Nominees needed for 'Achiever of the Year'
Chamber created award to honor one person's singular achievement
By SHANNON CRABTREE scrabtree@leader-news.com

Someone in the city of El Campo deserves a pat on the back for their efforts to help others or make the community a better place for all.

And the El Campo Chamber of Commerce and Agriculture is asking the general citizenry to help give that person the recognition they deserve.

It's time to submit nominations for the El Campo 2007 Achiever of the Year.

"So far we've only received one nomination," Chamber Secretary Rebecca Munoz said Friday. "I know there are more people out there."

The Achiever of the Year is a person who made a difference in the last calendar year for a single event or effort.

Who saved a life? Who did something which made a difference to a group? Who won a truly unique award which cast the national spotlight on the city of El Campo? Who was responsible for that one event which made El Campo a better place last year and what was their effort?

Those wanting to make a nomination can do so until Jan. 15.

Nominations can be delivered to 201 E. Jackson or mailed to the Chamber of Commerce and Agriculture, P.O. Box 1400, El Campo, Texas, 77437.

The nominating letter should be clear and concise, Chamber President Becca Socha added, saying bullet points are fine and letters should preferably be a page or less in length.

It doesn't have to be a single person, Socha added.

The Junior League World Series winning El Campo boys were honored last year.

Former El Campo Assistant City Manager Mindi Snyder was the first recipient of the award which was created for the January 2006 Chamber banquet.

The Achiever of the Year will be selected by the Chamber board and honored at the upcoming banquet Jan. 23.

Also at that banquet, the cham- ber will announce its 2007 Citizen of the Year.

The honoree has already been selected, Socha said, but added that identity is a closely guarded secret - the announcement of which is the highlight of the annual banquet.

Traditionally, Citizen of the Year honorees are older individuals recognized for a lifetime of efforts to make El Campo a better to place to live or to help its residents better themselves.

Past recipients have included those who have worked tirelessly to establish and maintain organizations from the El Campo Museum to the Beautify El Campo Extension, the local chapter of the Boy Scouts and programs for seniors or the mentally disabled.

The award is not for a single shining moment, Socha said.

Living recipients of the Citizen award include: Leslie Collins, Joyce Henderson, A.G. "Red" Miller, Russell Raun, Irvin Foytik, Melvin Parker Jr., Allen Collins, John Corbett, Ann Leach, Cecil Davis, Martha Johnson, Frankie Novak, Jerry Aulds, Joe Tom Davis, Bob Melanson and Rita Radley.

Past recipients, now deceased, include Cortez Allen, Harold Bishkin, Verda Boyle, Donald Duson, Richard Meek, Mary Baca, John E. Kainer, Blossom Meyer, Naomi Chappell, Dr. E.A. Weinheimer, Verner Petersen, Rev. Lloyd Nixon, Jim Tuttle, Bob Meisel, Tom Henderson, H.D. Madsen, Hazel Montgomery, Kitty Simank, Wilbur Swanson, John L. Russell, Viola Webb, Evelyn Kainer, Norris Raun, Mary Meyers Rosenfield, Lucian Kainer, Dr. Walter Presley and Fred Barbee.