BATESVILLE — Attendees at the Batesville Area Chamber of Commerce annual meeting on Friday may have to pinch themselves to see if they’re dreaming.
The White Rabbit will greet them at the door, but the fantasy and fun will just be getting started.
The Adventures in Wonderland Annual Meeting and Gala, presented by First Community Bank, is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. at the Batesville Community Center to a sold-out crowd, but a waiting list is being taken. For more information, call the chamber at (870) 793-2378.
“People come from all over, Little Rock and Jonesboro, because they think it’s so fun,” said Jamie Rayford, the chamber’s chief operating officer.
“We’ll have the Queen of Hearts and the Mad Hatter and Alice, and the White Rabbit will be welcoming guests and helping seat them and all that,” Rayford said.
She said the chamber has a partnership with the Museum of Discovery in Little Rock.
“They will be giving out-of-the-box demonstrations,” she said, such as making different-flavored ice cream out of liquid nitrogen for guests to taste.
During the meeting, chamber ambassadors and Leadership Batesville graduates will be recognized.
“We’re also revealing three big new things for the year at that event, as well, so we’ll be announcing those,” Rayford said. “We’re just calling them community surprises.”
Crystal Johnson, president and CEO of the Batesville Area Chamber of Commerce, said a new scholarship program will be revealed, and pledges will be taken.
“There will be an opportunity for corporate donations, as well as individual donations,” she said.
A highlight of the evening will be the presentation of five awards.
“It’s a tough time this year. There are a lot of good projects and good candidates being nominated,” Rayford said.
Nominees are as follows:
Excellence in Business — Carlee’s Hallmark Shop, The Home Depot, Legendary Supplements and the Randy Reichardt Insurance Agency.
Leader in Education — Mark Sparks, a math teacher at Batesville High School; the Midland School District After-School Program; No Limits Therapy; and the University of Arkansas Community College at Batesville.
Leader in Health Care — AR Care and the White River Medical Center Emergency Department.
Excellence in Customer Focus — Debbie Jones of Colton’s, Legendary Supplements and Morningside Coffee.
Community Collaboration — The Arkansas Sheriffs’ Youth Ranch, Citizens Bank, David Thompson of Thompson’s Jewelry, Goodwill Industries of Arkansas in Batesville, Batesville Mayor Rick Elumbaugh, the Independence County Library, Merchants and Planters Bank, Myers Davis Life Coaching and Consulting, No Limits Therapy, the Randy Reichardt Insurance Agency, Renee Martin for the Kiwanis Christmas Parade, and Scouting Adventures in Leadership.
After the awards ceremony, dinner will be served.
Rayford said the chamber banquet was overhauled three years ago.
“We turned it into an annual meeting and the Imagine Tomorrow Gala,” she said. “The gala takes place after the meeting and gives an update on the Independence County Strategic Plan.”
She said more than 1,000 residents helped develop the plan.
“Every year in January, we update the community on ‘this is what we’ve done to get us closer to what you’ve imagined,’” Rayford said.
Johnson said the community reaction to the event’s new format has been “overwhelmingly positive.”
“We revived and reshaped our traditional chamber banquet to really make it an opportunity where we can bring our business community together and celebrate our accomplishments, but also give everyone an opportunity to network and be together in a fun, relaxed environment and really get to know each other outside of work,” Johnson said.
Dancing and entertainment are part of the gala. The Evasons, billed as a “mentalist duo,” will perform. The husband-wife team has been featured on NBC, FOX and on ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel Live! and as the headlining artist for the Walmart Shareholders meeting and the Ford Dealer Series.
Chamber officials said the act will be a fitting finish to the
Adventures in Wonderland theme. And guests might be pinching themselves to see if what they saw and heard was real.
Senior writer Tammy Keith can be reached at (501) 327-0370 or tkeith@arkansasonline.com.