2018 Indiana County Chamber of Commerce Annual Luncheon
The Chamber started December off with a bang holding the 106th Annual Member Luncheon on Thursday, December 6 at the Ed Fry Arena in the Kovalchick Convention and Athletic Complex. With nearly 350 people in attendance from all over the area, the luncheon was a great opportunity to network with one another and learn about the Chamber's 2018 year, the Allegheny Conference on Community Development, and a whole lot more.
Jim Kinneer, Vice-Chair of the Chamber Board and master of ceremonies, introduced the presentation of colors by the IUP ROTC and the National Anthem sung by Indiana High School senior Kaitlyn Stossel. It was amazing to look around the room and see a variety of people from high school and college students to corporate business leaders. County Commissioner Rod Ruddock led the arena in the Pledge of Allegiance. After that Kinneer called to order the 2018 Board of Directors and ex-officios. Chamber secretary Kelly Howels and Chamber Treasurer Josh Rosenberger presented their reports to the audience.
Kinneer once again took the stage to announce the new nominees for the Chamber's 2019 Board of Directors. Renewing directors included Elizabeth Hutton of K&L Real Estate, Dave Brocious of Sky Point Crane, and Rich Fiscus of S&T Bank. Newly elected directors included Dr. Brian Hawthorne of IRMC, Chad Carrick of REA Energy, and Steve Drahnak of S&T Bank. Kinneer also acknowledged all the hard work of Joe Reschini as he is stepping down as the Chamber's Chairman.
As everyone enjoyed the delicious lunch, we watched a video of all the highlights from the past year at the Indiana County Chamber of Commerce. The keynote speaker of the afternoon, Stefani Pashman, CEO of the Allegheny Conference on Community Development, took the podium after lunch.
The Conference has been bringing private and public sector leaders together for the last 75 years, making sure they are improving the economic future and quality of Southwestern Pennsylvania. Pashman touched on how the Indiana County has been doing an amazing job at bringing new and growing companies and many opportunities into the area. She explained how her organization helps the surrounding areas
by analyzing competitive issues, advocating for improvements and marketing the region globally to encourage business investment that creates jobs and attracts talented people. She also mentioned how they work on creating better infrastructure for the area. Their focus in the upcoming year will be building bridges, the energy economy, and innovation economy.
Andrea Conner, President of ATHENA International, presented this year's Global ATHENA award to Christine Toretti. The Global ATHENA award is given to someone that demonstrates the highest level of professional excellence, contribute their time to making their community better, and actively assists others, particularly women, in realizing their full leadership potential. Congratulations to Christine for all of her work and dedication to the Indiana community.
Finally, the 2019 Hall of Fame inductees were announced. The class is, (Deceased) Edward B. Bennett, and Andrew J. Stahura, (Living) Charles Altemus, Tom Zaucha, and Anthony Renda. The fifth Hall of Fame class will be inducted in the spring of 2019.
The Chamber wants to thank everyone that work hard to make this year's lunch so amazing. We also want to thank all of our sponsors; (Platinum) The Reschini Group, S&T Bank, First Commonwealth Bank, and Indiana University of Pennsylvania, (Gold) Diamond Medical Supply, Government and Civil Employee Services, Indiana Regional Medical Center, (Silver) Stiffler McGraw, Anew Home Health, Kinect Energy, Penelec, (Bronze) The 700 Shop, and Upstreet Financial. Once again, thank you to all of our sponsors. We wouldn't have been able to do this without you!
