be proud of, he takes the most pride in the role he has played in the professional development of several of Gunster’s most talented female attorneys. “Over the last 26 years, in seeking to work with the best and brightest of our young lawyers, Wendy Kirkeide, Gaida Zirkelbach, Jessica DeBianchi-Rivera and Stacie Townsend consecutively became my right hand and most trusted colleagues,” said Bates. “If behind every man, there is a great woman, then I have had four.”
To register to attend the annual ATHENA Leadership Awards luncheon, please visit the Chamber of Commerce of the Palm Beaches website.
