Chamber Update

We are excited to announce our newest members of the chamber: Bent Bodywork, Therapeutic Massage; Curtis Appraisals LLC; doTerra/Essential Clarity; Bye Insurance; The Anne Arundel Home Services Company; Northern Birth Roots; and Lee Kail, Long and Foster Real Estate.

Ribbon cutting celebrations continued to thrive in May. On May 4, right before our Shop Local Fun Fiesta, we held a ribbon cutting ceremony celebrating the annual opening of the Severna Park Farmer’s Market. On May 8, the Benfield Gallery celebrated 35 years of successful business. On May 15, Eco Interior Maintenance owner Doug Bradford cut the ribbon on 33 years in business. And on May 18, Massage Envy and owner Joann Hess celebrated a grand reopening at Magothy Gateway shopping center and 10 years of successful business with a ribbon cutting and outdoor party.

On May 4, we held our annual Shop Local Fun Fiesta at Park Plaza. It was a fantastic outing featuring more than 60 businesses, and we had food, entertainment, music and more. We had five gold sponsors who donated 50% of their sponsorship to their charities of choice. Louben Repke, owner of Repke Fitness, donated $500 to Opportunity Builders Inc. Robert Van Valkenburgh, Matthew Van Valkenburgh and Dwayne Bowie of Kogen Dojo donated $500 to Ann Brennan of Burgers and Bands for Suicide Prevention. Diane Whittles of SERVPRO of Annapolis and Severna Park donated $500 to SPAN. The Greers of Jing Ying Institute of Kung Fu & Tai Chi donated $500 to SPAN. And Cedar Square Homes and Touchstone Title donated $500 to the Chesapeake K-9 Fund founded by Wendy Oliver of Coldwell Banker.

Bronze sponsors included the Severna Park Racquetball and Fitness Club, Mathnasium and Honey Baked Ham.

Thank you, exhibitors, entertainers, sponsors, the committee and especially the community for coming out to make this a great event with more than 1,000 visitors.

On May 15, we held a special luncheon for our Small Business Administration Award nominees and winners who were carefully selected in December to submit detailed applications to the Maryland SBA.

Our nominees for the state awards are:

2019 Rising Star Student of the Year
Richard Kyaw of Reliant Management Consultant LLC.

2019 Young Entrepreneur of the Year
Brian Taylor of Goldiata Creative

2019 Woman Owned Business of the Year
Bess Clark of Coterie, a Boutique

2019 Minority Owned Business of the Year
Cliff Johnson of State Farm Insurance

2019 Insurance Advocate of the Year
Kirk Lynn of the Kirk Lynn Agency of State Farm

Our winners of the state awards are:

2019 Maryland Entrepreneurial Success of the Year
Landmark Roofing, Artie Hendricks and Rob Calhan

2019 Maryland Family Owned Business of the Year
Dianna and Lonnie Lancione, The Voice Media Inc.

2019 Home-Based Business of the Year
Suzanne Brinks, DECA Wrap

2019 Attorney Advocate of the Year
Tara Frame, Frame and Frame LLC

They competed against hundreds of entries across the entire state, and the winners will be recognized at the state SBA luncheon at Martin’s West on June 6. We are so proud of our nominees and winners and thank them for operating their businesses in our county and supporting our community!

Visit our website for all the free events and happenings. We would love to have you as a member of our chamber, as we know the value that small businesses and local organizations bring to the health of our community. Call us at 410-647-3900 or info@gspacc.com or visit www.gspacc.com.