CHAMBER HONORS LEADERS, HIGHLIGHTS INITIATIVES AT ANNUAL BUSINESS MEETING

The Chamber was pleased to recognize leadership, excellent business practices, and service to our community as part of the Chamber’s Awards Luncheon & Annual Business Meeting on Thursday, October 11, at the Ramada Hotel & Conference Center in Greensburg. In addition to the awards, the Chamber held a brief business meeting for roughly 350 members in attendance, which included the announcement of additions to the Board of Directors for 2019, highlighting of the past year’s accomplishments and review of goals for the year ahead.
 
​“Each year, the Chamber seeks to honor excellence in Westmoreland County - a significant reason why our region is a great place to live and do business. Each year our award recipients exemplify that concept,” commented Chad Amond, President & CEO of the Westmoreland County Chamber of Commerce
 
Award Recipients
In the Business of the Year category, the award recipient was Standard Bank; Chamber Member of the Year, Tony Vecchio, Realtor with Coldwell Banker Real Estate Services; Not-for-Profit of the Year, Laurel Highlands Visitors Bureau; and ATHENA® Award, Kathleen Hendrickson, Owner of Wigs ‘n More Mastectomy Boutique.

Award recipients were honored by the Chamber with a video presentation produced by Skene 19 Films, and were presented with a handsome engraved plaque of Westmoreland County. Award sponsors included First Commonwealth Bank, Graham Insurance Group, and S&T Bank. Corporate sponsors also contributing to the event included 103.9 KHB, Classic Hits 107.1 WHJB, Laura Edgerly Designs, Skene 19 Films, Smail Auto Group, Trib Total Media, Carlow University, Fotorecord Print Center, Somerset Trust Company, Standard Bank, PNC Bank, and First National Bank.
 
In addition to the awards presentation, the Chamber announced the addition of four new members and four returning members to the 2019 Board of Directors after a membership-wide vote. New board members include Chrissy Giagnocavo, Creative Director, Chroma Technology Solutions; Gabe Monzo, Executive Director, Westmoreland County Airport Authority; Ann Nemanic, Executive Director, Laurel Highlands Visitors Bureau; and Jessica Urbanik, Chief Relationship Manager, GOAL Magazine.
 
“Chrissy, Gabe and Jessica will make excellent additions to our Board of Directors. Their combined experience and insight will make them great assets to the Chamber. Long-time ex-officio Ann Nemanic, who was now appointed as a voting member, will continue to provide rich knowledge and strong perspective. I look forward to working closely with all of them in the coming years,” said Mike Storms, Chamber Board Chair.
 
In addition, members re-elected include Linda Dickson, Director of Corporate Marketing, Redstone Highlands; Walt Henry, Partner/Director of Marketing & Development, THE pt GROUP Physical Therapy; John Kline, Executive Vice President/Chief Lending Officer, Standard Bank; and Dr. Tuesday Stanley, President, Westmoreland County Community College.
 
Leaving the board at the end of this year will be George O’Brien, Chief Executive Officer, YMCA of Greensburg.
 
In his remarks, Amond explained, “The theme of the day is ‘Growing Together’—every member plays a key role in planting and growing our collective success. Thank you to each member of the Westmoreland County Chamber of Commerce for being such a vital part of growing this thriving organization, and for your role in making all of Westmoreland County a better place to live, work, and play.”
 
Amond also announced that the Westmoreland County Forum for Workforce Development, with which the Chamber is a key stakeholder, will soon launch a career hub aimed at streamlining and standardizing the hiring process for employers while giving students access to employers willing to host job shadowing as well as internship and mentoring opportunities. The Chamber is committed to helping to solve the County’s diminishing workforce problem and the skills gap it creates.