FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:
Jack B. Hess, President
Columbus Area Chamber of Commerce
500 Franklin Street
Columbus, Indiana 47201
(812) 379-4457


Entrepreneurs, Innovators, and Young Professionals Receive Columbus Maverick Awards

COLUMBUS , INDIANA —Thursday, October 25, 2007—The Columbus Area Chamber of Commerce and Columbus Young Professionals presented The Maverick Awards Dinner on the evening of October 25^th at the newly opened Factory 12 Event Loft.  In front of over 200 of their peers, the award winners were recognized for their extraordinary contributions of independent thought, action, and spirit to the City of Columbus .

Keynote speaker Rebecca Ryan of Next Generation Consulting kicked-off the evening with a speech that emphasized the value of those mavericks who operate on the innovative fringe of the economy and shared important lessons from America’s most innovative and creative companies.

When talking about the importance of the awards, Jack Hess, President of the Columbus Area Chamber said, “Few things are more important to our regional economy than innovation, entrepreneurship, and the inclusion of young talent.  Tonight is an attempt to tell that story.  It’s a story that says that we believe these facets of our community are important and vital—a story that says that this is a place where anything is possible and you can realize this very aspiration right here in the City of Columbus .”

Winners of the Maverick Awards included:

• The Irwin Union Bank Entrepreneur of the Year Award: Doug Mahoney of Production Systems, Inc.

• The Innovation Award: Eric and Kathleen Bradley of Mototron

• The SIHO Spirit Award: Tim Cooney of AdvantageOne Imaging Center

• The Young Entrepreneur Award: Daniel Novaes

• The Ice Miller New and Emerging Award: Tamera Pauli of One Body One Soul

• The Small Business Advocate Award: Denise Wirrig of Bartholomew County Public Library and Matt Carothers of Northwestern Mutual Financial Network

In addition, the event awarded the 40 Under 40 Awards for outstanding accomplishments for young professionals and leaders under the age of forty.  Twenty of the winners were bestowed by Columbus Young Professionals and twenty were selected by local newspaper The Republic.  (See the list below for those recognized)

Valerie Chowning, Director of Columbus Young Professionals, said “The CYP 40 Under 40 was created to recognize some of the movers and shakers in our community.  We wanted to celebrate people under the age of 40 who have demonstrated excellence, creativity, and initiative in the workplace and community.”

Young professionals honored:

Award Recipient, Title, Company

Rose Ellen Adams, Executive Director, Childhood Connections

Samantha Aulick, Sales Manager, Lemley’s Catering

Jeffrey R. Bergman, Planning Director, City of Columbus

Jason Borders, Managing Partner, Texas Roadhouse

Julie DelGenio, Financial Analyst, IMC Advisors, LLC

David Doty, Owner, Cornerstone Indoor Air and Maintenance Company

Blair Dugid, Mechanical Development Engineer, Cummins

Amber Fischvogt, CEDC Program Director, Columbus Area Chamber of Commerce

Laura Garrett, Project Planning Coordinator, Columbus Parks and Recreation Department

Chatney Gelfius, Independent Senior Sales Director, Mary Kay

Trevor Glick, Owner, L and M Glick Seed

Herana-Daze Jones, Football Player, Cincinnati Bengals

Mark Jones, Sports Program & Athletic Manager, Columbus Parks and Recreation Department

Ryan Lauer, Test Technology Engineer, Cummins

Christopher Raskob, Safety Officer- Captain, Cummins- Corporate Aviation

Kelsey VanArsdall, Magazine Editor/ Writer, The Republic

April Van Epps, Staff Assistant, Bartholomew County REMC

Melissa S. Webb, OD, Optometrist, Woodruff and Webb Optometry

Kylie Weichman, Marketing Support Specialist, LHP Software

Jeff Williams, Agent/ Owner, American Family Insurance- Jeff Williams Agency

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