Tammy Ball Receives Citizen of the Year at Chamber Gala

The Kearney Chamber of Commerce presented five prestigious awards at its fifth annual Harvest Gala on Thursday, September 25. The Citizen of the Year Bob Tate Memorial award was presented to Tammy Ball from the Kearney Food Pantry.

Pictured: Jewelee Cox, Tammy Ball, Stacie Bratcher.

Members of the Kearney area business community came dressed in their best cowboy chic attire to the Chamber’s “Outlaw Soiree” themed gala event at the Tobacco Barn Farm. The event celebrated area businesses with food, entertainment, and Business Excellence Awards.

The first award presented was the Rising Star award. This award recognizes a new business or a business that reignited, rebranded, or reinvented itself over the last year. The winner of the Rising Star Award was Bea’s Flowers & Gifts.

The next award was the Chamber Dedication award. This award celebrates a person, business, or organization who has exhibited dedication to the Chamber through service, support, and/or tenure of membership. The Chamber Dedication award went to Jennifer Grossl of Platte-Clay Electric Cooperative.

The third award was the Biggest Community Impact award. This honor recognizes a person, business or organization that has had the biggest impact on our community in the last year. The winner of this award was Shanks Heating & Cooling.

The next award was the Business of the Year award. The Business of the Year award was introduced by the Ambassador Committee. Business of the Year nominees are former Business of the Month recipients, who are nominated by that committee. This honor went to Oak Pointe of Kearney.

The final award of the evening was the Citizen of the Year award. This award is given to recognize an outstanding member of the chamber community who, through their personal involvement, leadership abilities, and selfless giving of their time and talent, has positively affected Kearney and the lives of its citizens. The Citizen of the Year Award honors those whose contributions to Kearney have been both a recent effort resulting in a substantial benefit to the community, and a steady, reliable long-term history of service to Kearney. This award was presented to Tammy Ball from the Kearney Food Pantry.

“To be the recipient of the Citizen of the Year- Bob Tate Award is truly an honor that I share with the volunteers [of the] Kearney Food Pantry, said Ball on a Facebook post. “There are so many people in our community worthy of this award. I am honored that we were selected! Thank you Stacie and all the Kearney Chamber of Commerce members for all you do to keep us inspired! Thank you, Kearney for supporting your community!”

KPGZ News - Brian Watts contributed to this story.