January 24, 2012. BLOWING ROCK  - A wide variety of deserving businesses have received nominations for the Blowing Rock Chamber of Commerce 2012 annual awards, with businesses and their members recognized for outstanding service, great renovations, and having a major impact on the community.

EDITOR'S NOTE: Based on information received, our original posting of this article inaccurately identified the nominees for the "Jerry Burns Ambassadorial Award."  The Blowing Rock Chamber of Commerce has subsequently provided new information that the nominees originally listed are for the "Jerry Burns Volunteer of the Year Award".  With this corrected article (as of January 27), the nomineees for the Jerry Burns Ambassadorial Award are now included (see below).

The Annual Awards Ceremony and Luncheon sponsored by the Blowing Rock Chamber of Commerce will be held at noon on February 7^th, 2012 at Green Park Inn in the Laurel Room. The cost is $25 per person or $185 for corporate tables of eight. If you would like to attend, call the Chamber at 295-7851 to make reservations by February 3.

The following is a list of the awards categories and nominees. All textual descriptions have been provided by the Blowing Rock Chamber of Commerce.

Commercial Renovation

 Commercial Renovation is given in recognition of the outstanding renovation of a business space completed in 2011. This year's nominees:

• Green Park Inn:  Eugene and Steven Irace, two New York real estate investors who are already the owners of a number of other hotel properties, are hitting a home run in restoring the “grand dame” of Blowing Rock. After purchasing the hotel on March 31, 2010, they have aggressively worked to renovate the property and restore it to its former glory. They worked with the Blowing Rock Historical Society to replace a number of antique and historic items formerly owned by and located within the hotel. The Green Park Inn has reopened to the public; and on July 1, 2011, the Laurel Room Restaurant and the Divide Bar both reopened.
• Grandfather Mountain:  This non-profit business provides not only an important recreational contribution but a significant economic impact to our area. This year they completed many renovations including the major restoration of five new ladders on the Grandfather Trail. This involved close to 200 hours of work over the three days in which they were installed. The ladders hadn’t been replaced in over 40 years, so this was not only to improve the appearance but to improve safety. Galvanized hardware was installed and bolts were anchored further into the mountain. Other beautification projects included the renovation of the signs located at Highways 105/221 and 105/184 and landscaping the entrance signs to the park, the gatehouse and the ticket booths. Greenery native to the area was planted and the exterior siding on the gatehouse and ticket booths was updated with poplar siding to replicate the chestnut siding found throughout Linville. The display areas in the Top Shop were renovated to improve the appearance and traffic flow.
• Blowing Rock Country Club: Phase II of the Blowing Rock Country Club renovation was completed in 2011.  This phase consisted of gable additions and a new front porch.  Renovations included the Living Room, Gallery, Ball Room, Bar Areas and Sun Room. Blowing Rock Country Club’s newly renovated spaces embody rich history and mountain elegance.  Three rooms give a warm and inviting feel and provide the backdrop for beautiful Blowing Rock photos.  The renovation has been a wonderful venue for not only the members but for guests and community events.

New Construction

 The New Construction award is given in recognition of the outstanding new building of a business space completed in 2011.

• The Blowing Rock Art and History Museum (BRAHM): For a building promoting the visual arts, history and heritage of the mountains that fits in with the business and residential feel of south Main Street. Constructed of mountain materials such as stone and wood and of colors that blend with the green space where the museum now stands, BRAHM is a three-level building of approximately 21,000 square feet located on the corner of South Main Street and Chestnut Street in downtown Blowing Rock. The building contains five (5) main galleries; a large multi-purpose community meeting room; a conference room; 2,500 square feet of educational and workshop space; a library; an historic objects gallery; an orientation theater; administrative offices; reception areas; storage space for art and historical objects; a gift shop; and an adjacent outdoor sculpture garden. In addition, the Blowing Rock Art and History Museum will be accredited by the American Association of Museums (AAM), enabling the museum to feature traveling exhibitions.
• Faith Bridge United Methodist Church: has existed since June of 2002, when Rev. Marianne Romanat was appointed by the Bishop of the Western NC Conference of the United Methodist Church to plant a year-round United Methodist church in Blowing Rock.  The first worship services, prayer, and planning for the new church began in the Garage of the one of the Core Group of 15 persons.  The congregation has primarily met through the years in the Blowing Rock School, in their Band Room, then in their Cafeteria, and finally in the School Auditorium.  From July 2003 through August 2006, the church rented space in a building beside Mystery Hill and worshipped where Doc's Gem Mine presently resides. The new building is a result of seven years of hard work by FaithBridge UMC's Building Committee.  This group of church members has kept in the mind the church's purpose, "Building a Bridge of Faith Through Christ for Those Who Are Disconnected from Church", as they have designed the building and overseen its progress.  The building is actually Phase One of a three phase project planned by the Building Committee.  It includes a multi-purpose Worship Space (which will also double as a Fellowship Hall and many other functions), a Prayer Room, a Lobby, a Coffee Bar, Men's and Women's Restrooms, and an Infants & Toddlers' Children's Ministry Room.
• Boone/Blowing Rock Water Connect: is the connection of the municipal water systems of the towns of Blowing Rock and Boone. According to the Town of Blowing Rock, the project’s purpose is “to share much needed resources in the event of emergency, contamination, system failure or lack of raw water for the benefit of the many High Country residents and visitors.” The project included approximately five miles of 12-inch water lines, a 700-gallon-per-minute water booster pump station and a series of meters and control valves. The overall cost was $2,775,642.

