Dr. Mindy McCannon, vice president Georgia Northwestern Technical College and 2011 Chamber board chair, Lynn Yates, vice president Ringgold Telephone and Marcy Cirlot-Kernea accepting Large Businesses of the Year for Ringgold Telephone Company.
The Catoosa County Chamber of Commerce hosted the annual gala at the Colonnade Civic Center. At the Magnolia Ball the Businesses of the Year as well as the Catoosa County Citizen were honored and celebrated.
Dr. Mindy McCannon, 2011, chair of the Board, recognized Marcy Cirlot-Kernea with the Chairman’s Award. Ms. Cirlot-Kernea is employed with Ringgold Telephone and shown dedication to the Chamber and the business community by going that extra mile to participate in ribbon cuttings, serve on the Chamber Ambassadors, assist with the Catoosa Golf Classic and served as chairmen of the Magnolia Ball 2012.
The Small Business of the Year for 20 employees or less was presented to Paxton Family Chiropractic. Dr. Josh Paxton and his staff had their office destroyed in the storm, however they were opened in a short time in temporary offices and have now located in a permanent office with even more space that before. With all this going on, he has remained active in the community with membership in the Ringgold Rotary Club, helping others during the storm, and often being seen with his portable chiropractic table set up at community events adjusting backs and sore muscles.
The Medium Business of the Year for 21-50 employees went to Ace Hardware. They has just built a new building and expanded into the community shortly before the storm took away the new building. But that didn’t stop them from being at their location and salvaging what they could and making sure the chain saws, and other tools that were still intact were being used and doing good. They have also rebuilt and continue to work within the community. The local Ace Hardware is managed by Phil Cawood.
The Large Business of the Year for 51 or more employees was earned by Ringgold Telephone. Ringgold Telephone has been a fixture in the community for 100 years. After the storm they were taking care of their customers communication needs quickly, but beyond that they were taking generators to businesses and citizens alike. They were collecting donations, they were giving money and then when it seemed they had done everything they could, they opened their warehouse to anyone, anywhere that had donations. They warehoused all the donations that were made for months after the storm and became a major distribution point. They paid their staff to work the warehouse, the phones, and more. Throughout the years, Alice Evitt Bandy and Ringgold Telephone Company have contributed to the community in too many ways to mention.
A new award for 2011 was the Non-Profit of the Year. And the first time award was presented to Ringgold United Methodist Church. While the church had extensive damage to their building and still have some blue tarps visible, they immediately became the coordination center for all things storm related. Rescue groups, repair groups, volunteers and more gathered and were directed from this site all the time while they were trying to manage the damage both inside and outside their building. The Citizens Organization Acting in Disaster was organized through the Ringgold United Methodist Church; the Amish workers who generously came to the community lived and still do, in the Church as they begin to help build homes in the community. Lost and found items were taken to the Church when they struggled to find the owners of many family mementos. And beyond the storm, they continued the many ministries of the Church including the Nourishing Children in Catoosa County, which feeds over 1,000 Catoosa County kids each week. They continue today to house the COAD and the Amish are still using the Church as their base for work as well as living quarters as they are still rebuilding homes. Pastor John Purrington accepted on the behalf of the church congregation.
The nominees for Catoosa County Citizen of the Year were Donna Greeson, Mary Carpenter, Chuck Gass, Judge Gene Lowery and Paige Osbourn. Tommy Holcombe, 2010 Citizen of the Year presented the award to the 2011 Catoosa County Citizen of the Year, Mary Carpenter. Ms. Carpenter is a board member of Communities in Schools, coordinates a Charitable 5K run each year, N. Georgia Campaign chair for United Way, partner with Woodstation Elementary School, helped with Trees for Ringgold Committee, organized an on-line auction for storm victims and board member Catoosa County Chamber of Commerce.
Jason Taylor, president Chattanooga Times Free Press, Dr. and Mrs. Josh Paxton, Paxton Family Chiropractic, Small Business of the Year and Dr. Mindy McCannon, vice president, Georgia Northwestern Technical College and 2011 Chamber board chair.