The Edwardsville/Glen Carbon Chamber of Commerce’s Annual Community Awards Dinner Auction takes place each spring in SIUE’s Meridian Ballroom. This annual gala truly is the highlight of the Ed/Glen Chamber’s year. It is an opportunity to celebrate the our achievements, the communities it serves, and our volunteers. The dinner/auction is one of the two major fundraisers and social events sponsored by the chamber.

The chamber presents awards to members of our community at the dinner: the Albert Cassens Award for Outstanding Community Achievement, the Lifetime Achievement Award, and the Tallerico Leadership Award. The Business of the Year Award is also be presented.

The Albert Cassens Award for Outstanding Community Achievement was established by the Chamber of Commerce in 1993 and is presented to an individual who has given freely of his or her time to the community, made a significant impact on the community during the 2010 calendar year, and is an active, upstanding citizen. Previous recipients include Mary Kane, Robert Wetzel, Robert Plummer, Robert McClellan, Jamie Henderson, Jeff Lantz, Joe Gugger, Dr. David Werner, Jean Hughes, Don Metzger, Dr. Dale Chapman, Tom Allen, Chuck Tosovsky, Mark Shashek, John Motley, Mark Mestemacher, Herman Shaw, and 2012 awardee SJ Morrison.

The Lifetime Achievement Award was established in 2009 and is presented to an exceptional individual who has made a significant positive impact on the Edwardsville/Glen Carbon community through his or her past achievements over a long period of time and has enhanced the quality of life for Edwardsville/Glen Carbon residents. Recipients include Gary Coffey, Dr. Robert Koepke, Edward McCarthy, and 2012 honoree Robert Wetzel.

The Tallerico Leadership Award replaced the ATHENA Award in 2010. Rich Tallerico brought the ATHENA International Award to the Edwarsville/Glen Carbon Chamber of Commerce in 1986. The purpose of the Tallerico Leadership Award remains the same - to bring into focus the outstanding professional and business women within our community and to encourage the opening of leadership opportunities for women within the community’s workplaces. Previous local ATHENA/Tallerico Leadership Award recipients include Edna Wolfe, Delores Gooch, Nina Baird, Rosemary Bratten, Evelyn Bowles, Barbara Crowder, Stephanie Robbins, Jill Dufner, Sue Pedersen, Janet Foehrkolb, Evelyn Wiechman, Joan Foster, Meta Minton, Susan Donnelly, Bobby Ragan, Joyce Williams, Dr. Almeda Lahr-Well, Carol Wetzel, Suzanne Dietrich, Kay Werner, Donna Bardon, Barbara Jurgena-Stamer, Elizabeth Levy, Patricia Peverly, Joan Lebkuecher, Dr. Carol Keene, and 2012 recipient Teresa Katubig.

This prestigious event offers members a variety of execllent opportunities to promote their business or organization with sponsorships and/or donations. Additional information will be posted at a later date.