Cultural Enrichment

 The award for Cultural Enrichment is given to the member business or organization that has made a significant cultural contribution to our community for the year 2011. This includes installation, development or production of visual or performing arts, a literary or written contribution, or for the development or preservation of an artifact, place, event, cuisine, garden, or way of life of historical or social importance to Blowing Rock.

• Rumple Memorial Presbyterian Church: for providing a great vacation Bible School with participation from numerous church, many children’s and youth music programs, including Choir Plus and Koininia Choir that are open to the whole community. “Camel Lot: The Musical” was a riot. They attract kids from many different churches to their youth programs and day care.
• Farmer’s Market: for offering a venue for local farmers to sell and the public to purchase the finest in fresh fruits, veggies, whole foods, meats, plants, bread and other foods in downtown Blowing Rock.
• Fire On The Rock Chef Challenge: is an annual "diner judged" food competition that began in 2005 during the inaugural year of the Blue Ridge Wine and Food Festival in Blowing Rock, North Carolina with just six chefs. Restaurants battle head-to-head in exciting single elimination battles at Crippen's Restaurant. Diners judge a six course "blind" menu created around a secret ingredient. All unused prepared food is donated to The Hunger and Health Coalition.

Service to Community

 The award for Service to Community is given to the member business or organization which makes positive contributions to the Blowing Rock Community through volunteerism, philanthropy, or community service. Nominees will have made a measurable impact toward the improvement of an issue of importance to the Blowing Rock Community.

• Blowing Rock Methodist Church: This small church on Main Street is only open 4 months of the year and gives all monies raised after operating expenses to local charities. In 2011, this church has made generous contributions to Blowing Rock and Watauga County organizations totaling $60,000.
• Blowing Rock C.A.R.E.S.: whose mission is to help families in the greater Blowing Rock, North Carolina area that are in need with food, non-perishable items and clothing. Families do not have to go through a qualification process for help. They have worked diligently to raise money for families suffering through the illness of a child. They were also instrumental in creating the Adopt-A-Child program here in Blowing Rock for kids at Christmas.
• The Blowing Rock Community Foundation: was founded to establish an endowment whose earning would benefit the Town of Blowing Rock and its citizens. One of its fund-raisers, the Community Service Day Golf and Tennis Tournament, now in its nineteenth year, enables the Foundation to pursue its goal of service to the citizens of Blowing Rock. Proceeds are used to provide scholarships for college students from Watauga County and grants to numerous local agencies and civic organization every year.
• Blue Ridge Mountain Club: helped downtown Blowing Rock step firmly into the 21st century by implementing Wi-Fi service available to the whole village. The service enables visitors to the town to access the Internet to surf the web, download images and music or to connect with their email providers FOR FREE. Blue Ridge Mountain Club spent more than $18,000 for equipment and hardware to make Wi-Fi available to the public in Blowing Rock.

Green Business

The Green Business award celebrates excellence in the green approach for businesses or products. This award is given to the member business or organization which strives toward the highest standards for recycling, use of locally produced product, sustainable business practices, and reducing their carbon foot print.

