South Suburban Small Business Association Hands Out Summit Awards

The South Suburban Small Business Association held its ninth annual Summit Awards breakfast on Feb. 16 and handed out its Summit Awards.

These annual awards honor leading business people and organizations that have contributed to the economic growth or the cultural well being of the region.

This year's award winners are:

Small Business of the Year

Sweet Annie’s Bakery 2500 Central Dr., Flossmoor. Sweet Annie’s opened October 2008 in downtown Flossmoor. It grew out the love that Anne Aboushousha developed from working many years working in The Shaker Baker while growing up in Elm Grove, Wis.

After college and working a couple of jobs and taking time off to start a family, her love of people and customer service motivated her to revisit the special love she had for working in a bakery.  Her business has grown tremendously in the short time since she started it.  She is known for her generosity of giving customers and browsers something to taste and something to try.  Her great customer service keeps customers coming back for more mouth watering treats.

Training Excellence of the Year

Free Flow Packaging, 16850 Canal St., Thornton. Free-Flow manufactures innovative protective packaging products and packaging systems.  Products include packaging-made-on-site, bubble, air cushions, Kraft paper cushioning and ready-to-use products, polyethylene foam, loosefill made of 100 percent recycled polystyrene or cornstarch and Kraft/bubble mailers.  Free-Flow Packaging is a privately held company with more than 500 employees worldwide and over $100 million in annual sales.

Economic Development Leader of the Year

Mayor Ed Zabrocki, Tinley Park. Ed Zabrocki has been mayor of the Village of Tinley Park since 1981, preceded by 10 years of service at the commission and board level. He was also elected and served as state representative.  Zabrocki has received numerous awards for his outstanding commitment to the community from a variety of local and even worldwide organizations, including the Tinley Park Chamber of Commerce, the Crisis Center for South Suburbia, and several newspapers.   He was a 2005 finalist for the World Mayor Award.

In 2006, the Commerce Department announced Tinley Park as the winner of the Excellence in Economic Development Award for urban or suburban economic development, recognizing commitment to sound, research-based, market driven economic development in helping to grow the local economy.  BusinessWeek named Tinley Park the best place in the U.S. to raise a family.

Creative Arts Organization of the Year

South Suburban Chorale, Albert M. Jackson Director. The South Suburban Chorale was started by Al Kindig in the 1960s.  The Chorale is an all volunteer, non-audition group consisting of members ranging in age from 17 to 70, representing a variety of cultural, ethnic and religious affiliations, whose members live in Chicago, and all over the South Suburbs and Indiana.

The 125-voice Chorale has established itself as one of the premiere singing ensembles of the Chicago Southland.  Under the direction of Albert M. Jackson, the Chorale has performed in concerts throughout the Chicago South Suburbs and Northwest Indiana.  This summer’s European concert tour is the third international tour the Chorale will have undertaken in its 45-year history.

 Each season, the Chorale performs 7-8 full concerts, and appears for the South Holland Martin Luther King Celebration, participates in the IL Philharmonic Holiday Concert and will be performing for the gala closing of the season for the IPO this coming May.

The South Suburban Small Business Association is a 13-year-old regional organization, serving 69 communities within the area bounded by Evergreen Park to the north, Gary to the east, Peotone to the south and Orland Park to the west.  Their mission is to assist and promote small businesses through programs and activities that provide economic benefits and opportunities while working to improve the economic climate of our organization’s service area.

For information, call Nancy Burrows or Carmen Garcia at 708-596-2000  ext. 2556 or ext. 2568.  You can register online at  www.sssba.org.