On Thursday, September 29, the Long Beach Post hosted an event to honor young people from around the city who are doing great things to better their community and beyond. Out of hundreds of nominations from our readers, judges chose 40 winners, representing a range of professions and activism. The Post will be profiling each honoree in the coming days.

The words used to nominate Marcelle Epley were as diverse as they were glowing: “giver,” “amazing,” “nonstop!” “empathetic,” “tenacious,” “dedicated” and “tireless.”

A longtime Long Beach resident and advocate, Epley’s career has spanned from her early days as a student at Cal State Long Beach, working for the Long Beach Press Telegram, Long Beach Transit and now as the President & CEO of the Long Beach Community Foundation.

She was selected as a 40 Under 40 honoree through numerous nominations, leading to her participation in an event she called “terrific.”

“I think it’s terrific that the [Long Beach Post] is taking the time and resources to feature Long Beach leaders,” said Epley, 38. “I feel even more connected to my city and the people that are making good things happen.”

But she’s not just making things happen as a dedicated career professional. She’s out and about in her community, founding the Bixby Knolls Dawn Joggers, serving as president-elect of the Estate Planning & Trust Council of Long Beach, working as board secretary for the Foundation Board of Governors at the Long Beach City College Foundation and even winning the Long Beach Rotary Club’s Rotarian of the Year in 2015. To cap it off, she’s a trustee on the Long Beach Memorial Medical Center board.

So why do business in Long Beach?

“We […] have tremendous pride in our city. Collectively, our residents genuinely want to make Long Beach better and see incremental improvements and successes,” said Epley. “Conversely, there is a large number of residents that were born and raised in Long Beach and have stayed for generations. That alone makes a meaningful impact that continues the positive momentum in our city and feeds the ‘biggest small town’ mentality.”