The Paulding Chamber of Commerce hosted their 54th Annual Celebration, presented by LGE Community Credit Union, on January 22, 2015, at the Douglasville Conference Center. The Citizen of the Year, Business of the Year, and other recognitions were part of the program for the evening that also included a performance by Comedian and Keynote Speaker Kenn Kington. Awards ceremony was presented by Chamber President Carolyn Wright and Chamber Chairman Terry Hardy.

2014 Ambassador of the Year

Yolanda Newell, 2014 Ambassador of the Year “Chamber Ambassadors serve as a liaison to our investors, are highly visible at Chamber events, and are dedicated volunteers within our organization. During this individual’s involvement with the Ambassador Program, ambition, initiative, leadership, and professionalism has been consistently demonstrated. Our 2014 Ambassador of the Year has far exceeded the expectations associated with the role of a Chamber Ambassador. She has not only proven her love for our Country with her service in Dessert Storm as a soldier of the US Army, but also is a Leadership Paulding Graduate and serves on the Alumni committee, member of Empowering Women, Small Business Alliance member, and was instrumental in the development of the Business Retention and Expansion Program. This six-year Chamber Ambassador is a true asset to the Paulding Chamber and has proven her dedication to Paulding County and its success.”

2015 Citizen of the Year

Linda Verscharen, 2015 Citizen of the Year “Citizen of the Year requires a passion for the cause, the willingness to make personal sacrifices, and the understanding that at the end of the day your reward is in the knowledge that you have helped others, and not in accolades or personal gain. Our community is extremely fortunate to have one of these unique individuals choose to call Paulding County home. This year’s Citizen of the Year identified needs in the community and made it her mission to meet those same needs. Linda Verscharen has called Paulding home for over 20 years since she left her native Pittsburg. She began her career here as a medical assistant in the School District Health Program but soon took a different path. Linda started working to assist children and families in areas where they were being underserved. She founded “Prevent Child Abuse Paulding” and was director of “First Steps Paulding.”

But there was still work to be done and she kept going. She co-founded the “Meth Alliance of Paulding” which because of the need to service not only the addict but the family, expanded into what is now the “Family Alliance of Paulding.” The Meth Alliance served as a model for other communities around the state and Linda now travels the Southeast speaking and instructing teachers, law enforcement officials, and school districts on drug abuse, signs to look for and the effects they have on children and families.

She also started the Welcome Home Center, which provides supervised visitation for children in foster care and their parents. When Juvenile Court Judge Sandy Miller saw a need to service children that DEFACS doesn’t take on as a case, Linda once again stepped up and formed Paulding Support Partners, a program that she still runs today. Linda still finds time to serve as Chair for the Paulding Family Connection Children’s Cabinet, as a board member of Paulding Safety Appreciation, a past chair of the Chamber’s Ambassador Program and Empowering Women Program and is still an active member of both. Linda is a graduate of the Leadership Paulding Program and has more than proven her leadership ability.”

2015 Community Partner of the Year

LGE Community Credit Union, 2015 Community Partner of the Year “This award recognizes a business in our county that truly makes an investment in our community through its outreach efforts, by participation in our schools, our non-profits and involvement with our Chamber.

The recipient of this year’s award is seen throughout the county at various events like Paulding’s Relay for Life and the July 4th Indepen-Dance. This organization not only provides monetary support for these wonderful community events, but has a strong presence as well. This company has been a partner in Education with Poole Elementary School in Hiram since 2010, and has supported several other schools in the county with athletic sponsorships and classroom support.

At the Chamber we have benefited from this company’s ongoing participation as a Chairman’s Club level Investor, Annual Dinner presenting Sponsor, Annual BLD Golf Classic Sponsor and as the Hospitality Sponsor at our Ragsdale Heating, Air and Plumping Clay Shoot. Over the years, this company has had many staff members participate in the Chamber’s Leadership Paulding program. Not only has this organization lent its support to our chamber, our schools and our community, but through its own Community Outreach Foundation, it has raised thousands of dollars for Warehouse of Hope in Dallas.

