At a luncheon on Jan. 15 at Vestavia Country Club, the Vestavia Hills Chamber of Commerce dolled out its 2019 awards to recognize those who have gone above and beyond in service to the community during the past year.
Awards and recipients included former mayor Butch Zaragoza, volunteer of the year; Erin Holtz of Pure Fitness LLC, ambassador of the year; Ben Chambliss and Mark McCoy, tied for board member of the year; Vestavia Hills United Methodist Church, member of the year; John Henley of State Farm Insurance and the Henley Group, Dr. Charles A. “Scotty” McCallum Leadership Award; Linda Parker of Bruster’s Real Ice Cream, president’s award; Liberty Park Joint Venture, service business of the year; The Lili Pad and Gigi’s Teen, retail business of the year.
Awards were also handed out for the chamber’s annual Viva Vestavia event, held in October, with Samurai Japan and Wintzell’s Oyster House tied for best food; and Metro Diner winning for best presentation.
In addition to awards and recognitions, four Vestavia Hills High School seniors presented a new spring fundraiser that will take the place of the school’s annual Relay for Life event, a fundraiser for the American Cancer Society.
Ben Barrentine, Avery Richardson, Douglas Thompson and Mary Hanlon Hunton discussed the new event, RISE, which stands for Rebels Impact through Service and Empowerment.
A kickoff for RISE will be held today at VHHS and the fundraiser will continue with a variety of events hosted throughout the spring by the school in order to raise funds for the O’Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, formerly the UAB Comprehensive Cancer Center. The ongoing fundraiser will conclude on April 12 with RISE Day, which will be held from 4-11 p.m. on the VHHS practice field.
At the conclusion of the luncheon, the 2019 Vestavia Hills Chamber of Commerce officers were sworn in. Officers include Gary Jordan, chair; John Henley, chair-elect; Doug Dean, immediate past chair; Jeff Florio, vice chair of business development; Scott Perry, vice chair of community affairs; Becky Hicks-Abbott, vice chair of membership development; Taylor Burton; vice chair of programming; Kelly Bottcher, vice chair of public education; Mark Macoy, secretary and legal counsel; and Ben Chambliss, treasurer.
– Emily Williams
