Prominent Miami business family among the honorees at Beacon Council awards

The Miami-Dade Beacon Council was set to recognize outstanding local business leaders at Wednesday night’s Beacon Awards at the Adrienne Arsht Center.

The Beacon Council is a Miami-Dade County economic development organization that helps bring jobs and funding to the area.

“The leaders we honor this year combine fearless vision with a deep commitment to our communities,” Beacon Council CEO Rodrick T. Miller said in a statement. “Their impact extends from boardrooms and innovation hubs to the heart of Miami’s neighborhoods.”

For the first time, the Beacon Awards has a Founders’ Award, to commemorate the organization’s founders, awarded to Baptist Health Foundation CEO Alexandra Villoch, a former Miami Herald publisher.

The Jay Malina Leadership Award has been awarded to the Mas family. In 1994, Jorge, Juan Carlos and José R. founded MasTec, a local construction company and now working on Miami Freedom Park, where Inter Miami and Lionel Messi will play when it opens in 2026. The family helped bring Major League Soccer to Miami.

“Our family has always believed in the promise of this city,” Jose R. Mas said.

In 2022, Jose and Jorge successfully led an effort to name the park near the future Inter Miami stadium after their late father, businessman and activist Jorge Mas Canosa.

Miami-Dade College President Emeritus Eduardo J. Padrón was scheduled to receive the Malina Leadership Award in person, an honor he received during the pandemic.