By John Balch
News-Leader
The Nashville Chamber of Commerce will incorporate America’s 250th anniversary celebration into its awards banquet this year and is now actively seeking pictures of those who have served our country to be displayed during the event, according to Tim Pinkerton, NCC executive director.
Pinkerton said the chamber plans to honor and/or memorialize those individuals with special placement of the pictures, with short biographies, on the banquet tables.
Persons wishing to submit pictures of those who served (living or deceased) for inclusion are urged to do so by Monday, Feb. 9.
Pictures should be emailed to: [email protected] and include a short bio of the subject.
The NCC’s annual banquet to honor “the leaders, volunteers and champions of our community” will be held Monday, Feb. 16 at the Nashville High School Cafeteria.
“As we celebrate our country’s milestone, we will also be celebrating our own,” the chamber noted online.
Keeping with the America250 theme, ticket sales for the event will be capped at 250. The cost will be $30 per ticket or $180 for table of six and can be purchased from a link provided on the chamber’s Facebook page or its website: nashvillearcoc.com.
For more ticket information, call the chamber office at (870) 845-1262.
This year’s banquet will be the last hurrah for Pinkerton, who is retiring his executive director position after three years on the job. He was also a chamber board member for six years, including a stint as president in 2012.
Pinkerton will surely be missed and so will his homemade cakes, which have raised big money in the past. One year, a Pinkerton-made hummingbird cake sold for $5,100 and then the next year an Italian creme creation went for $5,000.
Money raised by the cakes goes to a designated group and this year’s beneficiary will be the Nashville High School cheer squad, who will be waiting tables and working for tips.
“I’m thinking ‘chocolate’ this year,” advised Pinkerton, who noted that cake stock might go up as several elected officials and candidates are expected to be in attendance on Feb.\16.
The annual awards to be presented include: Woman of the Year, Man of the Year, Orange & Black Award and Lifetime Achievement. Pinkerton said all nominations are in and were tallied Monday.
The event will be catered by the Elior Group, which manages food service for the Nashville School District, with chicken donated by Tyson Foods and drinks and rolls from Chicken Express.
Pinkerton added the chamber’s auction will also take place Feb. 16 and the list of items continues to grow and will be published before the event.