• Appalachian State University: for their U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon 2011 entry. ASU designed, built, and operated a solar-powered house that was cost-effective, energy-efficient, and attractive. They blended affordability, consumer appeal, and design excellence with optimal energy production and maximum efficiency AND won the U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon 2011 People's Choice Award! After the contest, the Solar Homestead travelled the state of North Carolina promoting renewable energy education and teaching visitors the value of sustainable technology and environmental preservation.
• Bald Guy Brew: is a socially responsible and eco-friendly business. They are committed to using organic, shade grown beans. By purchasing eco-friendly beans, they support farmers using sustainable practices which maintain an equitable partnership between birds, farmers, consumers, and the environment. By offering certified fair trade coffees, they are making an ethical choice because every pound they sell will make a difference in coffee growing communities. They also donate 10% of every sale to the International Justice Mission to help fight the battle against children who are either forced into slavery or prostitution.
• Blowing Rock hotels have been nominated as a group for their continued efforts to make their hotels "Green". These are environmentally-friendly properties whose owners institute programs or products that save water, save energy and reduce solid waste—while saving money—to help protect our town. These programs and products include 
  • Rain barrel use
  • Rinnai tankless water heaters
  • Water saving shower heads and water faucets
  • Water saving commodes
  • Recycling programs
  • Timers on outdoor lighting
  • Energy efficient lighting
  • Updating of efficient insulation
  • Shopping local for services and supplies

Business of the Year

The Business of the Year excels in areas of community involvement, business promotion, and teamwork. The Business of the Year will reflect the best of Blowing Rock, demonstrating high ethical standards and community spirit in accordance with the mission of the Blowing Rock Chamber of Commerce

• Inn at Ragged Gardens: Built at the turn of the century as a "seasonal" cottage, the house has welcomed guests and residents for a century. As you enter the doors of the Inn at Ragged Gardens, warmth and beauty abound. Architectural craftsmanship at its finest is displayed throughout. The Inn also houses a fabulous restaurant, The Best Cellar, which prides itself on having provided its customers with the finest of food, wine, and service for 30 years. Providing a gorgeous backdrop to Sunset with an acre of tranquil gardens, the Inn has also created a very popular Friday night Music on the Lawn concert series.
• Ensemble Stage: Ensemble Stage was very busy in 2011! They produced 14 events with a total of 57 performances in 2011 that over 2300 patrons attended. They conducted an after school theatre camp and 2 summer theatre camps with a total of 34 children attending a total of 140 hours of camps. These camps broadened kids’ imaginations, gave the kids more confidence in public speaking and taught them teamwork skills in a creative setting. Each camp also wrote their own 20 minute play with the older kids’ summer camp actually writing three 20-minute plays. Ensemble volunteered their time as judges for Watauga County's 2011 Shooting Stars production and their expertise as theatrical coaches for the Shooting Stars participants plus spent a total of 22 hours coaching individual acts. They volunteered their time as artistic directors for Blowing Rock School's PTO Ghoul-School fund-raiser and their time as theatrical consultants for the Blowing Rock School Christmas Chorus program. They volunteered their time as technical directors for the Blowing Rock School Band/orchestra Christmas Concert and their time as theatrical coaches for Blowing Rock School's 8th grade reader's theatre Christmas program.
• Blowing Rock Inn: for helping with every single event that the Chamber organized last year including the Awards Banquet, Volunteer Appreciation Dinner, Art in the Park -- every single thing.  They have renovated their business to be green in most every way possible, have registered their business as an official wildlife habitat, assist tourists with finding lodging elsewhere when they are unable to accommodate them.  They have about a 70% return business from their guests and even make arrangements to have catered events for their guests at their property or offsite. Ray is on the town Planning Board and sits on the wine festival committee, even built steps for the port-a-potties for wine festival. Melissa is a board member and chairs the events committee.  They were also a Chamber partner last year. Basically, if it needs to be done all you need to do is to ask Blowing Rock Inn.

Jerry Burns Volunteer of the Year Award

• Suzanne Miller: She single-handedly organized June-In-Bloom month which included 3 weeks of activities.
• Betsy Collins: Serves on the Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors and goes above and beyond in getting memberships and sponsorships for the Chamber.
• John Aldridge: Serves as Vice President for the Blowing Rock Chamber of Commerce and served as chair of the Economic Development Committee. John is one of a team of leaders behind the development of the NC Wine & Culinary Center at Blowing Rock.
• Ray Pickett: has put in countless hours to build handrails on bathroom trailers; assist with the Wine Tent when it was condemned not once, but twice; comes to the Chamber’s new office to do miscellaneous handy man work from trimming/planing door facings to checking electrical and plumbing needs.  He has saved the Chamber thousands of dollars in repairs and rebuilds.

