The St. Cloud Chamber of Commerce welcomed a new Chairperson of the Board and gave out some awards at its Annual Gala Saturday night at Osceola Heritage Park.
Outgoing chair Rachel McIntee, the Public Relations Specialist for Osceola County Property Appraiser Katrina Scarborough, passed the baton on to Robb Larson, general manager of Osceola Heritage Park/ASM Global. (So, in essence, the guy who keeps an eye on the building threw a party, and during it the crowd assembled told him he could be in charge of their future parties!)
“What a privilege to be here. It is a village of people who make us successful, and all of you successful,” he said to a roomful of Chamber members that numbered in the hundreds. “The opportunity to lead the Chamber the next year is tremendous.
“I’m going through a ‘Thank you,’ because I would not be here without the help of many of these people. Rachel, thank you for setting me up. We’re going to keep running fast.”
Among the annual Chamber awards given out:
Chairman’s Award (reserved for outgoing Chair to honor someone who significantly served during their year): Katrina Scarborough.
Ambassador of the Year (assists and welcomes new members): Camille Levee
Beacon Award (One who serves the community in a special way): Osceola County School District Superintendent Dr. Debra Pace
Living Legend Award (legend who inspires all to be legendary): Raylynne Ketchum
Business of the Year: RTW Photography (Ford Insurance and Orlando Health were also finalists)
Non-Profit of the Year: John Kalish, A Hero For Kids
Business Person of the Year: Robert Bass
Board Member of the Year: Kerry Avery, Education Foundation Osceola County
40-year Chamber Members – Cunningham’s, Inc., Fisk Funeral Home, Orlando Health, Osceola County Farm Bureau, Silver Spurs Club and St. Cloud Florist & Gift Shoppe.
“I didn’t know how our world was going change upside-down for all of us the past couple years,” Larson. “I’m going to challenge this whole room to try to change and adapt … if we can all come together this year, all the businesses and the heartbeat of this community, I think miracles can happen. I look forward to being on that ride with you all.”
Chamber President/CEO Dirk Webb spoke of a 2022 where “people came back”; live, well-attended in-person events like the St. Cloud Christmas Parade.
