Danville Chamber whoops it up at banquet

For the second year in a row, the Danville-Boyle County Chamber of Commerce celebrated the business year with a bang, honoring local leaders while also cutting loose on the dance floor.

After years of holding a traditional dinner and awards program, the Chamber of Commerce Young Professionals took the reigns in 2011 and decided the Chamber Banquet should become the less buttoned-up Chamber Celebration. 

Charlie Cox, chairman of the Young Professionals, said he couldn’t have been more pleased with the results of the second go around Friday night at the Danville Country Club.

“As young professionals, we were excited to have the opportunity to once again plan the Chamber of Commerce annual meeting,” Cox said. “Building off the success of last year's Celebration, we wanted to make it bigger and better than before. I think we accomplished that. A lot of volunteers worked really hard on this event, so my hat goes off to them. Boyle County is a great, fun place, so I am thrilled to have an event that reflects that tone."

Eben Henson, Upshaw Briggs and Keith Hubbard played music throughout the night and guests were treated to local desserts provided by the Twisted Sifter, Karamel Kreations and Table 908. About 20 other local businesses got some exposure in a showroom that provided space for them to display their products.

One slight tweak to the format from last year was handing out the awards at the same time, which Cox said made the festivities run even more smoothly.

The winners of this year’s awards were:

The School Bell Awards

The School Bell Awards are given to outstanding volunteers in the local public school systems. 

Boyle County’s School Bell award winner was Perryville Elementary¿School PTO President Tonya Sutton. She was presented the award by Boyle County Schools Superintendent Mike LaFavers and was praised for sacrificing countless hours through volunteer work.

Danville’s School Bell award winner was Jenny Fieberg, who has three children in the Danville Independent Schools. Fieberg, who is currently serving as president of the Danville Schools Education Foundation, was credited with helping raise over $144,500 for the school system and making a tremendous difference in the lives of hundreds of students. Superintendent Carmen Coleman presented Fieberg with the award.

Outstanding Citizen

The Outstanding Citizen award is presented to an individual for dedicated community service to an organization or organizations in the non-profit community.

Winners Carol and David Senn were honored their involvement in numerous community organizations, including helping fund the Heart of Danville, Kiwanis Club, the McDowell House museum for nearly 23 years, and heading up the Christmas Parade for over 20 years. 

Outstanding