BELFAST, Maine — The Belfast Area Chamber of Commerce is soliciting nominations for 2008 Citizen of the Year for Waldo County, to be presented at the BACC Annual Awards Banquet in October at Point Lookout in Northport.
Nominations are not limited to residents of Belfast but may be made for anyone living in Waldo County.
Nominations also are being sought for the Leadership Award, Business of the Year, Small Business of the Year, Non-Profit Organization of the Year, Economic Development Leadership and Community Volunteer of the Year.
At the annual banquet, other awards will include the Visitor Center Volunteer of the Year, as selected by the participants of the Visitors Center, and the President’s Award, chosen by the Chamber president to rec-ognize a person for his contri-bution to the BACC community or the Chamber during the past year.
The Citizen of the Year award should recognize a per-son or persons who have made an outstanding positive impact on some facet of Waldo County during their lifetime, either by a single event or on a continual basis. Nominees can be from any occupation, including business, education, service, medical, government, charita-ble organizations or simply a resident.
Nomination forms for all of the awards may be obtained at the Belfast Area Chamber of Commerce Office or the Visi-tor’s Center, both at 16 Main St. However, nomination forms are not required; nominations may be submitted on plain pieces of paper. The only information required will be the name of the nominee, address and phone numbers, and the reasons why the person is being nominated, including biographical and background information about the individual.
Nominations should be sent to the chamber no later than Friday, Sept. 12. They should be marked Award Nominations on the outside of the envelope and, preferably, a notation inside for what award the nomination is proposed.
The Leadership Award is given to the business or non-profit organization person who has demonstrated leadership in his or her own business or in community activities in the past year or recent period.
The Business of the Year award recognizes a business that has demonstrated a strong growth and positive influence in the community. The award may also recognize innovation, unique methods or processes, special employee programs or services, or sustainability.
The Small Business of the Year award recognizes the smaller businesses of Waldo County, and may employ as few as one or two people. It can in-clude a single-person business.
The Non-Profit Organization of the Year award recognizes that many nonprofit organiza-tions add to the economic fabric of the county as well as the sig-nificance of their own direct services.
The Economic Development Leadership award recognizes a person or persons who clearly represented a major influence in boosting the economic vital-ity and economic climate in Waldo County for the past year.
The Community Volunteer of the Year Award recognizes an individual who has shown out-standing service as an unpaid volunteer for any organization or activity in Waldo County.
Announcements and profiles of many of the award winners will be published in advance of the annual dinner. Award win-ners will be given individual awards and their names will be posted in a prominent place at the Chamber of Commerce of-fice and included with names of honorees in other years.
Mail nominations to Belfast Area Chamber of Commerce, 16 Main St., Belfast 04915.