Search ErieReader.com
DonateBest of ErieTicketsAdvertiseDistributionIssuesAboutContactEventsNewsletter
Close
Donate!
Best of Erie 2025
The Reader Beat
Tickets
Newsletter Signup
Erie Reader Business Quarterly
City Guide
Events
Opinion
Features
Issues Archive
Events Calendar
Advertise
More
Arts & Culture
Business
Columns
Community
Environment
Film
From the Editors
Gem City Style
Local, Original Comics
Music Reviews
News & Politics
Recipes
Sports
Theater
Distribution Locations
About Us
Contact Us
Issue Archives
Internship Opportunities
Write for Us
Share:
Feature Stories

Erie's 40 Under 40: Class of 2024

Celebrating 40 inspiring creative thinkers and leaders in Erie

by Erie Reader Staff
View ProfileRSS Feed
July 3, 2024 at 7:45 AM
Jessica Hunter

We are living through a time on planet Earth when it can be hard to find much hope. We're getting bombarded with bad news from nearly every angle and disillusionment is a very real reaction to all that we're either experiencing or witnessing. What is it that can give us hope for the future? The answer invariably lies with our youth.

Each year for the past 12 years, the Erie Reader editors have sifted through hundreds of nominations to decide which 40 people under 40 years old should be featured. And with each of those nominations, our hope-o-meter ticks ever upward.

What is always so uplifting about this list year after year are the myriad ways that each of the honorees makes a difference in our community: through government and politics, through volunteerism, by speaking up, by lending a helping hand, by creating art, by teaching the next generation of leaders, or by simply following wherever their ideas and motivations lead them — by having the confidence in their own ability to make change and do good. And that should give us all hope for the future. It's right here — in Erie and among these pages, with these 40 along with the 440 who have come before them.

Won't you join us in celebrating them? The 12th Class of Erie's 40 Under 40!

 

Written by: Jonathan Burdick (JB), Chloe Forbes (CF), Ally Kutz (AK), Erin Phillips (EP), Cara Suppa (CS), Matt Swanseger (MS), Amy VanScoter (AVS), and Nick Warren (NW)

All photography by Jessica Hunter

Do you know someone you would like to see in an upcoming class? Our online nominations for 2025's class are now open! Just visit eriereader.com/40under40nomination

Erie's 40 Under 40Erie's 40 Under 40 Class of 202412th Annual 40 Under 4040 Under 40

Featured Events

Today Tomorrow This Weekend

WQLN Online Auction Fundraiser

Community & Causes
May. 8th

The Film Industry: An Economic Opportunity For Northwest Pennsylvania

Community & Causes
May. 8th, 10:52 AM to 1:30 PM

Santiago Angel at the Set Closet

Comedy
May. 8th, 10:52 AM

Seth Rudetsky: Divas by the Decade

Performing Arts
May. 8th, 10:52 AM

Santiago Angel at the Set Closet LATE SHOW

Comedy
May. 8th, 10:52 AM

Submit Your Event   View Calendar

May 2026: Summer Preview
Erie Reader: Vol. 16, No. 5
View Past Issues
In This Issue
Erie Reader Business Quarterly
« Download PDF
View Articles »
Erie Reader Best of Erie City Guide 2023-2024

Popular This Week

COVID-19 Cases Rise Slightly In Erie County, Across Country

xRepresentx, Vice, Counterfeit, Cop Torture at BT

Ludacris Shows Behrend Some Southern Hospitality

Best of Erie 2014 Finalists

Hangin' Out at the South Pier

Related Articles

Erie's Summer of Reading: Writing Our Next Chapter Together

by Erin Phillips3 hours ago
City-wide literacy initiatives building a community of readers

2026 Summer Events Preview

by Erin Phillips5/7/2026, 9:00 AM
Celebrate summer in Erie with live music, food, and athletic, educational, and cultural experiences

Revisiting GAF's Bayfront Site 15 Years Later

by Alana Sabol4/21/2026, 8:00 AM
Plans for the site have been in the works as long as the Erie Reader

What the FLOCK, Millcreek?

by Alana Sabol4/20/2026, 8:00 AM
License plate readers appear in township, raise questions and anxieties

Top 15 Local Albums From the Last 15 Years

by Erie Reader Staff4/15/2026, 10:00 AM
Contributors share their Erie-area favs since 2011

The Search For Sand

by Dan Schank4/15/2026, 8:00 AM
Finding federal dollars to nourish our beaches at Presque Isle
Member of Reporters Shield
© 2026 Great Lakes Online Media
PO Box 10963  //  Erie, PA 16514
Terms of Use Privacy Policy