Home / Your Chamber / An Evening of Celebrating our Sister City - Annual Dinner 2019

The 113th Ashland Chamber of Commerce Annual Dinner was held on Thursday, October 3rd and its theme was “Celebrating 50 Years of Sister City Friendship – Guanajuato and Ashland” that featured speeches and a video on the history of the relationship and celebrations of the 50th.

Past Presidents were honored for their decades of dedication to the Chamber:

The gavel was exchanged from Mary Gardiner, Past President 2017-19 to Deena Branson, In-coming President. Mary was appreciated for her years of service.

Retiring Board members were recognized for their contributions to the Chamber over the past decade including Marie Lange, Jac Nickels and Eric Weisinger

2019 Award Winners

2018 Top Mixologist – Caitlin Hilligoss of Peerless Restaurant, Hotel & Gardens- was recognized from last year’s Ashland Culinary Festival. She will return this year to defend her title at the 13th Ashland Culinary Festival November 7th – 10th, 2019.

Green Business of the Year- NW Raw - for their partnership with local farms for produce and composting and their glass jar program.

Retail Business of the Year- Northwest Nature Shop- for their success as a family run retailer since 1985 and continued expansion of products.

Service Business of the Year- Julie O’Dwyer Design- for Julie’s dedication and service to her clients and her participation in various organizations throughout Ashland

Manufacturing Business of the Year- MaraNatha- for their commitment to produce the highest quality product and distribute it across the country.

Emerging Business of the Year- Bestow & Bloom and Bestow- for their growth, new location and community workspace on the south side of town.

Greeter of the Year- Daniel Perry Walkup - for his warm, welcoming personality and helping to create an atmosphere where new businesspeople feel comfortable and supported.

Chamber Volunteers of the Year-Elliot and Liesje Blank - for rolling up their sleeves and offering to volunteer at every Chamber event with a smile on their faces.

Special Recognition for Outstanding Achievement- Osher Life Long Learning - for 25 years of offering quality programming, mental stimulation and social connectedness to Ashlanders primarily over the age of 50.

Community Volunteer - Tom Foster- Tom Foster for his sincere dedication to creating the Lithia Park Nature Walks, guiding, training and ensuring this legacy continues.

Citizen of the Year- Amigo Club of Ashland - They started as a Friendship Committee in 1968 which became the nucleus for the Amigo Club of Ashland.

Honorary Life Member- Leo Van Dijk- for his outstanding personal contributions to the Ashland Chamber of Commerce and Ashland community for over fifty years. Along with a handful of other people he helped to form the Amigo Club and, with his wife, Marianne, are still active members today.

All photos by Graham Lewis