ARTICLE
Every year dating back to the 1960s, the Santa Cruz Area Chamber of Commerce celebrates and recognizes the significant contributions of our community leaders. This year is no different as we will gather together on the evening of October 26 to reflect on our past, celebrate our present and move forward toward a positive future. Throughout these annual celebrations, we’ve highlighted the contributions of community leaders as Woman, Man, Business, Organization and on occasion, a Lifetime Achievement Award honoree. The Class of 2017 is again the highest caliber that reflects what is best about Santa Cruz County. Woman of the Year: Nina Simon is an internationally recognized expert on active community participation in cultural institutions and has been named a “museum visionary” by Smithsonian Magazine for her innovative approach to design. Man of the Year: René Schlaepfer, senior pastor of Twin Lakes Church, is the author of five books: "Jesus Journey"; "God Is"; "Grace Immersion"; "Hope Experience"; and "Thrill Ride: Thriving Through Life's Ups and Downs". He makes Santa Cruz home with his wife Laurie. Born in San Jose, California to Swiss immigrant parents, René grew up with dual citizenship and briefly lived in Switzerland before settling on the West Coast. There he worked for many years in broadcasting, primarily as an air personality on contemporary music radio stations. Organization of the Year: Second Harvest Food Bank of Santa Cruz County - In Santa Cruz County, 1 in 5 people face hunger. For children it’s 1 in 4. Hunger is not inevitable. The folks at the Food Bank are working hard to feed people who need food now and to advocate for policies that tackle the root causes of hunger. Every month, 55,000 local residents count on 2nd Harvest Food Bank to avoid missing meals, empty stomachs, and impossible choices between food, housing, medicine, and other necessities. Business of the Year: For over 50 years, Plantronics has been on the forefront of audio innovation; always driven by a single obsession: to remove the barriers to simple, clear communication. At Plantronics, Corporate Social Responsibility refers to the values of promoting environmental health, reducing our environmental footprint, and being a socially responsible citizen. Simply put, it's about being good to their customers, their employees, our communities, and our planet. Lifetime Achievement: Lance Linares has led the Foundation since 1995, and recently served as chair of the League of California Community Foundations. We make a choice to live in Santa Cruz County, a great place. He finds ways to help us all make our county better, now and for the future. These are special community leaders that we celebrate this year. To a person, they are humble, kind, generous, talented and amazingly successful. We are honored to be able to showcase their work with you. At our 2017 Gala we will also celebrate other organizations in the community that are giving back, providing care and resources to the less fortunate and educating our community on the value propositions that are the hallmark of Santa Cruz County. There are a lot of talented folks in Santa Cruz County who work tirelessly…but yearn to do something that aligns with their purpose. They spin their wheels to be productive and get ahead (and often do, by conventional standards) but never feel fulfilled. But every once and awhile, I catch a glimpse of someone who is brave enough to align their purpose with their talent. I say brave because make no mistake, it can be terrifying to cast aside those things you’ve always done, the so-called "talents" that you’ve hidden behind while you were waiting for the right time to come forward with your true calling. Join us on October 26 at our Community Showcase to visit, listen and learn about the talented work of these community groups bring to Santa Cruz County. CASA – Celebrating Twenty-Five Years of Service to our county. Their CASA program belongs to a network of 951 independent community-based programs that recruit, train and support citizen-volunteers to advocate for the best interests of abused and neglected children in courtrooms and communities. CASA of Santa Cruz County currently serves over 270 children and youth annually and the need doesn't go away. Santa Cruz Education Foundation - The Santa Cruz Education Foundation works to ensure that every one of the 7,000 students at our 10 campuses, in kindergarten through high school, has an outstanding educational experience. They believe that every child deserves an excellent neighborhood school. Their Mission: The Santa Cruz Education Foundation is a community organization promoting excellence in Santa Cruz City Schools by developing and enhancing programs so that all students can realize their full potential. The United Way of Santa Cruz - They ignite our community to give, advocate and volunteer so that our youth succeed in school and in life, our residents are healthy and our families are financially independent. The heritage of our community is deeply rooted in helping those in need. That's why 74 years ago the leaders of our community decided what this place needed was a Pajaro Valley Community Chest, later named United Way of Santa Cruz County. Since their inception, they have been working hand-in-hand with the community to solve complex problems and provide a better life for our residents. Through the collective power of the community, they have been providing funds to better our community. Honoring the traditions of our forefathers, and supporting needs as they have changed, evolved, and even grown. Jacob’s Heart Children’s Cancer Support Services - exists to improve the quality of life for children with cancer and support their families in the challenges they face. They provide family-centered care that addresses the emotional, practical and financial struggles for families of children and teens during treatment, families experiencing anticipatory grief and those who are bereaved. They envision a community where every child with a serious or life-threatening condition has a strong, supported and informed family empowered to fully participate in their care. They strive to inspire compassionate action within local communities to create a safety net of support for the unique needs of each child and family. Homeless Services Center - HSC began as a loosely affiliated group of faith-based and secular organizations and was originally named the Santa Cruz Citizen’s Committee for the Homeless. The primary purpose, at that time, was to provide basic food and shelter for those with no resources to provide their own. Homeless individuals would camp on what was referred to as the “Back 40″ on the lot of our current location on Coral Street in the Harvey West Neighborhood of Santa Cruz. In order to provide the campers with safety, security, and amenities such as heat and running water, the group implemented the Interfaith Satellite Shelter Program (ISSP). During the years of the ISSP, homeless families and individuals ate a meal at their make-shift headquarters, and then took a bus to various churches throughout the community, returning in the morning for a warm breakfast. Along with the creation of the ISSP, the Committee incorporated the Homeless Community Resource Center, which included the free meal program and free access to basic hygiene services, including toilets and showers. Monterey Bay Power - Monterey Bay Community Power was formed to provide locally controlled, 100% carbon-free electricity to residents and businesses in Monterey, San Benito and Santa Cruz Counties through the Community Choice Energy (CCE) model established by the State of California. MBCP anticipates serving electricity to customers beginning spring 2018. The CCE model enables communities to choose clean-source power at a cost equivalent to PG&E while retaining PG&E’s role in maintaining power lines and providing customer service. The CCE model helps ensure local economic vitality because surplus revenues that would normally flow to PG&E will now stay in the community. KAZU 90.3 — KAZU’s mission is to serve the communities in the Greater Monterey Bay area and Salinas Valley through its over the air broadcast service and digital platforms. KAZU seeks to serve its community of license, Pacific Grove and its entire listening audience with its news and information programming format, community event sponsorships and air public service announcements so that listeners can get in depth news and analysis of events and issues affecting the community, the country and beyond. All Broadcast and digital content is selected in order to serve and reach the diverse population and varied communities found in KAZU’s broadcast coverage area including Santa Cruz, Monterey and Salinas. Bike Santa Cruz County - Bike Santa Cruz County promotes bicycling through advocacy, education and community building. Their goal is for people of all ages and abilities to feel comfortable using their bikes for daily trips. In summary, the 2017 Santa Cruz Area Chamber of Commerce Gala Recognition Dinner is all about us. The common denominator in our community is collaborative change that brings us together. And finally as we settle into our seats over a wonderful dinner with family, friends, colleagues and fellow residents, we start the program with a special panel conversation of past honorees that is sure to make you laugh, make you cry and make you proud to be a Santa Cruzan. On behalf of the Santa Cruz Area Chamber and our 600 plus members, we look forward to seeing you on October 26.
Every year dating back to the 1960s, the Santa Cruz Area Chamber of Commerce celebrates and recognizes the significant contributions of our community leaders. This year is no different as we will gather together on the evening of October 26 to reflect on our past, celebrate our present and move forward toward a positive future.
Throughout these annual celebrations, we’ve highlighted the contributions of community leaders as Woman, Man, Business, Organization and on occasion, a Lifetime Achievement Award honoree. The Class of 2017 is again the highest caliber that reflects what is best about Santa Cruz County.
Woman of the Year: Nina Simon is an internationally recognized expert on active community participation in cultural institutions and has been named a “museum visionary” by Smithsonian Magazine for her innovative approach to design.
Man of the Year: René Schlaepfer, senior pastor of Twin Lakes Church, is the author of five books: "Jesus Journey"; "God Is"; "Grace Immersion"; "Hope Experience"; and "Thrill Ride: Thriving Through Life's Ups and Downs". He makes Santa Cruz home with his wife Laurie. Born in San Jose, California to Swiss immigrant parents, René grew up with dual citizenship and briefly lived in Switzerland before settling on the West Coast. There he worked for many years in broadcasting, primarily as an air personality on contemporary music radio stations.
Organization of the Year: Second Harvest Food Bank of Santa Cruz County - In Santa Cruz County, 1 in 5 people face hunger. For children it’s 1 in 4. Hunger is not inevitable. The folks at the Food Bank are working hard to feed people who need food now and to advocate for policies that tackle the root causes of hunger. Every month, 55,000 local residents count on 2nd Harvest Food Bank to avoid missing meals, empty stomachs, and impossible choices between food, housing, medicine, and other necessities.
Business of the Year: For over 50 years, Plantronics has been on the forefront of audio innovation; always driven by a single obsession: to remove the barriers to simple, clear communication. At Plantronics, Corporate Social Responsibility refers to the values of promoting environmental health, reducing our environmental footprint, and being a socially responsible citizen. Simply put, it's about being good to their customers, their employees, our communities, and our planet.
Lifetime Achievement: Lance Linares has led the Foundation since 1995, and recently served as chair of the League of California Community Foundations. We make a choice to live in Santa Cruz County, a great place. He finds ways to help us all make our county better, now and for the future.
These are special community leaders that we celebrate this year. To a person, they are humble, kind, generous, talented and amazingly successful. We are honored to be able to showcase their work with you.
At our 2017 Gala we will also celebrate other organizations in the community that are giving back, providing care and resources to the less fortunate and educating our community on the value propositions that are the hallmark of Santa Cruz County.
