WENATCHEE — The Wenatchee Valley Chamber of Commerce held its annual banquet at the Wenatchee Convention Center on Thursday night highlighting members of the business community.
“What makes this event so special is that our job tonight is to celebrate this community,” said WVCC director of operations and banquet organizer, Chelsea Ewer.
“We bring 600 people in this room and it’s about them, not about the chamber,” Ewer said. “It’s about the businesses, the members, and the people that make this community so incredible.”
The event featured time for business owners to connect and network while people competed in silent auctions, and drank and dine.
Broker and realtor, Danny Zavala, of Laura Mounter Real Estate & Co. said he looked forward to having fun and connecting with people at the event.
Husband and wife business partners Luke and Alyssa Hedtke, of Host Wenatchee and Lit Letters and Events, were also in attendance. Both businesses opened within the last six months and wanted to become members of the chamber right away.
“The support that we get (from the chamber) is incredible,” said Alyssa Hedtke. “The value of having great relationships with those people and everything that comes with being a member, being here tonight, and the meetings we get to go to, all of those things are great.”
At the end of the night, the chamber handed out awards. The Cornerstone Award went to Norma Gallegos, program director of Hand in Hand Services. The Tourism Impact Award Went to Jerri Barkley, executive director of Visit Chelan County. The Non-Profit of the Year Award went to the Wenatchee Valley Dispute Resolution Center. And the Business of the Year award went to a recently closed shop, The Yogi Grind.
Elvis Garcia and his husband Teddy Garcia, owners of The Yogi Grind, a coffee, plant shop and yoga studio, closed Feb. 25.
Elvis Garcia said the main reason why the couple decided to close their shop after three years was to protect their mental health, but he was proud of their business and grateful for all the support they have received.
“It’s a great honor to be recognized for Business of the Year, but it’s another thing to understand that it (The Yogi Grind) made a big impact in the community,” Teddy Garcia said. “It’s more than I could have ever dreamed of to be part of this community, to leave a small mark, or to know we had made someone’s day a little bit brighter.”
This article was edited to correct the name of Wenatchee Valley Dispute Resolution Center.
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