Bow Ties and Bold Beginnings: Chamber awards celebrates Rowan County finest
Published 12:10 am Saturday, January 27, 2024
Rockwell Alderman Dillon Brewer, hugs his wife, Kelsey, after being named as the 2023 Young Professional of the Year. - Chandler Inions
Dr. Christine Lynn, at podium, accepts the Paul E. Fisher Volunteer of the Year Award while emcee Katie Garner looks on. - Chandler Inions
Brad Walser, right, accepts the Chamber Champion Small Business of the Year Award alongside Andrew Smith on behalf of Walser Technology Group. Walser’s 15-person computer services company recently celebrated its 20-year business anniversary. - Chandler Inions
Minority Business Council Chair Elia Gegorek, from right, celebrates with Evelyn and Rigo Medina, of Mean Mug Coffee Company, after the company was named the Minority Business of the Year. - Chandler Inions
David Whisenant, at the podium, shares remarks after he and Mark Wineka, background, were recognized with the Duke Energy Citizenship & Service Award. Pictured, from left, emcee Katie Garner, former award winner Pete Teague, Whisenant and Wineka. - Chandler Inions
Rowan Chamber President Elaine Spalding, left, embraces 2023 Chair of the Board Elaine Holden. - Chandler Inions
Elaine Holden, 2023 Chair of the Board, passes the gavel to Terry Osbourne, 2024 Chair of the Board, on Thursday. - Chandler Inions
Novant Health officials and guest pause for a photo during the Rowan Chamber's annual meeting on Thursday. - Chandler Inions
Livingstone College President Anthony J. Davis approaches the stage to deliver an invocation at the Rowan Chamber awards banquet. - Chandler Inions
SALISBURY — It was a night for many to remember as the Rowan Chamber of Commerce celebrated its 98th annual meeting at the West End Plaza, but for the 2023 award recipients, it was particularly memorable.
Rockwell Alderman Dillon Brewer was named the Young Professional of the Year. Upon hearing his name called, Brewer embraced his wife, Kelsey, en route to the stage.
Brewer was just reelected to his second term on the Rockwell board. He’s among the top 500 Toyota sales associates in the United States and is a member officer of multiple Civitan organizations and the Salisbury Rotary.
For Brewer, the accomplishment marked a proud moment that might have seemed like a distant reality not so long ago. He left home at 16, getting away from a troubled relationship with a parent struggling with substance use disorder.
“I was a couch surfer, going from friends’ homes to friends’ homes,” Brewer said.
Brewer was named a Horatio Alger National Scholar coming out of high school. That scholarship is intended for promising students who have critical financial need, demonstrate integrity and perseverance in overcoming adversity, and are determined to succeed.
He started in the automotive industry with Gerry Wood and worked his way up, eventually spending six years in a management position. Brewer and his wife were married in 2021. That life change prompted him to consider how he might give back to his community.
“I decided to take a step back from management, and I took a job at Cloninger Toyota,” Brewer said.
He got involved in numerous social outreach organizations and ran for office. For the Rockwell native, giving back is a way to repay the community that did so much for him.
“The community took me in,” Brewer said. “I had a lot of people pour into me, community leaders and business owners.”
Those relationships made Thursday’s recognition even more meaningful to him. Being selected by the chamber was an honor. Brewer hopes his own journey can serve as inspiration for others.
“Anyone can get involved; you just have to reach out,” Brewer said. “It’s up to you and your initiative for how far you can go.”
He offered some advice on Friday about how to approach those goals.
“From a networking perspective, your network is your net worth,” Brewer said. “I cannot tell you how many times I have met someone at a networking event and been able to develop that relationship. It has turned into something five years later, where we have an active relationship. Sometimes, you just have to make yourself uncomfortable.”
Minority Business of the Year
During the ceremony, Minority Business Council Chair Elia Gegorek presented the Minority Business of the Year award to Evelyn and Rigo Medina of Mean Mug Coffee Shop in Salisbury.
Speaking on behalf of her business and family, Evelyn Medina shared how grateful she was to call Salisbury home.
“(It means so much) to achieve the American Dream and watching our children grow and giving them the life that we probably, well, we absolutely did not have in our country,” she said. “I watched my children grow here. I watched our business grow, and it has been our honor to be amongst you.”
The Medinas immigrated to the United States from Guatemala. The small business owners also own a farm in that country where they source the beans used in the various recipes offered at Mean Mug Coffee Company.
“People always ask me what brought me to Salisbury and what brought me to Rowan County, but so many times, throughout the last 20 years my husband and I have been living here, we have said to each other how blessed we are to be in this little city and this hidden treasure that we call Salisbury,” Medina said. “Thank you for having us here and for opening up your hearts and your doors for this little immigrant family from Guatemala, who is honored to serve your coffee every day.”
Duke Energy Citizenship & Service Award
The largest award of the evening was actually shared between two recipients — longtime journalists, broadcast reporter David Whisenant and former Post columnist and reporter Mark Wineka.
Whisnant recently retired from his role with WBTV, and Wineka hung up his cleats from his latest role with Salisbury the Magazine.
On Friday, Wineka shared gratitude for those figures that inspired him along his career path.
“My Salisbury reporting days go back 40 years to when the late Sonny Epting, who was a great guy, served in a dual capacity as head of the chamber and the county’s chief industrial recruiter,” Wineka said. “This was before a separate economic development commission was formed.”
As a younger man, Wineka attended the chamber’s annual meetings in Myrtle Beach.
“I remember covering one of those gatherings in particular when the late F&M chief Paul Fisher made an impassioned plea for establishing a much-needed Educational Foundation,” Wineka said. “I was inspired enough that I even pledged $100 on the spot.”
Wineka indicated that he could not think of the chamber without thinking of Fisher, who he described as instrumental in raising the money behind the Gateway building where the chamber, economic development council and tourism bureau are housed.
“(The chamber) is an important organization, and I was deeply touched that it saw fit to honor (Whisenant) and me,” Wineka said. “We had the kind of jobs where we were supposed to be in the background, serving as representatives for readers and viewers. It’s super nice, but it was completely unnecessary that the chamber noticed we were around for a long time. I was touched and very grateful.”
Other award recipients
Dr. Christine Lynn was recognized by the chamber as the Paul E. Fisher Volunteer of the Year for her work in various organizations throughout the county.
Lynn has been instrumental in strategic planning for the chamber and is involved in numerous other committees for the chamber, including the new youth leadership program, the ambassadors program, and the Workforce Development Alliance. She is also a graduate of the Leadership Rowan program.
Brad Walser accepted the Chamber Champion Small Business of the Year award on behalf of Walser Technology Group.
Walser’s 15-person computer services company recently celebrated its 20-year business anniversary at the downtown Salisbury location.
Passing of the gavel
During the event, a ceremonial passing of the gavel took place between the 2023 Chair of the Board, Elaine Holden, of the North Carolina Transportation Museum Foundation, and the 2024 Chair of the Board, Terry Osborne, Rowan-Kannapolis ABC Board.
Holden reflected on the chamber’s work throughout the past year, notably work with the Minority Business Council.
“We took a more targeted approach to some of our programs to better serve our members,” Holden said. “An example of this is the Minority Business Council spearheading the new minority business trade show hosted at Livingstone College.”
Given the podium, Osborne remarked how great it was to call those in the room brothers and sisters.
“The unity in this community now (is something),” Osborne said. “I can remember the day when they said it would not happen. Then, in 1962, Salisbury became an all-American city. Well, I think now, we are an all-American country.
“Something great about this group is everybody in here does not just talk about it. They get out of their comfort zone and get it done, day after day after day.”
