Chamber gala an evening of surprises and fellowship
February 4, 2015
Charlea Mills
An evening filled with a great meal, fun trivia and camaraderie was the focus of this year’s Cassville Area Chamber of Commerce annual banquet. The event, attended by around 175 people, was held Saturday night in the commons area at Cassville High School and honored retiring chamber members and those in the community who work day in and out to make Cassville a better place to live.
In lieu of a speaker or performer at this year’s banquet, the Chamber changed it up by holding an impromptu trivia night, asking questions about the Cassville area and iconic members of the community. Participants were selected randomly from those in attendance for the two teams who competed. The questions sparked a bit of healthy competition and a lot of laughs from players and the audience.
Awards were handed out to various members of the community for both Chamber and community recognition. New Chamber president Michelle Bredeson, of Commerce Bank, thanked the retiring Chamber Board members, Joel Curren, Shelly Davison, Karen Essary and Kelly Mills, for their service to the group.
Bredeson also presented a new award, the 4 Under 40 award. Bredeson said, “For 2014, the award will be given to four people under the age of 40 who put their heart and soul into Cassville, and we know with their leadership, this will continue to be a great place to live.” The first year’s winners were selected as Justin Gates, Stacy Runnels, Caleb Buntin and Mindi Artherton. Each of the award winners volunteers with various organizations and dedicates a lot of time to community improvement. The award winners were selected by a committee of representatives from different organizations in the community, including the Rotary Club, the Soropotomist Club and the Industrial Development Corporation.
The Chamber awards were presented by outgoing Chamber president Kelly Mills. He began with the Business Beautification Awards, which were handed out to four different Chamber members. Country Dodge, Ken’s Collision Center, the Main Street building owned by Bob and Carolyn Bishop and Cr-ose Cafe were the recipients for 2014.
Country Dodge, owned by Randall Bland and Matthew Williams, is managed by Kurt Berndt. The renovations at Country Dodge included a totally remodeled show room, customer area, and the addition of a MOPAR Kids Zone. Ken’s Collision, owned by Ken and Leesa Cieslinski, added around 4,000 square feet in June of last year with new offices and a customer waiting area. The 900 block of Main Street, owned by Bob and Carolyn Bishop, replaced the metal siding of the building with brick and also remodeled the inside to make room for two new businesses. Finally, Cr-ose Cafe, owned by Stu and Lavita Crow, moved from Washburn to Cassville, where the pair remodeled their current location, adding a parking lot and closed in a large deck area for more seating.
Finally, Mills presented the year’s Cassville Community Service Award to retired Judge Victor Head. Head’s accomplishments in the community, particularly his involvement in the Barry County Drug Court program, were emphasized. Head helped start the program in 2008 as a means for alcohol and drug offenders to get clean and motivate change in their lives. Mills said, “Since the inception of the program in 2008, there have been 56 graduates, and one of the most inspiring things, is that 17 drug-free babies have been born to parents in the program.”
Head served as an Associate Circuit Judge in Barry County for eight years, but worked in the public defenders position in Monett for 17 years before that. When Head received his award, he was surprised by his family, who came from all over the state, to celebrate with him as he was honored.
New Chamber President Michelle Redeson stated, “I think our celebrate Cassville event was enjoyed by all. The trivia competition was a lot of fun to watch. I was honored so many people agreed to help with this event. Cassville is a great place to live and has some amazingly talented people involved in its success.”
The evening was wonderful reminder to the community how the people of Cassville work together to make the community a warm, welcoming place for residents and visitors alike.
Charlea Mills
An evening filled with a great meal, fun trivia and camaraderie was the focus of this year’s Cassville Area Chamber of Commerce annual banquet. The event, attended by around 175 people, was held Saturday night in the commons area at Cassville High School and honored retiring chamber members and those in the community who work day in and out to make Cassville a better place to live.
In lieu of a speaker or performer at this year’s banquet, the Chamber changed it up by holding an impromptu trivia night, asking questions about the Cassville area and iconic members of the community. Participants were selected randomly from those in attendance for the two teams who competed. The questions sparked a bit of healthy competition and a lot of laughs from players and the audience.
Awards were handed out to various members of the community for both Chamber and community recognition. New Chamber president Michelle Bredeson, of Commerce Bank, thanked the retiring Chamber Board members, Joel Curren, Shelly Davison, Karen Essary and Kelly Mills, for their service to the group.
Bredeson also presented a new award, the 4 Under 40 award. Bredeson said, “For 2014, the award will be given to four people under the age of 40 who put their heart and soul into Cassville, and we know with their leadership, this will continue to be a great place to live.” The first year’s winners were selected as Justin Gates, Stacy Runnels, Caleb Buntin and Mindi Artherton. Each of the award winners volunteers with various organizations and dedicates a lot of time to community improvement. The award winners were selected by a committee of representatives from different organizations in the community, including the Rotary Club, the Soropotomist Club and the Industrial Development Corporation.
The Chamber awards were presented by outgoing Chamber president Kelly Mills. He began with the Business Beautification Awards, which were handed out to four different Chamber members. Country Dodge, Ken’s Collision Center, the Main Street building owned by Bob and Carolyn Bishop and Cr-ose Cafe were the recipients for 2014.
Country Dodge, owned by Randall Bland and Matthew Williams, is managed by Kurt Berndt. The renovations at Country Dodge included a totally remodeled show room, customer area, and the addition of a MOPAR Kids Zone. Ken’s Collision, owned by Ken and Leesa Cieslinski, added around 4,000 square feet in June of last year with new offices and a customer waiting area. The 900 block of Main Street, owned by Bob and Carolyn Bishop, replaced the metal siding of the building with brick and also remodeled the inside to make room for two new businesses. Finally, Cr-ose Cafe, owned by Stu and Lavita Crow, moved from Washburn to Cassville, where the pair remodeled their current location, adding a parking lot and closed in a large deck area for more seating.
Finally, Mills presented the year’s Cassville Community Service Award to retired Judge Victor Head. Head’s accomplishments in the community, particularly his involvement in the Barry County Drug Court program, were emphasized. Head helped start the program in 2008 as a means for alcohol and drug offenders to get clean and motivate change in their lives. Mills said, “Since the inception of the program in 2008, there have been 56 graduates, and one of the most inspiring things, is that 17 drug-free babies have been born to parents in the program.”
Head served as an Associate Circuit Judge in Barry County for eight years, but worked in the public defenders position in Monett for 17 years before that. When Head received his award, he was surprised by his family, who came from all over the state, to celebrate with him as he was honored.
New Chamber President Michelle Redeson stated, “I think our celebrate Cassville event was enjoyed by all. The trivia competition was a lot of fun to watch. I was honored so many people agreed to help with this event. Cassville is a great place to live and has some amazingly talented people involved in its success.”
The evening was wonderful reminder to the community how the people of Cassville work together to make the community a warm, welcoming place for residents and visitors alike.