The Greater Greenwood Chamber celebrated its 65th anniversary by honoring exceptional companies and volunteers at its Annual Chamber Celebration on April 25. The awards recognize remarkable construction, outstanding business achievement and extraordinary volunteerism. The awards and the winners are:
• Pride and Progress Award for Renovation: Indiana Members Credit Union Greenwood Branch
• Pride and Progress Award for New Construction: Franciscan Health at Stones Crossing
• Salute Award (less than 10 employees): 1-800 Water Damage of South Indianapolis
• Salute Award (10-49 employees): MashCraft Brewing Company
• Salute Award (50 or more employees): The Garrett Companies
• Ambassador of the Year: Abby Robertson, Director of Business Development, DiscountFilters.com
“Today’s business world is dynamic,” said Christian Maslowski, Chamber president and CEO in opening the program. “The Chamber understands that businesses face numerous challenges, and the weight of those challenges and responsibility to find solutions rests solely with the people inside the business. But we also understand when business people are united, educated, and equipped with excellent relationships and resources, they can realize their full potential. And this supports business success and builds the community’s future for the next generation.”
MutualBank sponsored the awards presented at the event, and Franciscan Health presented the “Annual Chamber Celebration” ceremony.
The program began with presentation of the Pride and Progress Awards, recognizing organizations that made outstanding design efforts which positively contributed to their business success and enhanced the community.
Pride and Progress Award for Renovation Winner
Indiana Members Credit Union Greenwood Branch (imcu.com) won this award for tackling the challenge of increasing space for members to do their banking, bringing enhanced technologies to the branch and creating a modern look and feel for the space. They felt that this was the perfect time to match the enhancements made to the Madison Avenue corridor. But this member went a step further: Interactive Teller Machine functionality was added that offers a faster, more member-friendly experience, enabling customers to see and speak with live tellers as they process their transactions during branch hours.
Pride and Progress Award for New Construction Winner
Franciscan Health at Stones Crossing
(franciscanhealth.org/healthcare-facilities/franciscan-health-at-stones-crossing-2240)
designed and constructed a facility that fits into the natural beauty of the area while offering multi-disciplinary healthcare resources such as urgent care, primary care, specialty services, lab services and spa offerings. Franciscan was deliberate in its effort to raise the spirits of those coming to the facility with paintings and photographs that reinforce wellness with soothing images. This new facility allows Franciscan to provide convenient urgent care while extending its reach further south into Johnson County. Additionally, it is the work home of more than 100 Franciscan employees, providing new business for firms in the area.
Three categories of Salute Awards recognize Chamber member businesses demonstrating success in one or more of these areas: growth and stability, commitment to quality, creative/unique solutions to challenges and entrepreneurial spirit. The award categories are determined by the number of persons employed by the recipient.
Salute Award (less than 10 employees) Winner
1-800 Water Damage of South Indianapolis (1800waterdamage.com/south-indianapolis-in) initially specialized in emergency water mitigation but later added restoration services to better serve their clients. Its success stems from the desire to assist all clients from the beginning of an emergency, through the stress and anxiety, to satisfaction. They take great pride in building trust with their clients and ensuring that open and honest communication is incorporated throughout their team. 1-800 utilizes approved billing methods and protocols required by insurance companies for completing projects. And it gives back to the community by providing reduced and no-charge mitigation and restoration services to low-income families and senior citizens in need.
Salute Award (10-49 employees) Winner
MashCraft Brewing Company (mashcraft.com/home) is hyper-focused on quality during mash all the way to the foamy glass of beer on the coaster. Their quality comes from great ingredients, attentive and diligent cleanliness, and daily quality-control checks to confirm that all beers taste as they were intended. It’s no surprise, then, that their great quality has thrown them into a meteoric growth pattern since inception. Their first location in Greenwood opened in 2014, their second in Indianapolis in late 2016, and finally, their first full restaurant in Fishers in early 2018. They attribute their success to the 30 staff members who have made the MashCraft brand strong.
Salute Award (50 or more employees) Winner
The Garrett Companies (thegarrettco.com) was established just five years ago, and its rapid growth landed them on the top 10 Inc 5000 list and the fastest growing privately held real estate company in the country. Its mission is to develop, build and manage multifamily properties nationwide using an approach that builds value, eliminates risk and provides superior risk-adjusted returns. On top of growing at a breath-taking rate, The Garrett Companies has found time to give back. They created The Garrett Foundation (now called the Immediate Impact Fund), which they use to support those with down syndrome as well as deserving individuals on the south side.
This Ambassador of the Year award is given to the outstanding volunteer Ambassador Committee member, based on the individual’s engagement, merit and efforts mentoring new business members throughout the recent calendar year.
Ambassador of the Year Winner
Abby Robertson is director of business development at Discount Filters (discountfilters.com). She has served as a Chamber Ambassador for two years. Abby has invested a considerable amount of time participating as an Ambassador and is deeply committed to the Greenwood community. She is always connecting with her members and she brings energy to the meetings, often looking for new members at events to make them feel welcome.
Maslowski concluded, “The Chamber believes true business success lies in the heart of each company – its people. That’s why we focus on creating a supportive environment for members to connect and collaborate with a dependable network of business leaders motivated to learn, grow and succeed. To echo the sentiments of Dr. Kent DeKoninck, outgoing board chair, clearly we are on the right track. But we know there are more opportunities ahead of us. And we know owning a business, even in a good economy, comes with challenges and obstacles. So, we will continue to convene, collaborate and champion business success.”
