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The Edmond Area Chamber of Commerce will be celebrating the remarkable achievements of Edmond community members at the Edmond Chamber of Commerce Annual Awards Banquet presented by Arvest Bank. The banquet will be held at the Edmond Conference Center located in the all-new Hilton Garden Inn on Friday, Jan. 26.

The banquet features a number of awards that are given to deserving businesses and individuals dedicated to Edmond and Edmond Life & Leisure is proud to join in partnership with the Edmond Chamber to announce some of those winners.

Mercy’s Ambassador of the Year: Michael Buoy
The Edmond Chamber Ambassadors are a group of dedicated volunteers who mentor Chamber members and attend ribbon cuttings, events and special meetings. The honor of Ambassador of the Year is awarded to the Chamber Ambassador who can make the highest number of goodwill calls, ribbon cuttings, and groundbreaking events throughout the year. The award is decided on a point-based system with participants earning points through their involvement. The Edmond Chamber is proud to announce that Michael Buoy with Bonanza Real Estate was named the 2017 Ambassador of the Year.

INTEGRIS Health Edmond’s Volunteer of the Year: Matthew Boydstun
The Edmond Chamber has many volunteers that help with councils, committees, programs and events. Matthew Boydstun was recently named the 2017 Volunteer of the Year for his leadership and continuous dedication to the Edmond Chamber, as well as the community. Boydstun is a graduate of the Leadership Edmond program and serves in multiple facets of the Edmond Chamber such as the Board of Advisors, Total Resource Campaign, Government Relations Committee, Edmond Young Professionals Steering Committee, and has hosted Chamber networking events. The Edmond Chamber staff would like to say congratulations to Boydstun on a well-deserved award!

OU Medical Center Edmond’s Young Professional of the Year: Danny Slusarchuk
This award is given to a young professional who demonstrates leadership, provides valuable service to their business or profession, gives back to their community, exhibits initiative and creativity and serves as a role model for young people, both personally and professionally. Danny Slusarchuk, CEO of Standards IT, is the winner of the 2017 Young Professional of the Year Award. He is a committed member of the Edmond Chamber and inspiring young professional in the Edmond area. “Being part of the downtown Edmond community is what makes our business a great place to work. We wanted a place to have our employees involved in the community,” Slusarchuk said.

First United Bank’s Small Business of the Year Finalists
The Small Business of the Year Award, now in its 16th year, honors small businesses that have made outstanding contributions to the Edmond economy and community. This year’s finalists include RadVine Strategies, Red Valley Landscape & Construction, and Martha Garzon DMD. Requirements state that nominees must be an owner/partner/major shareholder of the business and be active in the day-to-day management and operation of the business. The business should also display leadership in business and community affairs, be actively involved in professional and/or trade associations and maintain equal opportunity employment. The winner will be announced at the banquet on January 26, 2018.

RCB Bank’s Philanthropic Business of the Year: Homes by Taber
The Philanthropic Business of the Year Award honors a business that has made significant philanthropic contributions to the Edmond community. Applicants were judged based on the extent of services provided to the community, the impact these services had made, and the commitment that these businesses have shown over time. The 2017 finalists were J Dog Junk Removal, Earl’s Rib Palace, and Homes by Taber.

The winner of the 2017 Philanthropic Business of the Year is Homes by Taber. Homes by Taber has made sure to involve all employees in community service. All 63 employees have made 830 hours of community service possible just in 2017. After implementing the Taber Cares program 10 years ago, each manager meets with the different divisions within Homes by Taber to discuss and choose a non-profit to serve each year. In addition to community service hours, $250 from each home sold goes to a different charity each month. The charities chosen have never received less than $5,750 in just one month. Any non-profit can apply to be selected as charity of the month on the Homes by Taber website.

Prosperity Bank’s Woman of the Year: Shannon Price
The finalists for Prosperity Bank’s 2017 Woman of the Year award were: Jeanean South, Lissa Qualls, and Shannon Price. Shannon Price has been selected as Prosperity Bank’s 2017 Woman of the Year. Price has been the Executive Director at the Edmond Fine Arts Institute since 2013. Price values the importance of leading a life of integrity at home and in the Edmond community. Previous Executive Director, Mitzi Hancuff was Price’s mentor before taking over the role and speaks highly of her, “Wow, when Shannon took over, it was thriving… but look what it is after she’s been there.”

“If you love what you do it is never really a job. I am always growing and learning and doing. It has been a really good balance,” said Price.

While each award has a different sponsor, Arvest Bank is the overall sponsor for this year Edmond Chamber Annual Banquet. For more information or to RSVP for the Annual Banquet, please visit www.edmondchamber.com/events or call (405) 341-2808. The deadline to RSVP is January 22, 2018.