On January 29th the Greater Boerne Chamber of Commerce held its Annual Awards Gala to honor its members, and to single out businesses and business professionals who stood out from the crowd during the 2009 calendar year. A handful of nominees were identified and from that elite group winners were selected.
Nominees for Businessman of the Year were: Brian Cartwright (The Boerne Star), Jacques DuBose (Heartland Payment Systems), Paul Duran (The Creek Restaurant), Matthew Kittrell (BoerneWire), Ron Warden (Edward Jones Investments), and DeVan Watts (Jefferson Bank). The Businessman of the Year designation was awarded to Paul Duran. After moving his business to Boerne in 2001, entrepreneur Paul Duran opened numerous new enterprises here creating well more than 100 new full and part-time jobs for local residents. Paul and his wife, Alice, are very active in the Chamber, the Kendall County EDC and the Kendall County Manufacturers Association. They are also strong supporters of TMI where his children go to school. The Chamber’s Board of Directors, on behalf of more than 820 members, extends its congratulations to Paul Duran.
Nominees for Businesswoman of the Year were: Staci Andrews (Salon Infusion), Amy Boehm (Keller Williams Realty – The Boehm Team), Dayna Cartwright (TravelHost Magazine of the Texas Hill Country), Beth Coyle (Coyle Engineering), Alice Duran (The Creek Restaurant), Dawn Fradkin (Bergheim Pet Hospital & Clinic PA), Lynda Kohler (Frost Bank), Beca Short (Jefferson Bank), Ginny Thompson (State Farm Insurance), and Suzanne Woodward (Suzanne Woodward CPA). The Businesswoman of the Year Award was presented to Ginny Thompson. Since starting her agency in 1985 with one part time employee and zero clients, Ginny has built one of the most successful State Farm Agencies in the United States by delivering her most important product: superior customer service. Her personal commitment to Boerne is evident when you look at her state-of-the-art building on Bandera Road and her many behind the scenes contributions for so many Boerne institutions and organizations. A woman of great vision, innovative ideas and savvy business acumen, join us in congratulating Ginny Thompson.
Nominees for the 2009 Business of the Year included: Barkley’s Home and Ranch Center, BoerneWire, Broadway National Bank, Hill Country Animal League Spay/Neuter Clinic, Hungry Horse Restaurant and Catering, Little Gretel Restaurant, Salon Infusion, Spinelli’s Vistro Wedding Hall and Country Inn, State Farm Insurance – Ginny Thompson Agency, and Town & Country Manor. The 2009 Business of the Year trophy was awarded to Ginny Thompson’s State Farm Agency. A lifetime member of State Farm’s President’s Club, an honor limited to the top 50 producers out of State Farm’s 18,000 agents, Ginny’s Agency sponsors many groups in the BISD and Comfort schools, is a sponsor of the Boerne Public Library Foundation, Hill Country Daily Bread Ministries, Boerne Youth Athletic Association, and the Cibolo Nature Center, to name just a very few of the dozens of organizations and activities her business supports. It is an honor that she calls Boerne home. Join the Chamber in congratulating the Business of the Year: Ginny Thompson’s State Farm Agency.
One of the evenings highlights was the announcement that outgoing Board Chair, M.J. Slater, named Steve Mack, CEO of Texas Heritage Bank, recipient of the Chairman’s Award.
Top Producer among the Ambassadors, Jacques Dubose, Heartland Payment Systems, won a free Bronze Level Membership for his business and Missy Vadnais, Tri County Home Health, was honored as Ambassador of the Year.
It was a fabulous evening under the stars at the Don Strange Ranch. Underwriting Sponsor GVTC joined by more than 50 other businesses, supported this big night for Business and the Greater Boerne Chamber of Commerce.