Abilene Chamber of Commerce salutes small business

ABILENE, Texas (KTAB/KRBC) – This week marks a week of national recognition with the annual Celebrating Small Business Week, and the Abilene Chamber of Commerce held a special luncheon to honor our Big Country small businesses.

Since 1963, our country has set aside one week a year to honor and celebrate small businesses all across America. As part of that annual tradition, the Abilene Chamber of Commerce held their Salute to Small Business Luncheon where dozens of area small businesses and local leaders gathered to honor and recognize these businesses for their service to the community. Abilene Chamber of Commerce President Doug Peters expands on why they feel it is important to recognize these unique businesses.

“They are the catalyst for helping to drive what is good about our country. There’s something special that exists in an entrepreneur and a small business owner that most people just don’t have. It’s a spirit, and it’s really fun to help celebrate that among the people who helped drive this economy,” Peters explains.

The Abilene Chamber received nearly 200 nominations this year for a variety of small business award categories. These categories included the Community Investment Award which went to Potosi Live, Family-Owned Business of the Year, which goes to Gary’s Floral Gallery and the Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award was bestowed to Dr. Jodi Hierholzer of Body Worx PT & Performance. One stand-out award recipient came when the Abilene Flying Bison baseball team was awarded New Business of the Year, and Flying Bison General Manager John Stark expressed how their fans are the ones that made this honor possible.

“We call all of our fans the Flying Faithful. One of the things that make us unique is that we are, you know, we are so community driven. It’s what drives us every day. We are just extremely proud to be able to win this award,” Stark says.

The Flying Bison ironically earned a trophy that reflects the team perfectly with the chambers “Bison Award”, with Doug Peters of the Abilene Chamber explaining the deeper representation of this award as it relates to these small businesses.

“It’s so classic because it ties so well to our community,” Peters explains. “The bison is an animal that will run toward a storm. It doesn’t turn and run away from it. And when you think about that entrepreneurial spirit that exists in so many of our small business owners, that’s what they do. They don’t take the easy way out.”