From the Harford County Chamber of Commerce:
BEL AIR, MD – Tuesday, September 16, 2014 – On September 10th 2014, the Harford County Chamber of Commerce hosted the annual prestigious Harford Award at Richlin Ballroom from 5:30 pm – 8:30 pm. The event was made possible through the generous financial support of sponsors including Harford County Office of Economic Development, Harford County Public Library, BG&E, The Daily Record, and Harford Community College. The event’s theme, “The Night Stars Come Out,” helped transform the venue into a spectacular star-studded award ceremony. With almost three hundred guests in attendance, the room buzzed with excitement as winners for each of the six categories were announced.
As businesses and organizations that have been shining for years, the winners were recognized for their strong commitment to the Harford County community. These entities are truly ‘stars’ because of their focus, vision, and determination to improve the quality of life for those who call Harford County their home. Each winner demonstrated business growth, increased employment, service to the community, unique and creative business strategies, technology innovation, support of public and private education, as well as working diligently to enhance Harford County’s business climate. In addition to beautifully crafted awards, winners received proclamations from Harford County Executive David Craig, the Harford County Council, Senator Barry Glassman, and Senator Barbara Mikulski.
Ecotone, Inc: Entrepreneur Category Winner — When James Morris and Scott McGill founded Ecotone, Inc. in 1998, they never imagined that just 15 years later they would be featured on the cover of I-95 Magazine. Their vision to preserve Maryland’s natural landscape and enhance the water quality of the state’s streams has come to fruition through their dedication and creativity.
It’s PayDay: Service Category Winner – It is easy to find testimonials from the 500+ companies who are serviced by It’s PayDay. In one way or another, they all say “we are happy customers!” A leap of faith and a desire to provide a needed service to small and medium sized businesses caused owners George and Kathy Heidelmeyer to pour their energy and passion into serving the community.
The Laurrapin Grille: Main Street Category Winner – “Laurrapin” is not a term familiar to most, but one that folks in Harford County now know and often repeat. It is an Appalachian word meaning “tasty” which perfectly summarizes the type of food visitors will find at Laurrapin Grille. If you stroll down Washington Street in Havre de Grace, you know just by the façade that this restaurant has character. With daily specials, live music, and farm to table food, no wonder owners Bruce and Sherifa Clark are stars!
The Boys & Girls Clubs of Harford County: Non-Profit Category Winner – Imagine 4,000 young people, ages 6-18, being guided to work, play, and learn together. The Boys & Girls Clubs are busy building leaders by celebrating the unique talents of America’s most precious resource: our children.
Raytheon: R&D Technology Category Winner – Raytheon is a defense contractor whose superior performance, involvement in the community, and focus on customer relations has made them a “go to” name. Since their move to Harford County in 2010, they have become an integral part of the area. Their dedication to serving the community and the war fighters has made a meaningful impression on the people who live and work here.
Harman’s Farm Market: Retail Category Winner – The year is 1988. Imagine two young people pulling a red wagon filled with their corn and tomatoes out to Route 22 for sale to the public. Fast forward to today where friendly employees welcome you to a 26 acre farm where you can pick your own strawberries and pumpkins, as well as purchase high quality produce and flowers. Owners and farmers Tom and Paula Harman made this dream come true.
This year, the Harford County Office of Economic Development introduced a new honor: The Economic Enhancement Award. As the name suggests, the award was presented to a company or organization that significantly impacted the business climate of Harford County through increased employment opportunities and revenue flow. The award was given to the producers of House of Cards, a hugely popular film series filmed in Harford County.
The event was very successful and the Chamber is truly grateful for those who were able to share in the accomplishments of the honored businesses and organizations. Thank you to all attendees, sponsors, government officials, committee members, emcees, venue host, and contractors that helped make all the pieces come together.
The Harford County Chamber of Commerce strives to be the premiere networking and business development organization in Harford County. Through a series of over 40 annual diverse networking opportunities, innovative programming, and partnered events, businesses can showcase themselves to a local and regional market. Through its legislative efforts, Harford County Chamber of Commerce works diligently to advocate for the business community at the county and state levels while educating its members on key areas of legislation and regulation that will impact business.
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