Business briefs

Chamber announces award nominees
The Brunswick County Chamber of Commerce’s community award nominations were announced at the chamber’s annual meeting on Thursday, Jan. 19. Nominees are as follows:
Employee of the Year
Carrie Gilliam, medical receptionist with Varnam Family Wellness Center; Mark Koval, resource development director with Communities in Schools; Gary Staley with First Federal Bank; and Gatha McKeithan, distribution system crew leader with the town of Ocean Isle Beach.
Citizen of the Year
W.J. and Sibyl McLamb with Farmstead Development Corporation and Meadowlands Golf Club; Diane McRainey, area executive vice president with Waccamaw Bank; C.D. Blythe, mayor pro tem of the town of Ocean Isle Beach; and Roger Cox, chief financial officer and executive vice president with ATMC Wireless.
Business of the Year
Jumpin’ Java Expresso Co., owners Daniel Beasley and Sonny Moy; Al Fulford Heating & Air Conditioning, owners Al and Teresa Fulford; The Printing Shoppe, Inc. & Smart Mail, owners Debbey Blythe and Regina Nichols; CertaPro Painters, owner Chris Holloway; Belk, store manager Keelie Cooper; town of Ocean Isle Beach, Mayor Debbie Smith; and Brunswick Novant Medical Center, Denise Mihal.
The results will be announced at the inaugural Chairman’s Gala: A Hollywood Affair at 6 p.m. Feb. 16 at 101 Stone Chimney Place in Supply. Festivities will include an evening of old Hollywood glamour, dinner, dancing, a silent auction, an awards ceremony and more. This is a black tie optional event and is open to members and the general public.
Tickets are $50 per person for chamber members and $60 per person for non-chamber members. Seating is limited. RSVP by Feb. 10. Contact the Brunswick County Chamber of Commerce at 754-6644.
The following sponsorships are also available:
Oscar Sponsor
Cost is $2,500 and includes: two tables for eight (total of 16 guests), special seating directly in front and center of the room, a sign on table with company logo noting sponsorship, sign on entry table with company logo, ability to present Citizen of the Year award during the awards ceremony, a special star on Walk of Fame, four months full-page ad in the chamber newsletter, recognition as sponsor on the chamber website and any advertising and recognition as sponsor during awards ceremony.
Emmy Sponsor
Cost is $1,000 and includes: table for eight, special seating in front of room, sign on table with company logo noting sponsorship, special star on Walk of Fame, full-page ad in the chamber newsletter, recognition as sponsor on the chamber website and any advertising and recognition as sponsor during awards ceremony.
Contact Kelly Mathews at 754-6644 for more information.

Opinions sought on online Chamber poll
The Brunswick County Chamber of Commerce is currently conducting bi-weekly polls on its website (www.brunswickcountychamber.org) to get feedback. The current topic is regarding a proposed five-day earlier school start.
The chamber will also publish this information in its monthly newsletter. Check the chamber website on a regular basis for new and updated polls.

Wilmington Health adds Faust
Wilmington Health Pediatrics welcomes Jeffrey Faust, MD, who will see patients at all three pediatrics facilities: 2421 Silver Stream Lane, 4320 Henson Drive (North Chase) and 1333 South Dickinson Drive in Leland (Brunswick Forest).
“Our children’s well-being is always our top priority as parents,” said Jeff James, CEO of Wilmington Health. “That’s why at Wilmington Health, we make it a precedent to find the most qualified and talented physicians to join our pediatrics team. We have found that in Dr. Faust.”
As a pediatrician, Faust will care for patients from birth through 18 years of age. He will promote healthy childhood development through preventative medicine and wellness care.
Faust received his bachelor’s degree in biochemistry from the University of Missouri-Columbia and earned his medical degree from its school of medicine. He completed his residency at the Medical University of South Carolina Department of Pediatrics in Charleston and has spent the past several years working in a pediatric practice in Beaufort, S.C.
To make an appointment with Dr. Faust, call Wilmington Health Pediatrics at 763-2072.

Home Show, Stew Cook-Off applications posted online
The Brunswick County Chamber of Commerce has announced that the sponsorships, vendor and exhibitor applications for the Brunswick Islands Home & Garden Show and the Brunswick Stew Cook-Off are now available on the chamber website at www.brunswickcountychamber.org. For additional information, contact Kelly Mathews at 754-6644.

Corps of Engineers to dredge inlets
U.S. Congressman Mike McIntyre announced the approval of the Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) negotiated between the United States Army Corps of Engineers and the State of North Carolina to pay for dredging to occur at Carolina Beach, Lockwood Folly and New Topsail inlets.
McIntyre has advocated on behalf of the communities in the agreement to Jo-Ellen Darcy, assistant secretary of the Army for Civil Works, and has pushed the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to expedite the approval of the MOA.
“Further delay in addressing the shoaling that has narrowed the inlet waterways compromises the safety of boaters in the region and, in some cases, has lead to the closure of the inlets all together,” McIntyre said. “Now that the agreement has been approved, the Corps Dredge Merritt can begin the work that is needed in the inlets so that the Coast Guard can put the buoys back in place that are necessary for passageway through the inlets.”
The MOA that has been agreed to would allow state and local communities to pay the Army Corps to dredge identified inlets in the Intracoastal Waterway. These inlets are important to the local commercial and recreational fisherman, as well as the tourism industry, which is the economic lifeblood of the Cape Fear region.
McIntyre has long been a supporter of investments to coastal infrastructure and Coastal Storm Risk Management Projects and has worked throughout his time in Congress to provide assistance to the beaches and waterways of Southeastern North Carolina.