HomeTrust, Kanini’s win top awards
HomeTrust Bank and Kanini’s were honored as the Business of the Year and Entrepreneur of the Year, respectively, at the 2011 Haywood County Chamber of Commerce annual dinner held in June .
More than 100 chamber members attended the annual dinner, held this year at Laurel Ridge Country Club.
Other businesses honored for their contributions include:
• New Meridian Technology was awarded the Distinguished Service Award for going above and beyond by rendering exemplary service, leadership and contribution to the chamber.
• Ron & Rachel Reid of Andon Reid Bed & Breakfast Inn received the Volunteer of the Year Award.
• Jake Robinson of Champion Credit Union was awarded Ambassador of the Year for leadership during the 2011 Membership Campaign.
• Rulers of Success were awarded to George Ferguson of GF Graphics for Web Development and Creation; Greg Boothroyd of The Smoky Mountain News and Smoky Mountain Living magazine for the 2011 “Goin Coastal” Membership and Sponsorship Campaign; and BluePrints for Business for the “Gearing Up for Economic Recovery” Seminar Series.
• Michael Gillespie, DDS, Champion Credit Union, and A. Bailey Associates received Green Leader Certifications for successful completion of the 2010-11 Green Initiative Program. These businesses implemented “green” practices in the areas of air quality and energy efficiency, water quality and quantity, reduce, reuse and recycle, education and awareness, and sustainability leadership into their daily business practices to reduce their environmental impact on the region.
New board members sworn in at the meeting included Vicki Hyatt of the Mountaineer, Jon Feichter of New Meridean Technologies, Laura Leatherwood of Haywood Community College, and Nyda Bittmann-Neville of TNB Consulting and Asheville Savings Bank.
Ron Leatherwood of Clark and Leatherwood took over as chamber board chairman from Bruce Johnson, owner of Champion Janitorial Supply.
Jackson County Chamber rolls out improved website
The Jackson County Chamber of Commerce has launched a new website, which provides more benefits and amenities to its members.
The site allows for members to better promote their businesses and organizations, log in and enter their special events, or offer exclusive member-to-member discounts. Job openings can be posted or a stand-alone page created at no charge.
In addition to this, the site’s appearance and feel has been upgraded with a new Jackson County logo, a warmer color scheme, a rotating collage of photos of county landmarks, easy-to-navigate toolbars, an interactive calendar, and a video player. Links to social networks such as Facebook can also be posted.
“Our new site gives members more ways to interact and be noticed, while still serving the needs of visitors and people relocating to the area,” said Chamber Executive Director Julie Spiro. “We’ve kept pages that visitors utilize the most while adding member benefits.”
The site’s name remains www.MountainLovers.com. 828.586.2155
Award-winning new chef hired at J. Arthur’s in Maggie Valley
J. Arthur’s Restaurant in Maggie Valley has hired John Pelini as its new executive chef/manager as of June 1.
Pelini hails from Akro, Ohio, and graduated from Columbus State University and attended a two year apprentice program under Chef Hartmut Handke, C.M.C. at the American Culinary Federation. He is a certified executive chef and a certified culinary instructor. He had been featured in Cooking Light Magazine as a Top Chef and has worked as a part-time instructor at the University of Akron. He has won the Gold Medal Chicago Cold food Competition and the Gold Medal Cincinnati Hot Food Competition. He has also hosted two seasons of ”Let’s Eat” cooking shows on the Food Network.
Pelini enjoys herb gardening and many of the fine seasonings, sauces and dressings he will be featuring will be from the garden on J. Arthur’s premises. He also believes in using fresh local products as much as possible.
J. Arthur’s is open this season nightly from 5 to 9 p.m. from Sunday through Thursday and from 5 to 11 p.m. on Friday and Saturday. There is music on the porch and/or in the lounge every Friday and Saturday beginning at 8 pm. Patio dining is available nightly and there is a bar menu. Reservations are available by calling 828.926.1817.