This company employees many residents from Paulding County throughout their service area, and we’re so happy that this company made a home in Paulding County back in 2010. Accepting the award is Mr. Chris Carter, retail sales manager of the Hiram branch, and also a Dallas city councilman.”

2015 Paulding Young Professional of the Year

Greg Perry, 2015 Paulding Young Professional of the Year “A Young Professional should demonstrate initiative, creativity, leadership and charisma. We are pleased to recognize Greg Perry as our 2015 Young Professional of the Year. Through his involvement with the Dallas United Methodist Church he serves as Director of Upward, a Sunday school teacher, serves on the Stewardship Committee and outreach programs of the Church. This Young Professional has four years of dedication to mission work both locally and abroad. He serves as a Board Member of for Operation Homefront as well as being a member of BNI and North Paulding Networking groups. By this selfless dedication, he has proven himself as an ideal mentor in preparing the leaders of tomorrow.

He is a Chamber Ambassador, in the current Leadership Paulding Class, Chairs the Small Business Alliance, and has been instrumental in forming the new Insurance Alliance program of the Chamber. Owning his own American Family Insurance Business in downtown Dallas, he has been recognized as an American Family All American Award Winner. This exceptional young professional is a pillar of integrity and leadership among his peers, within his industry and the Paulding community.”

2015 Small Business of the Year

Parker Sales and Service, 2015 Small Business of the Year “It is becoming increasingly difficult for family owned and operated small businesses to survive and thrive in our economy. However, this year’s Small Business of the Year recipient has done just that for over 40 years. Their motto, “to deliver the best customer service in the business,” has served them well and brought back second generation customers to this business with a second generation family ownership.

Parker Sales and Service opened in 1967 and has continuously served Paulding County and the surrounding area since then. Their mowers, chainsaws, trimmers, drills and other equipment have been a mainstay for both personal and professional use. Through all of this time, the Parkers have supported numerous local charities and children’s organizations with donations for raffles, team sponsorships and much more. A large amount of this support has taken place quietly, without praise or recognition, and has been done with a servant’s heart. Benny Parker recently took over ownership from his father and continues to grow and expand the business, but still with the same dedication to customer service in mind. We are proud to say Parker Sales and Service has been a member of the Paulding Chamber of Commerce for 48 years.”

2015 Business of the Year

WellStar Paulding Hospital, 2015 Business of the Year “A new hospital opening in Georgia is a rare event. But all the pieces came together to open a brand new hospital in Paulding County. Not only is it new, but WellStar Paulding Hospital’s incredible leadership and medical team collaborated to bring innovative healing methods, state-of-the-art safety technology, green construction and 500 new jobs to the people of Paulding County thorough this project.

WellStar Paulding Hospital opened in April 2014 and is an eight floor, $135 million, 295,000 square-foot facility. The research and collaboration, environmentally friendly renewable energy resource and incredible safety innovations are all part of the efforts involved in joining The Center for Health Design’s Pebble Project. The leadership team visited more than 30 hospitals around the globe to learn the best and most innovative approaches to these topics and these efforts drove WellStar to create and extraordinary hospital.

The Community has embraced the new facility and supported WellStar throughout the process and some have chosen to show their support through contributions. The Paulding Chamber would like to honor these donors for their generosity and support of WellStar Paulding Hospital. The Charles and Jeanette Hardy Family, The Art and Robin Ragsdale Family, John and Sue Wadsworth, Dr. John and Mrs. Glenda Covington, Elaine Lane, Alan and Jean Shipp, Judge Arthur and Mrs. Joanne Fudger, Ronnie and Anna Sue Ray, Loren and Peggy Wills, Dr. Harvey and Mrs. Jackie Sacks, The Dallas Woman’s Club, and the A.S. Mitchell Foundation. The Paulding community has unparalleled healthcare and a great economic engine in WellStar.”