Sowell, Freeman Named Top Execs; Fowler Gets Legacy Award at Business of the Year Event


Bill Sowell, CEO of Sowell Management Inc. of North Little Rock, was named Business Executive of the Year.
Bill Sowell, CEO of Sowell Management Inc. of North Little Rock, was named Business Executive of the Year. (Tony Baker)
Jonesboro banker Wallace Fowler accepts the Legacy of Leadership award from Arkansas Business Publisher Mitch Bettis.
Jonesboro banker Wallace Fowler accepts the Legacy of Leadership award from Arkansas Business Publisher Mitch Bettis. (Tony Baker)
Chris Cerrato, president of Evo Business Environments of Little Rock, accepts Category I honors for Business of the Year.
Chris Cerrato, president of Evo Business Environments of Little Rock, accepts Category I honors for Business of the Year. (Tony Baker)
Larry Freeman, founder and CEO of Synergy Saturday Inc. of Little Rock, was named Nonprofit Executive of the Year.
Larry Freeman, founder and CEO of Synergy Saturday Inc. of Little Rock, was named Nonprofit Executive of the Year. (Tony Baker)
Chris Beaty, CEO of TeleComp in Rogers, accepts Category II honors for Business of the Year.
Chris Beaty, CEO of TeleComp in Rogers, accepts Category II honors for Business of the Year. (Tony Baker)
Ryan Kibler, president of Medic One of Jonesboro, accepts Category III honors for Business of the Year.
Ryan Kibler, president of Medic One of Jonesboro, accepts Category III honors for Business of the Year. (Tony Baker)
Brock Hoskins, president of Garver of North Little Rock, accepts Category IV honors for Business of the Year.
Brock Hoskins, president of Garver of North Little Rock, accepts Category IV honors for Business of the Year. (Tony Baker)
Angela McGraw, executive director of Women & Children First: The Center Against Family Violence in Little Rock, with AT&T Arkansas President Ronnie Dedman (left) and Arkansas Business Publisher Mitch Bettis after winning the Nonprofit Organization of the Year award.
Angela McGraw, executive director of Women & Children First: The Center Against Family Violence in Little Rock, with AT&T Arkansas President Ronnie Dedman (left) and Arkansas Business Publisher Mitch Bettis after winning the Nonprofit Organization of the Year award. (Tony Baker)
From left to right: Former Arkansas Business Publishing Group CEO Olivia Farrell; WLJ Partners Judy Simmons Henry and Adrienne Baker; Anna Beth Gorman of the Arkansas Women's Foundation; and Arkansas Business Publisher Mitch Bettis.
From left to right: Former Arkansas Business Publishing Group CEO Olivia Farrell; WLJ Partners Judy Simmons Henry and Adrienne Baker; Anna Beth Gorman of the Arkansas Women's Foundation; and Arkansas Business Publisher Mitch Bettis. (Tony Baker)
Kimberly Jones, director of the Albemarle Foundation for Magnolia operations, accepts Smart Corporate Giving honors from Heather Larkin of the Arkansas Community Foundation.
Kimberly Jones, director of the Albemarle Foundation for Magnolia operations, accepts Smart Corporate Giving honors from Heather Larkin of the Arkansas Community Foundation. (Tony Baker)
Curtis Barnett, president and CEO of Arkansas Blue Cross Blue Shield in Little Rock, accepts Smart Corporate Giving honors from Heather Larkin of the Arkansas Community Foundation.
Curtis Barnett, president and CEO of Arkansas Blue Cross Blue Shield in Little Rock, accepts Smart Corporate Giving honors from Heather Larkin of the Arkansas Community Foundation. (Tony Baker)
Natalie Ghidotti, CEO of Ghidotti Communications of Little Rock, accepts Smart Corporate Giving honors from Heather Larkin of the Arkansas Community Foundation.
Natalie Ghidotti, CEO of Ghidotti Communications of Little Rock, accepts Smart Corporate Giving honors from Heather Larkin of the Arkansas Community Foundation. (Tony Baker)
Real estate developer Joshua Brown of Haag Brown of Jonesboro pays tribute to Wallace Fowler, recipient of the Legacy of Leadership award.
Real estate developer Joshua Brown of Haag Brown of Jonesboro pays tribute to Wallace Fowler, recipient of the Legacy of Leadership award. (Tony Baker)

Bill Sowell of Sowell Management of North Little Rock and Larry Freeman of Synergy Saturday Inc. of Little Rock won executive of the year awards, and former banker and restaurant franchise owner Wallace Fowler of Jonesboro was honored for his lifetime of leadership Wednesday at the 32nd annual Arkansas Business of the Year Awards at the Little Rock Marriott.

Arkansas Business Publishing Group of Little Rock presents the awards each year to honor businesses, nonprofits and executives in Arkansas. Readers of Arkansas Business nominate executives and organizations for the awards, and an independent panel of judges determines the winners.

Sowell won the business executive of the year award for his work as CEO of the investment advisory firm he founded in 2001. The firm now has $3 billion under management, and Sowell aims to have $5 billion by the end of the year.

Freeman won nonprofit executive of the year for his work as CEO of a nonprofit that offers pop-up style health screening events throughout Arkansas. The organization held 2,200 screenings in 2019, up from just 200 in 2015, its first year.

"Health care must be both affordable and effective to be functional," he said. "Health care is a basic right and universal need that can only be solved by collaborative efforts and innovation."

Also Wednesday, Wallace Fowler won the "Legacy of Leadership" award in honor of a decades-long career in banking and restaurant franchises.

Fowler was chairman and CEO of Liberty Bancshares Inc., which he sold to Home BancShares Inc. of Conway in 2013, and he built a robust business on KFC and Taco Bell franchises that are now managed by his son.

For the second year, Arkansas Business partnered with the Women's Foundation of Arkansas to present the "Gender Equity" award, which honors a company that has worked hard to foster equality in the workplace. The foundation partnered with the Clinton School of Public Service to create a survey to measure equality based on company metrics including financial literacy, flexibility, job skills, leadership, mentoring and resources.

Law firm Wright Lindsey Jennings of Little Rock received the award.

Other winners at Wednesday night's event are listed below. Click their names to read their profiles and watch video from the awards event:

The Arkansas Community Foundation also presented its Smart Corporate Giving Awards to three businesses: