GILROY CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
SPICE OF LIFE AWARDS
On February 11 , over 350 people joined this year ’ s Spice of Life Award recipients at San Juan Oaks in Hollister for the 64th Annual Citizen and Business Awards Dinner and Board Installation Ceremony . Since 1966 the Gilroy Chamber of Commerce has been honoring individuals who go above and beyond to help make Gilroy a great place to live and work . The first recipients were Josephine Hockenbeamer and James Pray . Over the years , other awards were added beginning with Business of the Year in 1988 , Gilroy Foods ; Non-Profit of the Year in 1998 , the Gilroy Garlic Festival Association Inc .; Educator of the Year in 1997 , Carol Marques ; Volunteer of the Year in 1991 , Lorna Jacks ; and in 2014 , the Susan Valenta Youth Leadership Award , Paul Fox .
Also at the event , the Chamber welcomed four new Directors to the Board . They are Michele Campbell , Michele Campbell Insurance Services ( second term ); Diane Atkins , Merrill Gardens ; Crystal Brennan , United Natural Foods , Inc .; and John Hennelly , St . Louise Hospital . While the Chamber celebrated new Directors , they also said goodbye to others including , Eric Gebhardt , Hilton Garden Inn ; Debbi Sanchez , Fortino Winery ; Cheryl Ellemberg , ABD Promotions ; and Pam Garcia , Simmitri .
Recology South Valley Large Business of the Year
Sue Thurman Woman of the Year
The 2017 Man of the Year , Pastor Malcolm McPhail of New Hope Community Church , is a man who has invested himself in the community , in the lives of his congregation members and most importantly , in the lives of his family . It is his investment in others that makes Malcolm an influential figure in Gilroy . While leading his church , Malcolm has led by example , not just preaching Biblical principles but living by them as well . He is a constant encouragement to others , and in a time of great need in his own life he allowed others to be an encouragement to him .
Sue Thurman , the 2017 Woman of the Year , is a selfless individual who , for over 20 years , has served Gilroy with tremendous passion . Everyone who knows Sue can ’ t help but think of ways she has been involved in some effort , organization or association to make Gilroy a better place to live and work . From her days as a business owner running Country Clutter with her sister to her days as the Business Relationship Manager at the Chamber of Commerce , Sue has developed great relationships with everyone she ’ s met . Sue commented , “ I have loved working for the Gilroy Chamber of Commerce and the opportunity to get to know so many over the past 10 years .”
Malcolm MacPhail Man of the Year
Phil Couchee , General Manager of Recology South Valley , the 2017 Large Business of the Year is honored by the recognition and gives credit to Recology ’ s employees . Recology is an employee-owned company . Phil said , “ Our employee ownership is deeply engrained in our culture and has a direct reflection on our level of service and productivity . It is Recology ’ s philosophy to give back to the communities they serve . There is an expectation throughout Recology that each local operating company be active in the areas they serve . Whether it be volunteering , sponsoring events , or in-kind contributions , Recology and its employees take great pride in giving back to the community .
Scott Otteson Educator of the Year
When Scott was a high school senior in Kodiak , Alaska , he was part of a new career education program . This program allowed him to participate in many exploratory vocations , which included working at a newspaper , a television station , an electric company and a radio station in Anchorage , Alaska . Scott ’ s absolute favorite was working in a first grade classroom with Lew Santoro , who later was honored as the Alaska State Teacher of the Year . Since that moment 40 years ago , working with children has been Scott ’ s passion .
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GILROY • MORGAN HILL • SAN MARTIN MARCH / APRIL 2017 gmhtoday . com