Chamber of Commerce Awards Dinner

The Winthrop Chamber of Commerce, under the direction of executive director Betsy Shane, will hold one of its biggest events of the year — the Chamber’s Community Awards Dinner — Saturday night at the Hyatt Harborside in East Boston. A capacity crowd is expected as the Chamber honors Winthrop business owners and community leaders for their contributions to the town.

We remember our former state senator, Anthony Petruccelli (who gave his farewell address last Thursday at the State House), telling the guests at the event two years ago that the Awards Dinner was one of the most impressive events that he attends throughout the entire senatorial district.

What gives the event so much distinction is that the honorees truly are humbled by the awards and the warm reception from the audience. The award recipients truly put their hearts into their acceptance speeches and it’s a great night for the families of the honorees as well.

We want to congratulate all of the honorees and we could go on and on about each individual.But we do want to say we appreciate the exceptional leadership of Fire Chief Paul Flanagan of the Winthrop Fire Department, who is a true credit to his family of firefighting professionals and to the department he leads each day. Firefighters and police officers have tough jobs that can take them to dangerous places every day they put on their uniforms and we appreciate all they do to keep our safe. We’re sure that Chief Flanagan is humbled by this award, but he is so deserving of this prestigious recognition.

And to Lifetime Achievement Award honoree David Goll, thank you for making the Winthrop Arms such an outstanding restaurant (we love your chicken pies!).

It truly is a local treasure where every patron feels welcome, with Dave on hand to greet each and every customer in a personal way. David has made a positive impact on this town and we look forward to joining his three children, Jonathan, Casey, and Chelsea, in honoring him Saturday night.