By VERNON ROBISON
Moapa Valley Progress
A number of area businesses were recognized for their excellence in an array of different categories last week for the 2019 Best of Mesquite Chamber Awards. The announcement of the winners of these awards was made in a special cermony at the Mesquite Chamber of Commerce membership luncheon held at the Eureka Casino on Wednesday, January 8.
“Today, for the first time, we are offering the 2019 Best of Mesquite Chamber awards,” announced Chamber CEO Carol Kolson at the luncheon. “Of course, as far as we are concerned you are all winners in our book. But these have been especially recognized by our membership.”
Kolson explained that all Chamber members had been invited at the end of the year to submit nominations for the nine different categories of awards. After the nominations were made, all chamber members then had the opportunity to cast a ballot for the winner in each category, Kolson said.
“We want to clarify that the local newspaper does its own Best of Mesquite awards each year,” Kolson said. “This is something different from that, as it is just selected from within our membership and is also chosen by our membership.”
Kolson then went through the various category and announced the award winners for each. Each winner was presented with a beautiful crystal trophy to display in their business, all of which had been created by City Shoppes in Mesquite.
In the category of Customer Service Champion, the winner was The Front Porch Flowers and Gifts.
“From the time you walk into their business you’ll be greeted by friendly staff,” Kolson said of the Front Porch. “They’re generous to the community of Mesquite with donations, and are just all-around awesome women.”
In the category of Financial Service Award, the winner was Bank of Nevada.
“The Bank of Nevada staff always greets you by name and they love being involved in this community,” Kolson said.
The Golf Course of the Year award went to Conestoga Golf Course.
“This course offers beautiful scenery, challenging holes and is on everybody’s bucket list to play,” Kolson said of Conestoga. “The staff at this golf course always give generously of their time and donations to this community.”
The Health Provider of the Year award went to Dr. Alex Blazzard D.D.S.
“(Dr. Blazzard) has rave reviews, not only about the service provided, but also about the friendly and professional staff,” Kolson said.
Next, the Hospitality Award was presented to the Eureka Casino Resort.
“This business is dedicated to community service, both by management and employees,” Kolson said of the Eureka, whom she also recognized as being the gracious host of the luncheon event.
The Non-Profit of the Year award was presented to the Mesquite Library.
“(The library is) always looking for new and exciting things to bring to the community,” Kolson said. “They even have special activities for teens, which is a challenge to try to entertain teenagers as you all know.”
The Real Estate Agent/Company of the Year was awarded to Deb Parsley. Parsley was also recognized for the next category which was the Outstanding Community Service award.
“(Parsley) is known for her desire to serve the community through volunteerism and leadership,” Kolson said. “She never seems to sleep, is always on the move and has a heart of gold.”
For Service Provider of the Year, The Lindi Corp was recognized as the winner.
“(The Lindi Corp.) prides themselves on excellent customer service and expert technicians,” Kolson said. “They don’t leave until the job is complete and they make sure that the customer is satisfied.”
The final distinction presented was the newly created Diamond Award. This special award is meant to recognize a business or individual for strong support of the Chamber. The award was presented to Christi Neff of Reliance Connects.
“(Christi) is always the first to raise her hand, sometimes not even knowing what she’s getting into,” Kolson said of Neff. “She is the first to show up at dark for an event, and the last to leave after dark when the event is over.”
