Elgin chamber gives out 'High-Five' awards to volunteers, businesses
On Tuesday, March 22, the Elgin Area Chamber took time to recognize its best and brightest members, volunteers and organizations at the "High-Fives After Five" awards at The Haight in downtown Elgin.
The awards event was emceed by chamber chair elect Jaci Kator of AT&T and featured a video presentation detailing the accomplishments of each of the evening's award recipients:
• EDG Workforce Award - Winergy Drive Systems: This past October, the Elgin Development Group partnered with Winergy Drive Systems on the "Introduce a Girl to Engineering" event. Targeted to young women in seventh to 12th grades, the program partnered Siemens/Winergy volunteer engineers with students to conduct experiments using household items to demonstrate how engineering can be used in multiple applications. Tours of Winergy were also offered and the program completely maxed out at 75 participants.
• Enhancing Elgin Award - Susan Angell-Case/Discover Elgin Realtor Tour: In February 2015, Susan Angell-Case of Baird & Warner Real Estate along with the Enhancing Elgin committee, a subcommittee of the Elgin Development Group, partnered with the city of Elgin and the Realtor Association of the Fox Valley to organize the "Discover Elgin Realtor Tour." The event brought in more than 30 Realtors from around the region for a three-hour guided bus tour of the Elgin area. The goal of the event was to showcase Elgin's diverse neighborhoods and housing stock as well as provide Realtors with a chance to network with other local businesses in the real estate, housing and mortgage industries. The 2016 Discover Elgin Realtor Tour returns Wednesday, May 11.
• Rookie Member of the Year Award - Napleton's Elgin Kia: Since its grand opening ribbon cutting late last year, Napleton's Elgin Kia has been a tremendous chamber supporter. Their generosity included sponsorship of the annual ChamberFest Golf Classic and monthly member orientation sessions as well as offering chamber members employee discount programs on vehicle purchases.
• Membership Volunteer of the Year Award - Dee Reinhardt: From helping small businesses gain influence and identity through her social media consulting business, Time2Mrkt, to influencing businesses and Elgin Area Chamber members to become more involved and engaged with the chamber over the years, Dee Reinhardt is a fixture at all of our special events. Earlier this year, she became chair of the chamber's new Ambassadors committee and will now have a prominent role in helping groom the next generation of chamber influencers.
• Showcase Award - JIT The Packaging Wholesalers: In August 2015, JIT The Packaging Wholesalers came full circle by moving their corporate headquarters from Schaumburg and returning home to a new location on Elgin's far southeast side at 1717 Gifford Road. In addition to bringing 90 jobs to Elgin's economy, the company repurposed and fully renovated the former Ball Containers building into a 500,000-square-foot state-of-the-art distribution warehouse where they now ship boxes and packaging supplies all over the country.
• Nonprofit Community Partner Award - Grand Victoria Foundation: During the holiday season this past year, Grand Victoria Foundation awarded nearly $99,000 in matching grants to Elgin organizations that participated in #ILGive2015. The foundation offered Elgin-based nonprofits a 1:1 match of all online donations up to $5,000 made by individuals on Giving Tuesday, Dec. 1, 2015. Twenty-four organizations ran campaigns and raised more than $150,000 from hundreds of supporters. In total, #ILGive activities injected more than $250,000 into Elgin's nonprofit community.
Tony Sanders, CEO of Elgin Area School District U-46, also presented the district's annual Business/Partner Award to Linda Deering and Mary Martini of Advocate Sherman Hospital for the hospital's timely assistance with a Legionella scare last year and for arranging additional partnerships with U-46 schools and programs.