Royal Oak Baker Named Winner Of Oakland County's Executive Elite 40 Under 40 Class of 2017

ROYAL OAK, MI — The results are in for Oakland County Executive's Elite 40 Under 40 Class of 2017...and the winner is 29-year-old Oakland County native Brooke Wilson Vitale, according to a press release. Oakland County Executive L. Brooks Patterson made the announcement in his State of the County address on Feb. 8 and spoke highly of Vitale, “She is creative, thoughtful, has an incredible business sense and is precisely the kind of young leader we want to keep in Oakland County.”

Vitale, the owner of the Love and Buttercream bakery in Royal Oak (with a second location coming to Birmingham), earned the number one spot after being selected by a public online vote. She started the bakery in her parent's basement in 2012 and just a few years later is at the helm of a 29-women operation. Love and Buttercream has received a number of accolades throughout the years, including HOUR Detroit’s “Best Cookie” in 2014, 2015, and 2016 and Eater’s “Top 5 Bakeries in Metro Detroit.” Last year alone, the bakery created wedding cakes and desserts for 600 couples.

In a statement, Vitale said "I was really surprised and very flattered...There’s something about this area that I can’t quite put into words...It’s a set of values, a culture, a feeling of support and a feeling of home. It’s something magical and unique that you’d be hard pressed to find anywhere else in the nation. It was the perfect place to let my dreams fly."

Vitale spoke glowingly of her team saying, "They are the ones committed to this business. I’ve been lucky beyond what I can comprehend."

Judges reviewed almost 400 applications and nominations and whittled the list down to the top 40 young professionals and thought leaders who live or work in Oakland County and "have achieved excellence in their field and contributed to the quality of life in their communities," according to the press release.

Here is the full list of the 2017 Oakland County Executive’s Elite 40 Under 40 class:

• Richard J. Chalmers, D.O., 36, Director of Family Medicine Residency, McLaren Macomb Hospital.
• Carrie Schochet, 37, CEO/Founder, Purple Squirrel Advisors
• Hallie Armstrong, 37, Senior Naturopathic Doctor, Beaumont Health
• Matthew Baumgarten, 32, Berkley City Manager
• Andrea Carollo, 37, Realtor, Max Broock Realtors
• Alicia Chandler, 37, General Counsel – Continuing Care, Trinity Health
• Nathan Clinton-Barnett, 32, Vice President of Clinical Services, Safe Balance LLC
• Alex Delavan, 34, Director of Sponsored Programs, Oakland University
• David DeLind, 30, Marketing Program Manager, 1986
• Derek Dickow, 37, Founder, Steward Media
• Matt Einheuser, 31, Watershed Ecologist, Clinton River Watershed Council
• Joanne Forbes, 34, Department Chair of Art, Design/Humanities, Oakland Community College
• Sean Forbes, 35, Co-Founder, DPAN.TV The Sign Language Channel
• Kristin Griffith, 30, 2nd Grade Teacher & Elementary Technology Educator, Auburn Hills Christian School
• Anthony Grupido, 21, CEO, Handsleight LLC
• Sherikia Hawkins, 35, City Clerk, City of Pontiac
• Michael Hohf, 31, Sr. Vice President & Financial Advisor, Advance Capital Management
• Adam Jahnke, 33, Principal and Co-Founder, Vault Equity Partners
• Yasser Khan, 37, Executive Vice President & Chief Sales Officer, IBM Miraclesoft
• Jessica Knapik, 38, Program Analyst, Walsh College
• Anjan Kumar, 38, Assistant Director of Medical ICU, Pulmonary & Critical Care Associates – St. John Hospital & Medical Center
• Andrew Kurecka, 29, Manager of Outcomes Research, MedNetOne Health Solutions
• Samantha Mariuz, 25, Director of Authorities, City of Auburn Hills
• Sam Marzban, 34, Detective Sergeant, Oakland County Sheriff’s Office
• Tylar Masters, 37, President, Tylar & Company
• Dustin McClellan, 26, Pontiac Director, The Power Company Kids Club
• Maureen McGinnis, 38, Judge, 52-4 District Court
• Shaun Moore, 38, Director of e-Learning, Oakland University
• Tany Nagy, 37, Owner, Pulse Design Studio
• Jeena Patel, 37, Partner, Warner Norcross & Judd LLP
• Emily Paula, 26, Human Resources Business Partner, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles
• Katya Pruett, 37, Manager Public Relations and Communications, BorgWarner Inc.
• Katheryn Rohrhoff, 34, Staff Nurse, Huron Valley-Sinai Hospital
• Pratheep Sevanthinathan, 36, Owner, Seva Law Firm
• Kayla Smith, Executive Director, 26, Hazel Park Promise Zone Authority
• David Tessler, 34, VP & Co-Owner, Rain Marketing Inc.
• Leyanna Torres, 32, Principal Product Engineer NAOSS Packaging Manager, ZF TRW
• Kathryn Tuck, 37, Director of Foundation Giving, Leader Dogs for the Blind
• Danielle Zuccaro, 34, Director Human Resources, Common Ground

Photo courtesy of the Oakland County government