There was a time when Enzo De Diviitis didn’t feel like he could fully enjoy living in Niagara.

But, along with a little help from some friends, he made the change he wanted to see in his community.

The co-founder and Chair of Pride Niagara shared insights into civic leadership while receiving his honorary membership into Brock’s Beta Gamma Sigma honours society last week.

“Growing up and working in the hospitality industry and working in business in Niagara, I felt confident and like I was part of something, and I felt secure in the work I was doing,” he said. “But I didn’t find the other aspects of my life even available in Niagara. I couldn’t find a safe place, an LGBTQ2S+ space to just be myself.”

Driven to create change, De Diviitis came together with four close friends, using their skills and passion to launch Pride Niagara. During his address to students Friday, Oct. 14, he shared how the organization has grown since its inception 12 years ago and overcome obstacles it has faced along the way.

Enzo De Divitiis, co-founder and Chair of Pride Niagara, was Brock’s Beta Gamma Sigma 2022 Fall Chapter Honouree. He is pictured with Goodman School of Business Interim Dean Barry Wright.

“One thing I learned is that it’s worth it,” he said. “I love Niagara, and I want to thrive personally and professionally where I live.”

Goodman’s Interim Dean Barry Wright thanked De Diviitis for addressing the inductees and said that as a business school it’s “our job is to make people’s lives better — and that’s exactly what you do.”

It was De Divitiis’ passion and perseverance — two of Goodman’s core values — that emcee Professor Paul Dunn encouraged inductees to take with them as they leave the business school.

Beta Gamma Sigma recognizes the top 10 per cent of the undergraduate class and the top 20 per cent of the graduate class at institutions accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB).

Held in the Goodman School of Business atrium, the ceremony saw 45 new inductees — 36 undergraduate students and nine graduate students — inducted into Brock’s chapter.

Earlier this year, Goodman’s Beta Gamma Sigma chapter was recognized as an Honour Chapter by the organization for outstanding achievement in the 2021-22 academic year.

Brock University’s Beta Gamma Sigma Fall 2022 inductees with Goodman School of Business professors and Fall Chapter Honouree Enzo De Divitiis (front centre).