Commercial Real Estate Women (CREW) Atlanta, one of the largest of approximately 80 CREW Network chapters globally, named Mona Hand as the 2022 Shining Light award winner at its December meeting – 40 Years: A Look Back to the Future. The Shining Light Award recipient is selected each year by the CREW Atlanta president for working tirelessly behind the scenes to promote the CREW Atlanta mission and setting a standard for CREW Atlanta’s membership and peers in the industry.

Hand has nearly 25 years of experience in commercial real estate and is a real estate transactions manager at IDI Logistics, where she manages large portfolio dispositions and acquisitions for the developer and manager of logistics real estate. She joined CREW Atlanta in 2021, and immediately stepped up to the role of co-chair of the CREW Atlanta Professional Advancement and Community Engagement (PACE) committee, which raises awareness among members of the many benefits provided by CREW Network, networks with other CREW chapters, and engages and develops members through UCREW, CREW Careers and the immensely popular CREW Atlanta mentorship program.

Additionally, the Atlanta organization affiliated with advancing women in commercial real estate for 40 years, announced the winners of three chapter awards:

New Member of the Year Award winner Rita Tene Ellison of T. Dallas Smith & Company for her amazing work on the CREW Atlanta Advanced Crew Experience (ACE) committee and her leadership on CREW Heightened Young Professional Experience (HYPE);
Committee Member of the Year Laura Young of Young Contracting for her dedication to CREW Atlanta as demonstrated through the incredible success of the Sponsorship committee while she was cochair and her leadership in generating sponsorships for the 2023 CREW Network International Conference; and
Rising Star Award Sarabeth Lewis of Branch Properties for her enthusiasm in planning CREW Atlanta’s phenomenal 40th anniversary celebration and for serving as co-chair of the CREW Network International Conference planning committee.

“It is through the generous contributions of time and talent of members such as Mona, Rita, Laura and Sarabeth that CREW Atlanta is able to advance women in the commercial real estate industry,” said Atlanta Office Relationship Partner at Parker Poe and CREW Atlanta 2022 President Ellen W. Smith. “I am inspired by their commitment to the CREW Atlanta mission of transforming the global commercial real estate industry to be diverse, inclusive and equitable for all and grateful to have had the opportunity to work with each of them.”