I had the pleasure of attending the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Awards for Orange County/Desert Cities last night along with Robyn and Hilary. This was my first time attending the event after hearing so much about it, and exceeded my expectations with the gorgeous venue, the great presenters and emcee and of course, the fabulous company. Each of the finalists were recognized with a video that played before the announcement of the winners in each category. This year’s finalists were especially impressive with their growth and success in the face of the current economic recession, and it was moving to see that the “American dream” (in which we can often lose faith because of dismal headlines and depressing stories) remained alive and well.
Congratulations to all of the finalists, whose stories were truly inspiring. Here is a list of the winners in each category (clockwise, starting from top left):
- Todd Davis, CEO, LifeLock, Tempe, AZ – Emerging Award
- Daniel, Kenneth and Henry Walker, Farmers & Merchants Bank, Long Beach, CA – Lifetime Achievement Award
- Sheldon Razin, Chairman, Quality Systems, Inc., Irvine, CA – Healthcare Services Award
- Brian Cescolini & Steve Jones, Co-CEOs, Universal Services of America, Santa Ana, CA – Services Award
- David Suder, CEO/President, KHS&S Contractors, Inc., Anaheim, CA – Construction Award
- Kerstin Block, President, Buffalo Exchange, Tucson, AZ – Retail/Consumer Products Award
- Jared Pobre, CEO, Future Ads LLC, Irvine, CA – Technology Award
Although the winners are recognized for their dedication and achievement, all of the entrepreneurs acknowledged in their acceptance speeches that they wouldn’t have made it to where they are today without the help of others, thanking their spouses, families, friends and supporters.
And of course, I had to add that dinner was delicious, and our friend Tracey Downey of Xan Confections/Susan’s Healthy Gourmet brought along these amazing chocolates that went perfectly with our post-dinner coffee.
Through the magic of my iPhone, I also tweeted the winners as they were announced live from the event last night – so if you’re not following HKA on Twitter, you’re missing out! Follow us at www.twitter.com/HKA_PR
Tags: Desert Cities, Entrepreneur of the Year Awards, Ernst & Young, Farmers & Merchants Bank, orange county, Susan's Healthy Gourmet
June 13, 2009 at 5:29 am |
linda, i like to think of this event as the true “red carpet” event of the business world in OC. E&Y does it so well (Roseann Wright amazingly brings it all together) and it really is a celebration of entrepreneurism at its best. We love being a sponsor, and handling PR for E&Y for this event. And of course also love when our very own clients make their way into the winners circle — this year, F&M Bank, and also Susan Johnson (SHG) as a finalist.
One more comment here — Linda was in charge of our media outreach and did a great job!
June 14, 2009 at 9:52 am |
[...] Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Awards 2009 « InsightsOUT [...]