ELLY GRIMM
• Leader & Times
The Liberal community got to share its love of all things gaming Saturday night at this year’s Chamber Bash, and as Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Rozelle Webb tells it, it was a very successful evening.
“I was really pleased with the entire event, it was a great evening. We had a big crowd, a great meal provided by National Beef, and the band who played during the meal did a great job entertaining everyone, which was fun,” Webb said. “With the corporate tables, everyone did a fantastic job decorating them to this year's theme, which was 'For the Love of the Game.' The theme was pretty broad, and there are many ways it could be interpreted, so I felt like it was actually kind of easy for businesses. That's always really fun, and I was just amazed at the sheer amount of creativity put forward. I wasn't one of the judges, but I have a feeling it was really hard for them to pick the winners because all the tables just looked so amazing.”
Multiple prizes were also given out Saturday evening, beginning with McKenzie Hood receiving her Past President’s plaque and scrapbook. In the corporate table decoration competition, first place went to KSCB-The Legend radio station, National Beef Packing Company came in second, and Byron Bird and Associates came away with third place. Sunflower Bank ended up taking the People’s Choice Award, and USD 480 won the Best Use of a Prop Award.
“There were many different interpretations of the theme, and I was actually hoping that would be the case, so I was really glad to see that,” Webb said. “I was thinking most of the tables would go with a sports theme, but we also saw board games, casino games and video games, and again, I was just blown away by all the creativity shown. I was really surprised at what these businesses came up with, and all the tables just looked absolutely amazing.”
Prizes for costumes were also awarded, with CJ Wettstein taking home the Best Dressed Male prize, Dayanara Olson taking home the Best Dressed Female prize, and Kim and Becky Naab taking home the Best Dressed Couple prize.
Some local businesses and other individuals were also recognized Saturday evening, with Iron Insurance Partners being named the New Business of the Year, Community Bank being named the Chamber Business of the Year, and Chasity Wallace taking home her third consecutive Joy Fosdick Ambassador of the Year honor. To conclude the awards, Seward County Administrator April Warden was named the Merit Award winner.
And while this year’s Bash only recently took place, Webb said the Chamber of Commerce is always looking for more sponsors for future events.
“We're always ready to welcome new people and/or businesses that have been around for a while,” Webb said. “We're always looking to grow the event, and if you're at all interested, just think about it until this time next year and we'll be happy to work with you if you decide to be a sponsor.”
Overall, Webb said, she was very happy with this year’s turnout.
“We were really happy to see so many people out at the Bash this year, it was a great turnout, and the meal was also really good. We are so thankful to all the businesses who sponsored a table and decorated them, we love seeing that,” Webb said. “We also had several businesses tell us their employees had a lot of fun working as a team to decorate their particular table for the night. I want to thank all the businesses who sponsored this year's Bash, and I want to thank everyone who came out that evening. We at the Chamber of Commerce are very pleased with how this year's Chamber Bash went, it was a great crowd, a great meal, and there were a lot of positive comments about the table decorations. It was a lot of fun, as always, and we hope to see everyone there again next year!”
