Largest crowd ever attends annual Chamber banquet

By Bill Donovan
Staff writer

GALLUP — The biggest crowd ever for a chamber annual banquet spent a night listening to jokes and honoring local residents for service to their community.

"Just about every sector of the community and every type of business was represented at the event," said Herb Mosher, director of the Gallup-McKinley County Chamber of Commerce.

Local car dealer Terry Profitt was honored as Volunteer of the Year for his work over the years with local groups serving the handicapped and disabled.

He told the 220 or so people who attended the banquet that he has gotten more out of working with local groups than he has contributed to them.

Joann Hsu was honored as Businessperson of the Year for the work she and her husband, Mike, have done to expand their business, King Dragon, over the past year.

The chamber, for the first time, bestowed a Quality of Life Award, something that Mosher said the chamber will do in the future when the board decides that someone needs to be honored for improving life in Gallup.

The honoree was Jeff Kieley, the assistant director of the Northwest New Mexico Council of Governments.

Kieley is one of those, said Mosher, who works behind the scenes and doesn't get a lot of public attention.

But he always has been there when the city or county called upon him to write a grant, a proposal or a study, often working into the late hours, not for recognition, but to help the community.

In the past, he has been instrumental in writing the grant that resulted in funding for the city's local detox center. He also prepared the report that was used in the Vision of Gallup town hall and is currently working on Adventure Gallup projects.

The chamber also welcomed new board members who were inducted during the banquet Chuck Wright, Bob Fultz, Jay Mason, George Munoz and Sherwood Stauder.

Also honored at the banquet were members of this year's Gallup High School Girl's Basketball team, who won the state District 5A championship.

The team members presented to the chamber two of their championship balls, which the chamber raffled off.

Speaking of raffles, Mosher said that special recognition should go to Martha Zollinger, a former chamber-honored Volunteer of the Year, for her work during the banquet. She was able to sell more than $1500 worth of raffle tickets for contests that the chamber is holding.

The highlight of the evening, though, said Mosher, had to be Michael Joiner, a writer for the Jay Leno Show and this year's Cable Comedian of the Year.

Although his flight was delayed because of rain and snow and he arrived just 20 minutes before he began his show, Mosher said he wowed the audience with good family humor and by going out into the audience and working the crowd.