2019 CCOC's Annual Meeting & Community Awards Ceremony

1/30/2019

The 68th Clayton Chamber of Commerce Annual Meeting & Community Awards Ceremony was held Tuesday, January 23, 2019 at Brick & Mortar Events in Clayton, NC. The Clayton Chamber of Commerce (CCOC) presented their annual awards along with Clayton Downtown Development Association (CDDA), Clayton Rotary Club, and Clayton Women in Networking (WIN). Congratulations to all the award recipients.

Excerpts from CCOC President / CEO Dana Wooten's Speech:
"I stood right here last year and told you about the Clayton Chamber of Commerce’s rich history. A history that is deeply rooted in community involvement and in the cultivation of relationships with businesses, residents, and key stakeholders. And because of that, CCOC could confidently set its eyes on the future. I shared about our three-year campaign and strategic plan and reminded you that we were all Building Clayton’s Future…together.

Well. That is exactly what we did in 2018.

We continued to make great strides in areas of economic development, legislative and governmental affairs, and education. And we launched a workforce development committee with fresh goals and ideas. Through our impact committees, CCOC has collaborated with the Town of Clayton in order to reach important economic development goals such as the development of Clayton Districts and a demographic brochure.

We are on the steering committee, along with the other JOCO chambers of commerce, Johnston County Economic Development, Johnston County Public Schools, and Johnston Community College, that is launching an exciting workforce program like none you have ever seen called JOCO Works. The hands-on expo will target all 8th grade students in our county and will be held November 14-15, 2019.

CCOC has also expanded our political forum offerings in order to keep Clayton voters informed. We are in the process of launching a re-vamped mentoring program called INSPIRE with Clayton Middle School.

We received a grant to help us expand our award-winning The Clayton Connection app by providing a Clayton tour for our new and current residents in 2019. Something you will hear more about soon.

And we are working on our first annual report to present to all our investors and the public. I could go on…[But quite frankly, I’m exhausted!]

And I didn’t even mention our successful Clayton Harvest Festival with our first-ever Military Crossroads despite a hurricane…thanks to the flexibility of our staff [especially Maria Bunn], Dave Brown with The Shindig, Clayton Mid-Day Rotary, and last, but not least, the Town of Clayton. And if you didn’t see the flyover, it was something amazing.

The 2018 CCOC board of directors, staff, and members of our impact committees, were all laser-focused on our mission of business advocacy, economic development, and education in Clayton. We reached nearly all our strategic plan milestones for 2018…and then some. And thanks to the generosity of all our investors, this organization had a BIG and POSITIVE impact on this wonderful community. We are so proud of this organization’s work in 2018.

You will hear more about CCOC’s impact throughout the night. It is shown in the businesses we cheer. It is shown in the awards we present. It is shown in our collaboration with you all…Clayton Rotary, Clayton Downtown Development Association, and Clayton WIN. It is shown in this crowd. CCOC is heading into 2019 with great momentum and plans…more advocacy, more collaboration, and more innovation. And that only means even more great things are in Clayton’s future.

The 2019 Board of Directors and staff of the Clayton Chamber of Commerce thank you all for investing in Clayton by investing in the Clayton Chamber of Commerce.

Now. Let’s get the party started." ~Dana Wooten, CCOC President/CEO

2018 Award Recipients:

Business of the Year
Align Family Chiropractic
Citizen of the Year
Larry Bailey
Innovator of the Year
Dave DeYoung
Volunteer of the Year
Sara Perricone
Super Star Teacher of the Year
Kimberly Ellison of Powhatan Elementary
Leaving a Legacy Award
Dyrke Maricle
Ambassador of the Year
Erin Davis-Belcher
Clayton Harvest Festival Hero Awards
Jim Lee (Military Crossroads), Ariel Ramirez (Latin American Festival), Eric Rabuse (Manager of Beautification), Pasquale Goicoechea (Manager of ROTC Volunteers), and Simon Garen (Volunteer)
Gratitude Awards
Clayton Police Department
Clayton Fire Department
Committee of the Year
CCOC Economic Development Committee (Ruth Anderson, Edwin Jackson, Kyle McDermott, Dave DeYoung, Kaitlin Crocker, Jim Perricone, Bobby Bunn, Greg Kennedy, Charlie Bell, Beth Watson, Tara Abernathy, and Stacy Beard)
Key Contributor of the Year
Boone Williams
2018 CCOC Building Clayton’s Future campaign investors were recognized for their contributions to the Clayton community in 2018: Grifols, Johnston Health, KS Bank, Novo Nordisk, and OPW Global (Connector Investors); Caterpillar, Compare Foods, Clayton Glass & Mirror, Duke Energy, HomeTowne Realty, Johnston County Visitors Bureau, Managed Print Solutions, United Community Bank, and Woody’s Computing Services (Supporter Investors); and BB&T, Carolina Comfort Air, Chick-fil-A of Garner, First Citizens Bank, Huebner Family McDonald's, Johnston Now, Strategic Systems, and Studio TK (Foundation Investors).
CDDA Award Recipients:
- 2018 CDDA Appreciation Award
  James Lipscomb
- 2018 CDDA Outstanding Downtown Business
  Deep River Brewing
- 2018 CDDA Outstanding New Downtown Business
  Boulevard West
- 2018 CDDA Volunteer of the Year
  Clayton High School ROTC
- 2018 CDDA Best Façade Improvement Under $10,000
  Rejoyce! Gifts
- 2018 CDDA Best Façade Improvement Over $10,000
  Vinson's Pub + Eatery
Clayton Rotary Club Award Recipient:
- 2018 Clayton Rotary Club Community Service Award
  Dean Penny
Clayton WIN Award Recipient:
- 2018 Clayton WIN Business Woman of the Year
  Melanie Marlow

Video

CCOC Outgoing Board of Directors and Executive Committee were also recognized for their time and dedication to the Clayton Chamber of Commerce and the CCOC's 2019 Board of Directors were introduced.