RVATECH hosted its 25th anniversary of the Richmond Technology Awards on October 7th. Originally set to take place in-person on the grounds of Maymont, the 2020 rvatech/Gala became a Gala to Go. Sponsors, finalists, and attendees stopped by one of three locations across town to obtain their multi-course, catered dinner and gift bag. The awards were then hosted virtually with attendees tuning in from their homes while hosting socially distanced watch parties around the commonwealth. Leading up to the event, sponsors were filmed individually announcing the finalists and winners on-site at the 1717 Innovation Center. Richmond’s own Altamira Film Co. captured each organization’s personality and compiled an “Academy Awards” style show streamed via Zoom and Facebook Live. A brief intermission highlighted impacts that the late Paula Gulak left on the Council and the Women in Technology community in Richmond. Winners were announced in the following categories:
 
Technology Influencer of the Year | John Reid Blackwell, Richmond Times Dispatch | Sponsored by Facebook
 
NextGen | Kenton Vizdos, Deep Run High School | Sponsored by GE
 
Innovation in Community Impact | Roundtrip and GRTC | Sponsored by MAXX Potential
 
Innovation in Education | Blythe Samuels, Powhatan High School | Sponsored by Trillium
 
Equity Impact in Tech | Dominion Energy | Sponsored by AIS Network
 
Legislators of the Year | Delegate Terry Austin, Delegate Mark Sickles, and Senator Janet Howell
 
Emerging Tech Business | TraceRx | Sponsored by DHG
 
Technology Builder | BLDR | Sponsored by ePlus
 
Technology Innovator – Public Sector | The Commission on Virginia Alcohol Safety Action Program (VASAP) | Sponsored by CarMax
 
Technology Innovator – Small Capital | Afloat | Sponsored by Mainline
 
Technology Innovator – Medium Capital | UNOS | Sponsored by CoStar Group
 
Technology Innovator – Large Capital | Dominion Energy | Sponsored by CGI
 
Technology Executive of the Year | Melanie Murphy, CarMax | Sponsored by Vaco
 
People’s Choice | CarMax | Sponsored by SyCom Technologies
 
Chairman’s Award | Lori Jennings, JENNINGS ProSearch | Sponsored by Altria
 
Additional sponsors included photobooth sponsor Genworth, pre-reception sponsor Sabra, post-reception sponsor Snag, and “Meet the Finalists” sponsor Truist.
 
More information can be found here.