Bemidji Chamber of Commerce to hold annual Awards of Excellence event May 27

BEMIDJI -- The Bemidji community will soon honor businesses that operated with excellence over the past year.

The Bemidji Area Chamber of Commerce will hold its annual Awards of Excellence event and give out six awards in total, with one of them being the Charlie Naylor Lifetime Achievement Award. The businesses are Chamber members and have been nominated by their peers.

The winners will be announced during a luncheon from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Thursday, May 27, at the Hampton Inn and Suites, with keynote speaker Susan Jarvis, President of Sanford Health of Northern Minnesota.

“The annual Awards of Excellence luncheon not only celebrates our local business community and their achievements but is also a time to reflect and inspire,” a release said. “Susan's speech, Stronger Together, will highlight the importance of community investment and working together to build a stronger future.”

Along with the lifetime achievement honor, the other five categories include:

• Healthy Workplace is given to a business implementing health and safety measures, as well as cultivating a culture that advances the health and well-being of their staff.
• New Business of the Year recognizes a business that has identified market opportunities, grown as a company and maintained a good foundation in the last three years.
• Business of the Year honors a company's resiliency, fortitude and the role it plays in building the region's reputation as an incubator for ideas and economic growth.
• Entrepreneur of the Year honors someone in the community who has inspired business people.
• Community Impact is awarded to individuals, companies or institutions making significant contributions to the community through their time, resources, actions, talent and dedication.

In 2020, John W. Baer, who was Security Bank USA's president for more than three decades and a member of several community organizations like the Bemidji Jaycees, was honored with the Charlie Naylor Award .

For more information on the event, visit the Chamber's website at www.bemidji.org .