The Baltimore Sun is pleased to announce the 2025 class of inductees into our Business and Civic Hall of Fame, chosen for their leadership and community endeavors. We will honor these 13 accomplished individuals at an awards banquet to be held June 5 at The Center Club in Baltimore and in a special section to be published shortly thereafter. This year’s honorees are:

Sandra and Malcolm Berman

Sandra and Malcolm Berman are among the most prolific philanthropists in the region. They’ve supported health care organizations, including the Greater Baltimore Medical Center and the University of Maryland St. Joseph Medical Center, and cultural institutions such as Maryland Opera. Their generosity supported Towson University’s opening last year of a Holocaust education center named in Sandra Berman’s honor, as well as a 38,000-square-foot performing arts center under construction at Stevenson University.

Maria Broom

Maria Broom is an actress, dancer and storyteller known for her roles on the television series “The Wire” and “The Corner.” After graduating from Morgan State University, she studied modern dance in Germany on a Fulbright scholarship and later was an anchor for Baltimore’s Channel 13 in the mid-1970s, where she was known as the “Public Defender.” She works as a movement instructor for the Baltimore School for the Arts and is a longstanding host for the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, where she presents educational concerts for children to instill creativity, literacy and a love for music.

George Bunting

George Bunting joined his father’s company, the Noxell Corp., in 1966 as a product manager, became CEO in 1973, and left the Maryland company as chairman in 1991. Bunting is chairman of the Abell Foundation and a trustee emeritus of Johns Hopkins Medicine and Johns Hopkins Health System. His philanthropy over more than five decades has benefited Baltimore institutions including the Maryland Institute College of Art, and he has served on the boards of multiple Maryland nonprofits.

Scott Dorsey

Scott Dorsey is the chairman and CEO of Merritt Companies, the real estate and construction firm he joined in 1972. He has promoted economic development in Maryland through his role as board chair of the Maryland Economic Development Corp., which offers financing to businesses and for infrastructure projects. He is also a board member of the Baltimore Life Coaches program, which places young men and women in Baltimore City with volunteer mentors who help guide them on the path to economic self-reliance.

Rhea Feikin

Rhea Feikin was a fixture on Maryland television for more than 50 years, hosting programs on Maryland Public Television and WBAL-TV including “Artworks,” “Chesapeake Collectibles” and the children’s show “Miss Rhea and Sunshine,” which she wrote and produced. She overcame sexism early in her career, appeared in John Waters’ 1988 film “Hairspray” and became famous for the many pledge drives for Maryland Public Television she hosted. She signed off on March 1, 2020, hosting a final pledge drive for MPT before entering retirement.

William McCarthy

William McCarthy will retire in July as executive director of Catholic Charities of Baltimore, a position he took on in 2009. There, McCarthy oversaw the expansion and opening of charitable programs addressing hunger, violence, education and health in Baltimore and across the state. Catholic Charities of Baltimore broke ground last year on the $32 million Intergenerational Center in West Baltimore, which will offer services and community support to Baltimore residents. McCarthy serves on multiple boards including the Greater Baltimore Committee and the Thomas O’Neill Catholic Health Care Fund.

Diana Gribbon Motz

Diana Gribbon Motz retired last year after more than 30 years as a judge on the U.S. 4th Circuit Court of Appeals. Motz has been described as a “trailblazer” — one of only two women in her law school class at the University of Virginia and the only woman lawyer at the Baltimore law firm Piper & Marbury. As an assistant attorney general for Maryland, she helped compel the late former Vice President Spiro Agnew to repay $268,482 to Maryland for bribes he collected as Maryland’s governor. She has volunteered for numerous Baltimore civic organizations and served on the board of Johns Hopkins Hospital.

Alan Rifkin

Alan Rifkin has been recognized as one of the nation’s preeminent sports lawyers, and he has shared his knowledge as an adjunct professor at the University of Maryland Law School. Rifkin is managing partner of the law firm Rifkin Weiner Livingston, which he founded in 1989 after serving as counsel and chief legislative officer for the late Gov. William Donald Schaefer. Since then, he has served as outside counsel to sports franchises including the Baltimore Orioles, and he is a member of the board of directors of the Cal Ripken Sr. Foundation, which serves at-risk youth.

George A. Roche

George A. Roche retired in 2006 as chairman and CEO of T. Rowe Price, the investment management company he joined as an analyst in 1968. He helped cement the company’s status as an anchor institution of Baltimore and one of the city’s largest employers. Known for his ethical and deliberate approach to management, Roche oversaw dramatic growth during his time as CEO, with T. Rowe Price’s assets more than doubling. Roche has been active for decades in Baltimore philanthropy and served on the boards of the Greater Baltimore Committee, the Walters Art Museum and the Enoch Pratt Free Library.

Thomas Scalea

Since 1997, Thomas Scalea has been physician in chief of the University of Maryland Medical Center’s Shock Trauma Center, widely considered one of the best trauma centers in the world. A global authority on trauma medicine, Scalea has been a model of leadership in his field, successfully establishing and leading trauma centers in New York City in the 1980s and ’90s before joining the University of Maryland Medical System. At Shock Trauma, Scalea expanded clinical services and instituted administrative reforms to increase hospital efficiency and shorten patient stays.

Stuart Simms

Stuart Simms retired as a partner in 2020 after 17 years at the Baltimore law firm Brown Goldstein & Levy, and he later served as chief counsel for Maryland Legal Aid, where he directed efforts to offer free legal services to Maryland residents. Simms has held offices including Baltimore City state’s attorney from 1987 to 1995, and in Gov. Parris Glendening’s administration, he served as secretary of the Department of Juvenile Services and the Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services.

Walter Scott Thomas Sr.

Walter Scott Thomas Sr. stepped down last year as pastor of New Psalmist Baptist Church, which grew from 200 members to more than 7,000 under his 49 years of leadership. As pastor, Thomas saw the church become a Baltimore institution and a national landmark; at the funeral for longtime attendee and civil rights icon Rep. Elijah Cummings, New Psalmist drew thousands of mourners including former Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama. Thomas, an internationally regarded speaker and mentor, has written books on spirituality and leadership and led workshops with leaders across the country.