52 Gifts: Recent Episodes
Bernadette Mack
Personalized National Parks Scratch Off Poster
Trilogy Maui Fire Fund
Kākoʻo Maui Match Donation Fund, a campaign by the Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement
‘Āina Momona Emergency Fundraiser for Maui Fires
Title note: There are 63 national parks and Hawaii is the 50th state.
The fabulous BlueQ company.
Home 231
Harrisburg Beach Club
Sawyers
Capital Area Coalition on Homelessness
Title Note: The core 4 had an adventure in Pennsylvania's capital city.
Bookshop.org
Jenny B Designs
V.I.P. Tours of New York
Friends of the Waynesboro Library
Friends of the Augusta County Library
CFO Trading Company
Howler Bros.
Caswell-Massey
The Blue Ridge Area Food Bank
Title Note: A quote from Fletch (1985)
Demon Copperhead by Kingsolver
Zero Days by Ware
Waffle Spot
Christine Huber Design on Instagram
Maine Cancer Foundation
Tri for a Cure
The Special HALFWAY Episode with Filomena Fanelli!
For nearly 25 years, Filomena Fanelli has enjoyed telling clients’ stories through public relations and continues to apply that enthusiasm in her role as the CEO and founder of Impact PR & Communications, Ltd., an award-winning public relations firm. Based in the Hudson Valley, the nine-year-old agency has a three-state footprint and clients that include top-selling consumer brands, key cultural destinations, prominent banking, construction and real estate development companies, mission-based nonprofits and more.
Filomena got her start in the PR business at Rubenstein Associates, where she quickly rose through the ranks to become a vice president. Recognized as a top publicist, she worked on some of the firm’s major real estate and financial accounts, many of them household names. Today, she channels that energy to lead her own agency and help a diverse array of clients plot memorable events, secure speaking engagements, land leadership articles, craft sharp website content, engage in meaningful ways on social media and, of course, get their names in the news.
Filomena has been lauded for her professional achievements and community involvement alike. A handful of her accolades include: being named an ATHENA Leadership Awards honoree, as well as one of the “Forty Under 40” by the Dutchess County Regional Chamber of Commerce; gracing the cover of Hudson Valley Magazine as one of its celebrated women in business; being recognized with a National Philanthropy Day Award by the Association of Fundraising Professionals – Mid-Hudson Valley; and having her firm named a “Top Women-Run Workplace of the Year” by the Stevie® Awards, an international recognition.
An involved community member, Filomena enjoys volunteering with various nonprofit organizations. She serves on the boards of the Dutchess County Regional Chamber of Commerce and Hudson Valley Economic Development Corporation. She was on the executive leadership team for American Heart Association’s Go Red for Women campaign locally, and was also the Center for Prevention of Child Abuse’s One Too Many 5k chair and, subsequently, co-chair. Filomena spent many years on the executive committee of the Public Relations Society of America’s Counselors Academy and is past conference chair, conference co-chair and membership chair of that industry group. Previously, she sat on the board of the Women’s Leadership Alliance and Hudson River Housing, and has served on committees for The Arc of Dutchess, Family Services, the Mid-Hudson Children’s Museum and Special Olympics New York. Filomena was also a founding committee member of HDSA Team Hope Walk – Hudson Valley, a community advisor for The Daily Voice and hosted HVNN.com’s video news show, “Business Newsmakers.”
Filomena is the professional advisor for Marist College’s Public Relations Student Society of America, and a former adjunct professor and regular guest lecturer at the college. A frequent speaker, she has given talks for Senator Sue Serino’s Women’s Forum and presented at the prestigious 92nd Street Y in New York City, among other venues.
Recently, Filomena has added another important descriptor to her resume, behind mom, wife, PR agency CEO, leader and volunteer: rheumatoid arthritis warrior. Diagnosed with the autoimmune disorder in Spring 2023, Filomena, with the support of her friends at the Arthritis Foundation New York, has made it her mission to keep moving, one step at a time, and to openly share her story of living positively with arthritis with her friends, family, colleagues and community to help raise much-needed awareness and funds to further scientific advances and treatment options.
The Foundry Pop Up https://thefoundrypopups.com/
The Arthritis Foundation https://www.arthritis.org/
Shibumi Shade - https://shibumishade.com/
GCI Outdoor Sunshade Rocker - https://www.basspro.com/shop/en/gci-outdoor-sunshade-rocker-camp-chair
Skin Cancer Foundation - https://www.skincancer.org/about-us/what-we-do/
https://stauntonoliveoilcompany.com/
https://lowcountrygullah.com/
Title Note: Mahalo means "thank you" in Hawaiian.