Greater Valley Chamber of Commerce to host 43rd Gold Seal Awards Ceremony

SHELTON >> The Greater Valley Chamber of Commerce will recognize five individuals and their outstanding achievements in the community Thursday at the 43rd Annual Gold Seal Awards Banquet.

The Chamber will present five awards consisting of the Silver Medal Award, three Gold Seal Awards and the Platinum Award to our region’s business and community leaders who exemplify the spirit of selflessness and volunteerism; these awards are among the most prestigious and time-honored community service awards in the Valley. Janice Sheehy, 1994 Gold Seal recipient, will be presiding over the event as master of ceremonies.

The Silver Medal Award has only been presented 26 times and was first awarded in 1986. The Chamber has presented the award to recognize volunteer groups or partnerships that have made extraordinary contributions to the community or to recognize an individual’s dedicated service and assistance to the community. This year’s Silver Medal Award recipient is The DiMatteo Family Charitable Foundation (Shelton) created in 2010 as a tribute to their late father, Anthony. Over the years they have raised over $225,000 and helped area charities such as Boys & Girls Club, Moving with Hope, Spooner House, Project Purple and BHcare, to name a few.

The Gold Seal Award has been presented to 149 individuals since 1971. This award is given annually by the Chamber to a recipient who demonstrates outstanding community service through dedicated and effective leadership. The Gold Seal Award this year was presented to Robert M. Bradley (Beacon Falls), Susan Coyle (Shelton) and George S. Logan (Ansonia). Bradley is a founding member of the Beacon Falls Merchants Association and proud member of the Beacon Falls Economic Development Commission and the Beacon Falls Lions Club. Bob can also be found assisting with small fundraisers and at many of the town’s events. Coyle has devoted countless hours as the co-chair for Griffin Hospital’s Breast Wellness Center Campaign and now Valley Goes Pink Initiative. She has been active as a corporator for Valley United Way and Griffin Hospital, as well as a director for the Shelton Economic Development Corporation, the Valley Community Foundation and Secretary for the Center Stage Board. Logan serves on the Junior Achievement of Western CT Board of Directors, the Griffin Hospital Board of Directors and the Central Connecticut Coast YMCA Board. He is a corporator for the Boys & Girls Club and he also has assisted with TEAM’s fundraising efforts.

In 2001, in honor of the 30th anniversary of the Gold Seal Awards, the Chamber introduced the Platinum Award. Only 14 individuals have received the Platinum award and it is presented to a past Gold Seal recipient of at least 10 years who is still dedicated to volunteering their time and resources on behalf of the Valley Community. The year’s Platinum Award honoree is prominent Valley attorney, Dominick J. Thomas (Woodbridge), a 1991 Gold Seal Award recipient. With over 30 years of service on the boards of both the Boys & Girls Club and BHcare and 20 years on the board of VARCA, there’s no denying Thomas’ dedication to the community. He recently began his 8th year of service on the Valley United Way Board of Directors. He was a member of the Valley Advisory Committee of the Community Foundation of Greater New Haven as well as the Katharine Matthies Foundation Advisory Board, Oxford Charter Commission and Oxford Town Council. Through the years, Thomas has been recognized with numerous awards including the CGFGNH President’s Award, the Sharon Bryce Holly Community Hero Award and most recently the Charles H. Flynn Humanitarian Award from the Valley United Way in 2010.

The combined efforts of all our recipients, both past and present, have resulted in lasting contributions in the Greater Valley communities of Ansonia, Beacon Falls, Derby, Oxford, Seymour, and Shelton.

A banquet, sponsored by Aquarion and People’s United Bank, honoring the recipients will be held Thursday at Grassy Hill Country Club in Orange.

For more information, contact the Greater Valley Chamber at 203-925-4981.

This is a press release from Bill Purcell, Greater Valley Chamber of Commerce.