SCC to host Economic Visionaries Celebration: Last call for company nominations, due on Feb. 1

Spartanburg Community College will celebrate the contributions of Upstate businesses at the annual Economic Visionaries Gala on March 21 at the Spartanburg Marriott. Four Upstate companies from Spartanburg, Union and Cherokee counties will be named “Economic Visionaries” at the event based on significant contributions their organizations have made in transforming the Upstate business community. The event keynote speaker will be Mark Bellissimo, managing partner of Tryon Equestrian Group, LLC, which operates the Tryon International Center (TIEC) in Mill Springs, NC.

Upstate business professionals and community residents are invited to submit nominations of exceptional companies to be considered for the Economic Visionaries award. The deadline for nomination submissions is February 1 via the event website www.sccsc.edu/nominate, where the award application, guidelines, and scoring rubric are accessible. Nominated companies will be considered based on their support in the development of employees and workforce, economic investment in the community, environmental awareness and initiatives, and innovation (vision). Applications will be reviewed by a panel of area SC industry leaders. Selected winners will be notified in early February and announced at the March 21 event through a celebratory video showcasing the winning company’s accomplishments.

“The Economic Visionaries Celebration is an opportunity for our community to recognize outstanding companies, both large and small, and the many contributions they bring to our area. We are fortunate to have many successful companies throughout the Upstate, each bringing economic stability to our area that allows us to live and work in a healthy and prosperous community,” explains Henry C. Giles, Jr. SCC president. “As we prepare for our third annual Economic Visionaries event, we invite local organizations to participate by nominating a worthy company and by contributing as an event sponsor.”

Four companies will be named Economic Visionaries in the following categories:

Bea Walters Smith, executive director of the Advancement and the SCC Foundation, explains,  “A highpoint of the event is the keynote speaker, Mr. Mark Bellissimo. Under Mr. Bellissimo’s leadership, the Upstate region has transformed into a ‘horseman’s paradise’ through the establishment of the Tryon International Equestrian Center and bringing the 2018 FEI World Equestrian Games to our area.” Information on Mr. Bellissimo is available on the SCC Foundation’s website at www.sccsc.edu/ev19-speaker

The Economic Visionaries event was established in 2017 by SCC to celebrate outstanding companies making significant contributions to the Upstate. The inaugural event featured guest speaker James I. Newsome, III, president and CEO of the South Carolina Ports Authority, and named the following companies Economic Visionaries: Broad River Electric Cooperative, Inc., Gaffney, SC; Atchinson Transportation Services, Spartanburg, SC; The Timken Company, Tyger River Plant, Union, SC; and BMW Manufacturing, Inc., Greer, SC. The 2018 Economic Visionaries event featured Lynn Good, president and CEO of Duke Energy, and named the following companies Economic Visionaries: Crow & Bulman Engineers, Spartanburg, SC; Johnson Development, Spartanburg, SC; GSP Airport District, Spartanburg, SC; and AFL, Spartanburg, SC

Sponsorship opportunities for the 2019 event are available and information can be found on the Economic Visionaries website. Individual tickets will be available for purchase beginning February 1 via the event website.

For more information about the event, sponsorships and the nomination process, contact Bea Walters Smith at [email protected], (864) 592-4448 or visit www.sccsc.edu/economicvisionaries.