'Great community' can be even greater, Chamber members told

Monday, January 28, 2013
Banner Graphic/JARED JERNAGAN Judy Miller receives the 2012 Putnam County Citizen of the Year Award from new Greater Greencastle Chamber of Commerce President Scott Herrick Saturday night at the Greater Greencastle Chamber of Commerce annual dinner at the DePauw University Tennis and Track Center.

Several years ago, the Greater Greencastle Chamber of Commerce conducted a quite successful marketing campaign based on the theory and slogan, "Change is good."

Listening to remarks Saturday night at the Chamber's annual dinner at the DePauw University Tennis and Track Center, that needs to be updated. Change isn't good ... change is great.

Incoming Chamber President Scott Herrick of Bittles and Hurt/Hopkins-Rector funeral homes said as much, praising local efforts from the ongoing Stellar Grant project to the arrival of new industry and the expansion of old.

The 2012 Director of the Year award is presented to Chamber member Bret Hurley (left) by Past President Beau Battin Saturday night.

He credited Mayor Sue Murray, Development Center Director Bill Dory, the county commissioners and both city and county councils with guiding those successful efforts and steering the community toward an even brighter future.

"We're poised to be a very great community," Herrick said. "We already are, but with all that's happening, who knows where we might be going?"

He said the efforts of 2011 and 2012 have laid the groundwork toward greater successes in 2013.

"Manufacturing is making some very huge commitments in our community right now," Herrick said, "and that's a huge thing."

Not only are Greencastle and Putnam County fortunate to be enjoying that development, but the community's ties to higher education also couldn't be stronger, the new Chamber president assessed, pointing out the successes of Ivy Tech Community College, DePauw and even the Area 30 Career Center.

Central to all of that aren't just the efforts of business and industry or the Chamber of Commerce, but the people of the community itself, Herrick pointed out.

"We have a community of not only neighbors but friends," he praised, calling that circumstance "something very hard to find in society, and something we can all be very proud of."

Herrick was introduced by Chamber Past President Beau Battin, who also noted "the past year has been pretty good to us."

"We've had new business join us in this community in the past year," Battin said, "and we've had other businesses expand. Buildings that were vacant are now full."

And all of that, Battin noted, flew in the face of national uncertainty over issues like the cost of health care and the fiscal cliff that loomed over virtually everything at the outset of 2013.

Meanwhile, Battin also presented the Chamber's 2012 Director of the Year award to Bret Hurley of Bret Hurley Construction.

"This is the first time I've ever won anything besides Employee of the Month," Hurley commented, "which is pretty easy to do when you're self-employed."

Joining Herrick and Battin (past president) as 2013 Chamber officers are Therese Cunningham, vice president; Beth Flint, secretary/treasurer; and Tammy Amor, executive director.

Incoming directors are Marci Hefley, Josh Richardson, Jennifer Edwards, Steve Jones, Carrie Thompson, Jackie Finney, Jenny Sullivan, Chris Ford and Amy Trusty.

They join director holdovers Hurley, Jenny Bradshaw, Curt Krominaker, Dawn Puckett, Michael Clampitt, Laurie Hardwick, James Knoebel, Pam Lage and Cindy Mattox.

Retiring directors are Rick Alexander, Keith Archer, Jennifer Bedwell, Amber Bowers, Nancy Michael and L.T. Taylor.

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