About the 2018 Honoree
Wendy Hamilton
General Manager, SugarHouse Casino
Wendy Hamilton serves as the general manager of SugarHouse Casino, where she oversees 1,500 fantastic Team Members and all day-to-day operations, including the property’s gaming repertoire – comprised of 1,891 slot machines, 103 table games and a 28 table poker room – seven food and beverage venues and The Event Center. In addition to managing all property amenities, Hamilton also supervises all human resources, marketing and finance functions.
The all-new, bigger, better SugarHouse, which expanded in 2016, features several new restaurant and bar options, including Hugo’s Frog Bar & Chop House of Chicago’s renowned Gibsons Restaurant Group, Mian noodle bar, Tacconelli’s Pizzeria, Geno’s Steaks, Saxbys Coffee and Fishtown Hops beer garden. The Event Center, a 30,000 square foot event space with views of the Delaware River waterfront, has quickly become a favorite destination for headliner music, comedy and boxing, as well as weddings and other private events. Other additions include an expanded poker room and a seven-story free parking garage.
Under Hamilton’s leadership, SugarHouse has long been the title sponsor of notable city events like the New Year’s Eve fireworks and the Mummers Parade, and has also contributed more than $8 million to local community organizations, including the Penn Treaty Special Services District.
Since the property opened in 2010, Hamilton and the SugarHouse team have received many awards. Most recently, Hamilton was selected to receive the 2018 Paradigm Award from the Chamber of Commerce for Greater Philadelphia. The Paradigm is the most prestigious award for professional women in Greater Philadelphia.
Hamilton was also named a 2017 Emerging Icon by The Philadelphia Inquirer for her outstanding leadership and dedication to making positive community impacts. In 2015, she was honored with the PAL Award from the Police Athletic League and the Cornerstone Award from SmartCEO for corporate leadership.
In addition to these honors, Hamilton has earned numerous leadership awards honoring women, including the “Woman Who Empowers Us Award” from 95.7 BenFM, the “Women’s Achievement Award” from KYW Newsradio, and the “Great Women of Gaming Award” from Casino Enterprise Management.
Under Hamilton’s leadership, SugarHouse has been voted a “Best Place to Work” by the Philadelphia Business Journal for seven consecutive years and a “Top Workplace” by Philly.com for six straight years. Both honors are the result of Team Member voting.
Outside of the casino, Hamilton is an active community leader serving on the boards of the Chamber of Commerce for Greater Philadelphia, the Police Athletic League of Philadelphia and Visit Philadelphia.
A Philadelphia native, Hamilton received a Bachelor of Science degree in biology from Duke University and earned a Master of Business Administration in finance from Saint Joseph’s University.
Hamilton spent her early career with Harrah’s Entertainment, starting as a hotel guest service representative and eventually advancing to assistant general manager at Caesars Atlantic City. Prior to joining the SugarHouse team, she opened and served as general manager of Parx Casino outside of Philadelphia.
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