HURRICANE —Many of of the city’s best and brightest gathered Wednesday evening at the Sand Hollow Resort Clubhouse for the 2022 Chamber Foundation Gala.
Guests at the event, sponsored by the Hurricane Valley Chamber of Commerce, were feted with a prime rib dinner, music both classical and country, and an awards ceremony honoring community luminaries.
Nic Lauritzen, outgoing president of the chamber and owner of Easy Shop insurance, served as emcee for the event.
The chamber introduced a new format for its presentation of a slew of awards. It involved the audience watching a glossily-produced short video about each honoree before they took briefly to the podium to accept their accolades.
Despite using multi-media to avoid long and freewheeling introductions and speeches, the event lasted nearly four hours. Luckily, a lively itinerary made the gala glide along smoothly.
The mic was handed over to one honoree, the final winner of the evening. John Bramall, who recently finished his second term as Mayor, was given a Lifetime Achievement Award.
A number of his endeavors was mentioned, including his work as owner and operator of the long-term care facilities under the auspices of Integrated Senior Care. As if this demanding career weren’t enough, Lauritzen noted, Bramall also operates a hay farm and owns a movie theater in town.
As far as public service, Bramall preceded his tenure as mayor by serving on the city council and the Hurricane City Planning Commission. Helping bring the first hospital to Hurricane, a satellite campus of St. George Regional Hospital, is arguably among his greatest achievements.
Bramall said serving the community of Hurricane has been a joy.
“I want you to know that I’ve never met anyone in Hurricane that I don’t love, and that I don’t care about,” he said. “As mayor I was happy to help anybody who called me to get done what needed to get done here in the city. And I hope it’s a better place, because we all work together and love one another.”
Event attended by a ‘Who’s Who?’ of residents
The evening began with music produced by members of the Hurricane High School Chamber Ensemble, including violinists Kayla Meng, Angalee Brinkerhoff, Matthew Barraclough and Amber Terry, as well as cellist Bailee Shirley.
The clubhouse at the resort – known for its golf course and sweeping views of the Southern Utah desert – was decorated with roses in vases on the tables. As evening fell, the patio was illuminated by string lights and a flickering fire pit.
Outgoing chamber president Nic Lauritzen, served as emcee for the event, his appearance enlivened by a black suit and tie and some self-deprecating humor. He addressed a packed house of entrepreneurs and their plus-ones, including business partners like husband-and-wife team Joe and Connie Zdunich of the Hurricane Spilsbury mortuary.
Local philanthropists were on hand, including Roots for Kids CEO Suzanne Leonelli, as were local politicians like Hildale Mayor Donia Jessop, who was accompanied by the town’s city manager, Eric Duthie.
The Hurricane City Council was represented by council members Joseph Prete and David Hirschi. Hurricane Mayor Nanette Billings was absent, having traveled with the Hurricane Youth Council to the state capitol to meet with state legislators and senators. During the whirlwind visit, the teens also attended a press conference given by Governor Spencer Cox.
One person at the Chamber well-acquainted with the governor is Stephen Lisonbee, who serves as senior rural advisor to Cox. It was not Lisonbee but his son Ryan, a Hurricane High School senior, who was the star of the evening. Ryan – who has a 4.0 grade point average and is involved in everything from student council to running track – was given the chamber’s Student of the Year Award, accompanied by a $500 check toward his college fund.
Winner, winner
Drew Williams, principal of Utah Arts Academy (formerly Tuacahn Art Academy) in St. George, did double duty. He served as keynote speaker, talking about growing up in a close-knit family. When work was slow for his construction worker dad, he and his brothers would travel with their parents to San Francisco where they would clog on a street corner; the busking for tips helped them make ends meet when times were tight.
He also talked about his long and unexpected road to becoming a high school administrator, something he’d never have foreseen as a kid whose test scores were only fair to middling and whose favorite class was wood shop.
His spoke about how writer and business educator Adam Grant says, “The number-one question we should never ask a student is what they want to do when they grow up.” It’s a statement that Williams said resonated with him, because he realized how few kids can wrap their heads around what their life’s journey might look like.
“If someone asked me, ‘Drew, what do you want to be when you grow up?’ I never would have said high school principal, ever in a million years. Because at that point I actually hated school,” he said. “That changed the way that I talk to students.”
“Really we talk about grit, we talk about creativity, and we talk about how students can do anything, he continued. “And they might do this, and then that spurs something that jumps to this. And I just think about all the business owners and the entrepreneurs and how they can pivot so fast, and that’s one of the most important things we teach.”
Williams also served as entertainment, calling up his wife, songwriter and educator Lacey Williams, to join him in some songs. The couple, who perform as Drew & Lacey, spent a number of years immersed in the Nashville music scene.
One of their tunes celebrated the life and times of Joan Ginther, a woman who over the course of 10 years won the Texas Lottery, ultimately walking away with some $20 million. “Winner, winner, Joan Ginther,” Lacey sang. “If you’ve got a secret, you’ll never give it up. You beat all of the odds with the dumbest of luck.”
The theme of winning continued as the chamber presented awards to a number of guests. These included Kathy Davis, a first grade teacher at Three Falls Elementary School in Hurricane, who was named Educator of the Year; DSU Student of the Year Gino Perez, Community Service Award winner Casey Brown of the nonprofit Root for Kids; and Joe Holland of Color Country Automotive, who nabbed the title of Business Person of the Year. Easy Shop Insurance took honors as the chamber’s Small Business of the Year, while the bragging rights for Business of the Year went to Davis Food and Drug.
The evening ended with the swearing in of the new board of the Hurricane Valley Chamber of Commerce, including 2022 chamber president Ike Turner. Bramall served as officiant.
It was a nice evening for Prete, who usually spends more time at the dais of the Hurricane City Office than at galas.
“I loved the event,” he said. “It seems to get better and better each year. I particularly enjoyed the entertainment this year and the new and improved video format for presenting the awards. It was also great to get my hands on the 2022 (Hurricane) visitor’s guide, fresh off the press. The highlight for me was witnessing our outgoing mayor receive a well-deserved lifetime achievement award.”
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