There are a lot of talented folks in Santa Cruz County who work tirelessly…but yearn to do something that aligns with their purpose. They spin their wheels to be productive and get ahead (and often do, by conventional standards) but never feel fulfilled.
But every once and awhile, I catch a glimpse of someone who is brave enough to align their purpose with their talent.
I say brave because make no mistake, it can be terrifying to cast aside those things you’ve always done, the so-called "talents" that you’ve hidden behind while you were waiting for the right time to come forward with your true calling.
Join us on October 26 at our Community Showcase to visit, listen and learn about the talented work of these community groups bring to Santa Cruz County.
CASA – Celebrating Twenty-Five Years of Service to our county. Their CASA program belongs to a network of 951 independent community-based programs that recruit, train and support citizen-volunteers to advocate for the best interests of abused and neglected children in courtrooms and communities. CASA of Santa Cruz County currently serves over 270 children and youth annually and the need doesn't go away.
Santa Cruz Education Foundation - The Santa Cruz Education Foundation works to ensure that every one of the 7,000 students at our 10 campuses, in kindergarten through high school, has an outstanding educational experience. They believe that every child deserves an excellent neighborhood school. Their Mission: The Santa Cruz Education Foundation is a community organization promoting excellence in Santa Cruz City Schools by developing and enhancing programs so that all students can realize their full potential.
The United Way of Santa Cruz - They ignite our community to give, advocate and volunteer so that our youth succeed in school and in life, our residents are healthy and our families are financially independent. The heritage of our community is deeply rooted in helping those in need. That's why 74 years ago the leaders of our community decided what this place needed was a Pajaro Valley Community Chest, later named United Way of Santa Cruz County.
Since their inception, they have been working hand-in-hand with the community to solve complex problems and provide a better life for our residents. Through the collective power of the community, they have been providing funds to better our community. Honoring the traditions of our forefathers, and supporting needs as they have changed, evolved, and even grown.
Jacob’s Heart Children’s Cancer Support Services - exists to improve the quality of life for children with cancer and support their families in the challenges they face. They provide family-centered care that addresses the emotional, practical and financial struggles for families of children and teens during treatment, families experiencing anticipatory grief and those who are bereaved.
They envision a community where every child with a serious or life-threatening condition has a strong, supported and informed family empowered to fully participate in their care. They strive to inspire compassionate action within local communities to create a safety net of support for the unique needs of each child and family.
Homeless Services Center - HSC began as a loosely affiliated group of faith-based and secular organizations and was originally named the Santa Cruz Citizen’s Committee for the Homeless. The primary purpose, at that time, was to provide basic food and shelter for those with no resources to provide their own. Homeless individuals would camp on what was referred to as the “Back 40″ on the lot of our current location on Coral Street in the Harvey West Neighborhood of Santa Cruz. In order to provide the campers with safety, security, and amenities such as heat and running water, the group implemented the Interfaith Satellite Shelter Program (ISSP). During the years of the ISSP, homeless families and individuals ate a meal at their make-shift headquarters, and then took a bus to various churches throughout the community, returning in the morning for a warm breakfast. Along with the creation of the ISSP, the Committee incorporated the Homeless Community Resource Center, which included the free meal program and free access to basic hygiene services, including toilets and showers.
Monterey Bay Power - Monterey Bay Community Power was formed to provide locally controlled, 100% carbon-free electricity to residents and businesses in Monterey, San Benito and Santa Cruz Counties through the Community Choice Energy (CCE) model established by the State of California. MBCP anticipates serving electricity to customers beginning spring 2018.
The CCE model enables communities to choose clean-source power at a cost equivalent to PG&E while retaining PG&E’s role in maintaining power lines and providing customer service. The CCE model helps ensure local economic vitality because surplus revenues that would normally flow to PG&E will now stay in the community.
KAZU 90.3 — KAZU’s mission is to serve the communities in the Greater Monterey Bay area and Salinas Valley through its over the air broadcast service and digital platforms. KAZU seeks to serve its community of license, Pacific Grove and its entire listening audience with its news and information programming format, community event sponsorships and air public service announcements so that listeners can get in depth news and analysis of events and issues affecting the community, the country and beyond. All Broadcast and digital content is selected in order to serve and reach the diverse population and varied communities found in KAZU’s broadcast coverage area including Santa Cruz, Monterey and Salinas.
Bike Santa Cruz County - Bike Santa Cruz County promotes bicycling through advocacy, education and community building. Their goal is for people of all ages and abilities to feel comfortable using their bikes for daily trips.
In summary, the 2017 Santa Cruz Area Chamber of Commerce Gala Recognition Dinner is all about us. The common denominator in our community is collaborative change that brings us together. And finally as we settle into our seats over a wonderful dinner with family, friends, colleagues and fellow residents, we start the program with a special panel conversation of past honorees that is sure to make you laugh, make you cry and make you proud to be a Santa Cruzan. On behalf of the Santa Cruz Area Chamber and our 600 plus members, we look forward to seeing you on October 26.