'Most Powerful Latina' Winkler still makes time for family
Yasmine Winkler of Mount Prospect came from a poor family of immigrants from Cuba.
She remembers her parents encouraging her to go to college and get a good job. She followed their advice and is now CEO of the central region and chief consumer officer for UnitedHealthcare Community & State, one of the businesses of UnitedHealth Group. She oversees about 30 percent of the group's total business.
As a result, Winkler recently ranked No. 14 on The 50 Most Powerful Latinas of 2017, hosted by the Association of Latino Professionals For America and Fortune Magazine. She heads to New York this month to pick up her award.
"No matter how busy things get, I make sure I cook Sunday dinner and the family gets together," said Winkler, 55. "Family is still very important to me."
Winkler was born and raised in the Logan Square neighborhood of Chicago. Her parents were refugees from Cuba in the 1960s and settled in Chicago. Winkler didn't know English when she attended kindergarten but soon learned. "That was scary back then," she said.
She watched her parents, who came with nothing, receive help from family and friends so they could get on their feet. Her father, Blas Rodriguez, had a store that carried Latino records and magazines. He died when she was young.
Her father's hard work ethic rubbed off on her. She later earned a bachelor of arts degree in English and environmental studies at Northeastern Illinois University.
She attained a masters in science in health care delivery science from the Tuck School of Business and the Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth College, with the support of her employer, UnitedHealth.
Now that Winkler is married and has raised three children, she hands down the same encouragement. Go to college and get a good job, she said.
Sluga marks 40 with RE/MAX
Dennis Sluga opened a RE/MAX franchise in Elmhurst in 1977 and is now marking the agency's 40th anniversary. He recently was honored for his dedication with the Ruby Award at the 40th Annual RE/MAX Awards Ceremony at Navy Pier. Sluga also lives in Elmhurst.
Agent Messner a dedicated volunteer
Ryan Messner, president of the Historic Downtown Long Grove Business Association, also is the owner of a State Farm agency in downtown Long Grove. He volunteers a lot to help the Long Grove business corridor, so you'll also see him heading up the Strawberry Fest, set for June 23-25.
FastTracks
• Chris Hooks has been promoted to executive vice president of Topco Associates LLC in Elk Grove Village.
• Bradley S. Adams will join Old Second Bancorp in Aurora Tuesday as its executive vice president and chief financial officer. He also will serve as principal financial officer and principal accounting officer. He most recently served as executive vice president and director of corporate development and strategy for TCF National Bank.
• Steve Bulger of Villa Park is the new project superintendent at The Missner Group in Des Plaines.
• Jeffrey Nemetz of Highland Park and Aaron Turner of Glenview have joined the board of directors of Riverwoods-based The Center for Enriched Living, a nonprofit that serves teens and adults with developmental disabilities.
• Margaret Panatera was named district office manager of Huff & Huff Inc., a subsidiary of the environmental consulting firm, GZA in Oak Brook.
• Condolences to family, friends and colleagues of the death of Margery Shinners, CEO of The Mainstreet Organization of Realtors.
• There's more to business than just the bottom line. We want to tell you about the people who make business work. Send news about people in business to akukec@dailyherald.com. Follow Anna Marie Kukec on LinkedIn and Facebook and as AMKukec on Twitter.