Jerry Burns Ambassadorial Award

• J.B. Lawrence for traveling the political world representing Blowing Rock superbly. For the past twenty-five years, Lawrence has been a banker in Boone and Blowing Rock and is now the City President of United Community Bank in Blowing Rock. He has a long history of community involvement. He was a Blowing Rock volunteer fireman for ten years and served on the Blowing Rock Rescue Squad for twenty-eight years. During that time he served as Treasurer for the Fire Department and was also the Treasurer and Chief of the Rescue Squad. Other past service includes eight years as a Blowing Rock Town Councilman, the Watauga County Board of Adjustment, the Board of Directors for the Watauga County United Way, the Blowing Rock Hospital, the Blowing Rock Stage Company, and the Boone Chamber of Commerce. For the past fourteen years, he has served as Mayor of Blowing Rock. In addition, he is former chairman and current executive board member of the High Country Council of Governments, a member of the Board of Directors for BREMCO, a member of the Board of Directors of the Blowing Rock Chamber of Commerce, a member of the Three Forks Baptist Association budget committee, a member of BRAHM’s finance committee, and a member of the Rotary Club of Blowing Rock. In 2011, he received the Charles Von Canon Regional Leadership Award that  is presented only on rare occasions to a person who has encouraged and facilitated regional cooperation.
• Kent Graham because he truly helps everybody in every way that time and schedule permits, with many skills and talents and in many ways known only to a few due to his innate shyness (yes, really). As the Emergency Services Director for the Town of Blowing Rock, he is always on hand to help out and always goes above and beyond what is required to help his neighbor and do what is best for the town. Once there was a fire call at Green Park Inn (before the renovation) – the sprinkler system had gone down. According to fire code, Kent could have condemned the hotel. Instead, he made sure that there were firemen there to man the hotel so that they could remain open. During Ghost Train when Tweetsie opened the new Haunted House, new fire code had been implemented that they couldn’t be open without a sprinkler system. He took a firetruck there and hooked it up to a sprinkler system. He scheduled firemen to be at Fire on the Rock since Hayes Center isn’t built for open flames. He even loans out his personal equipment if need be. You will often hear him say, “You can’t do that BUT we’ll find a way to make it happen”. He always sees the big picture and does exactly what needs to be done to help Blowing Rock be its very best.
• David Rogers for his efforts to focus on Blowing Rock and its people and then report it to the entire globe via the internet and his website, Blowing Rock News. This is exactly what Jerry Burns would have done had he lived to learn the technology involved.  And as it appears to be a continuance of Jerry’s passionate calling using 21^st Century tools, it falls exactly in line with Jerry Burns’ Blowing Rock Centennial Motto: Proud Of The Past, Poised For The Future. David is actively involved with the community, a member of the Historical Society, Rotary Club, Rumple Choir and BRAHM. You will find him at most every local event, taking pictures and reporting it back to the community.

Customer Service Star of the Year

• Sherri Furman of Bless Your Heart: She is a giving and unselfish person. She gives to our community silently in ways that most people don’t realize. She has a big heart and her shop always has such a calming presence. She is a gift to the town of Blowing Rock.
• Ray Pickett of Blowing Rock Inn:  Guests to our town showed up without reservations on July 4^th and found every hotel and motel in the area booked. Ray immediately got on the phone and called around until he finally found them somewhere to stay in Hickory.
• Lauren Stutts of Green Park Inn: Constantly receiving praise and accolades from guests for her cheerful demeanor, knowledge of the area and her willingness to go above and beyond to satisfy each guest’s needs, Lauren recently went out of her way to find a spare chair for a guest who didn’t care for the chair in his room. She found the chair, brought it to the guest’s room and then rearranged the furniture to accommodate it.
• Claudine Lewis of Mountainaire Inn & Log Cabins: She helped a family that got stuck on the parkway during the winter months. She drove in her own car to pick them up and then called a towing service to get their car and bring it to the hotel.
• Hallie Harding of Village Hardware: Hallie is the epitome of customer service. She knows the area well and her employers consider her an ambassador to the area – they call her the Customer Service Queen.
• Alex James of Best Cellar: She is the perfect example of a loyal employee and town ambassador. She makes every customer feel comfortable in the restaurant and even more than that, makes everyone feel welcome to be in Blowing Rock.

 For more information, please contact Terri Bailey at The Blowing Rock Chamber of Commerce, 

(828) 295-7851.

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