Edmonson Voice, A Plus Family Healthcare Receive Chamber Business of the Year Awards At 2021 Event

Preserving Edmonson Pride, Creations by Ashlee and Tracy Win Awards for 2020

Patrick Merritt, CEO of A+ Family Healthcare, accepts 2020 Business of the Year from Edmonson County Chamber of Commerce Board Member Darren Doyle.

Madison Doyle, story and photos:
Multiple Edmonson County businesses were honored last night at the annual Edmonson County Chamber of Commerce dinner, which had not been held since 2019, due to the COVID pandemic. The event was a combination of 2020 and 2021 and was held at the Heritage Centre in Brownsville.

The Chamber honored the Edmonson Voice as the recipient of the 2021 Business of the Year, which was accepted by founder and director Darren Doyle. The fully digital news network, created by Doyle in 2014, quickly became the leading source of local news in Edmonson County with a weekly readership of 15,000.

Darren Doyle (right) accepts The Edmonson Co. Chamber of Commerce Business of the Year award, presented by Patrick Merritt.

For the 2020 awards, the Edmonson County Chamber of Commerce Business of the Year was given to A Plus Family Healthcare, a local non-profit Federally Qualified Health Center facility. The clinic, created by local pharmacists and healthcare professionals, serves 3,000 patients and has locations in both Brownsville and Sonora.

The Chamber also awarded a "Rookie Business of the Year" award to Creations by Ashlee and Tracy, owned by Ashlee Jaggers and Tracy Burba. They operate a multi-service and product business in the former WebbCo building on Main Street that features a salon, cafe, boutiques, and more.

Tracy Burba (left) and Ashlee Jaggers accept "Rookie Business of the Year" award at the annual Chamber of Commerce Dinner.

Additionally, Preserving Edmonson Pride (PEP) was honored with the Chamber's 2020 "Outstanding Service Award," for their vision and work dedicated to beautifying Brownsville. The non-profit organization is making strides to join with county and city governments for the purpose of obtaining grants and other funding to improve the appearance of the community for the purpose of increasing commerce in the area.

PEP (l-r:) Jeff Rich, Jeff Jacobs, Cindy rich, Shaska Hines, Andrea Brantley, presented by Darren Doyle.

Edmonson County Chamber Director Greg Hudson speaks at the 2021 annual Chamber dinner.

Chamber Director Greg Hudson said he was glad to be able to have the dinner after the 2020 ceremony was cancelled.

"We were unable to have this event last year due to the pandemic, and even though the awards for 2020 weren't given when they normally are, we had a great event tonight and were able to combine the two years worth of awards into one," he said. "All the recipients were very deserving of their awards and the Chamber is honored to give them."

In addition, Chamber board members Josh Roney (vice president) and Laura Lindsey (treasurer), who recently stepped down from their roles, were both honored for their many years of service to the Chamber and were presented their own awards. Other former board members Maegan Hance (president) and JC Sanders (member) were unable to attend but were honored for their years of service as well. 

Ray Durbin, Mike Stoyonovich, and Lisa Whobrey were also honored with Citizen of the Year Awards.