Chamber honors individuals, businesses at annual banquet

The Greater Franklin County Chamber of Commerce on Saturday celebrated individuals and businesses who have gone above and beyond to make the community a better place.

The Chamber hosted its annual Chamber Appreciation Night banquet. Themed “Game on, Franklin County,” the evening included six rounds of Family Feud, an auction for gift baskets and a festive fajita dinner.

Prior to the raucous fun of Family Feud, the Chamber distributed its annual membership awards.

This year’s Ambassador of the Year, given to a Chamber Ambassador who routinely represents the Chamber at events, went to Claudia Rivera. Rivera, La Luz Centro Cultural Director, joined the Chamber Board of Directors in 2019 and has since been involved with Summerfest, Quarterly Coffees, the $10,000 raffle, ribbon cuttings and After 5 events.

Sue Followwill, KLMJ/KQCR, was given the Leadership Award for her involvement with the Chamber Board, which has included a stint as Board President, chair to the Annual Dinner Committee and a member of the Promotions and Holly Dazzle Committees.

The Chamber also awarded two local businesses with the Business of the Year honor. The first went to Christensen Jewelry, which Russell Gibson opened in 1988. Aside from being a long-time member of Hampton’s downtown community, Gibson and Christensen Jewelry have had a prominent presence at Relay for Life, Bridge of Hope, local events and school athletic team activities. Gibson has also served as the Chamber President and continues to lend his expertise to the John Pappajohn Entrepreneurial Center at North Iowa Area Community College.

Of the award, Gibson said he feels fortunate for the opportunities given to him through his involvement in the community.

“I’ve had great opportunities, lots of challenges and I’ve met a lot of great people and friends,” he said. “It’s been absolutely fantastic.”

The second business honored was KLMJ/KQCR and the Craig Donnelly family. Donnelly and his wife, Kathy, took over the radio station in 1993 and rebranded it as KLMJ, named after their four children Katie, Lindsay, Michael and Jon.

Throughout the past nearly 30 years, the radio station and its staff have dedicated themselves to bringing local news and high school athletics coverage to the area.

Craig Donnelly echoed Gibson’s sentiments, thanking the Chamber and the community as a whole for its ongoing support.

“We really appreciate everything that you do,” he said.