Today’s Pitch & Pick is almost here! We unveiled our six pitching companies on Friday, and now we have our list of five expert judges from our community who will decide on the winner:

Lynn Sullivan (Articling Clerk, Cox & Palmer) is an entrepreneur, CPA and soon to be lawyer with Cox & Palmer. She is Co-Owner and Director of C-Gas Management, a business she and her partner have built over the past ten years in the convenience, gas and food service industries. Lynn has also held several business executive roles in professional services, offshore oil and gas, and government throughout her career. She has volunteered as a director on not-for-profit boards, including the YMCA-NL, St. John’s Board of Trade and the Community Sector Council. Lynn is currently a director on the board of Taskforce NL and the Newfoundland and Labrador branch of the Canadian Bar Association. Having recently finished her law degree at Schulich Law School at Dalhousie University, Lynn is working with Cox & Palmer to complete her articles. She will be called to the bar as a lawyer in February 2023.

Stephen Curnew (Account Manager, TD Commercial Banking) graduated Memorial University with a Bachelor of Business Administration. He began his career in sales and has worked in the industrial, oil and gas and telecommunication industries. In February of 2022 Stephen joined the TD Business Bank as an Account Manager and now manages a varied portfolio of clients across all industries. In his free time, you can find Stephen golfing, walking his two dogs Reba and Jack and enjoying time spent with family at home.

Dr. Paula Mendonça (Director of innovation and entrepreneurship at Memorial University) leads Memorial’s Research Innovation Office and is responsible for facilitating and supporting the university’s strategic and long-term approach to advancing innovation and entrepreneurship activities across its campuses. Originally from Lisbon, Portugal, Paula has been in Newfoundland and Labrador since 2002 where she completed a Ph.D. in Biology from Memorial. Paula has been working in intellectual property and research commercialization for more than a decade. In 2022, Paula was one of the recipients of the Most Inspiring Immigrants of Atlantic Canada award by My East Coast Experience.

Kate Boland (Chief Operating Officer, Nutra Holdings) attended Memorial University and completed her Bachelor of Commerce degree as well as her Master of Business Administration. Kate was the sixth Nutra Holdings hire and has grown the team to over 20 employees since 2018, with most of them being St. John’s natives. Kate oversees operations for all three Nutra Holdings brands. She believes anything is “figure-outable” and investing in people is where success comes from. Her hobbies include bringing her golden-doodle Goose to work and working out way too early in the morning.

Jonathan Hickman (Vice President, Hickman Automotive Group) was born and raised in St. John’s and began his career with Hickman Automotive Group at the young age of 15. Following in his father’s and grandfather’s footsteps, he has held many positions in their fourth generation, family-owned and operated automotive business. As Vice-President of Hickman Automotive Group, Jonathan and his brother Bert, employ almost 500 people in Newfoundland and Labrador and Nova Scotia. Under their leadership, the Group operates 13 vehicle and motorcycle locations, as well as various other companies. Jonathan serves on several boards, including Vice-Chair of the Canadian Automobile Dealers Association, Georgian College Board of Governors, Atlantic Chrysler Advertising Board, Nissan Product Advisor Board, as well as the Canadian Transplant Association (NL Representative). He is also the former board member of the NL Employer’s Council. In his down time, Jonathan enjoys a very active lifestyle. Hockey, soccer and lacrosse rank amongst his favorites, however, Jonathan has proudly represented his province and country at various Canadian and World Transplant Games, competing in swimming, biking and running. Jonathan and his wife, Alison, reside in St. John’s with their two children, Caroline and Cameron, and their two dogs, Tika and Oakley.