Great Chief selection supports span of community groups
<p>BJ Lupton, owner of Snappy's Sports Senter and a member of numerous community organizations, has been named the Kalispell Chamber of Commerce's 45th Great Chief Award winner. (Photo courtesy of the Kalispell Chamber)</p>
<p>Holly Jean Larson, manager of the First and Main Building in downtown Kalispell, is the Kalispell chamber's businesswoman of the year. (Photo courtesy of the Kalispell chamber)</p>
<p>Mark Pirrie, co-owner of Western Outdoor, is the Kalispell Chamber of Commerce's Businessman of the Year. (Photo courtesy of the Kalispell chamber)</p>
In recognition of his “exemplary passion for the community, service and magnetic charisma,” the Kalispell Chamber of Commerce named B.J. Lupton the city’s 45th Great Chief.
Lupton was recognized at the Kalispell Chamber of Commerce’s annual banquet Thursday night at the Hilton Garden Inn. Currently the owner of Snappy Sports Senter in Evergreen, Lupton has been involved with the Salvation Army, Evergreen Sewer and Water, Glacier Symphony and Chorale, and many others. He co-founded the Evergreen Chamber of Commerce, which continues to grow each year. He is also an advocate for accessible outdoor recreation in the community, underlined by the development of Snappy’s Pond and the “Hooked on Fishing, not Drugs,” program.
“I think he’s just got a really special level of service that has stretched across many organizations for a long period of time,” said Kalispell Chamber of Commerce President Joe Unterreiner. “I think he’s a great chief in the classic sense of the word.”
Along with his support of a network of community groups, organizations and causes, Unterreiner specifically lauded Lupton, who served in the U.S. Navy, for his Veterans Day speech a few years ago.
“He just gave an incredible speech,” he said. “I think people may not know about his military service as well.”
Unterreiner added that Lupton was a natural selection for the Great Chief Award, which is typically bestowed on someone with wide-spanning interests for the community.
“He’s just exceptional in service across many parts of our community, in the same sense that many of our Great Chiefs have been,” Unterreiner said.
One of the more focused efforts Lupton has made in his time within the business community was co-founding the Evergreen Chamber of Commerce. Evergreen Chamber Executive Director Bev Ferris said Lupton, the organization’s founding president, was especially deserving of the award for giving the community businesses a voice in the public realm.
“We’re very excited that he’s getting this major award,” Ferris said. “It’s just a prestigious award for B.J. because he’s such a humble person. We have a very vibrant business community and B.J.’s business, Snappy’s, is right in the center of it all.”
THURSDAY’S BANQUET and auction was themed “Your Chamber Defined,” which featured presentations about the inner workings of the Kalispell Chamber. Fundraising came in through a live auction, headed toward next year’s chamber actions and initiatives to foster business, economic and community projects. In 2017, the chamber looks to secure and increase recently-acquired airline routes to Chicago, Los Angeles and San Francisco, as well as focusing on upcoming infrastructure options and awarding scholarships to manufacturing students.
In addition to Lupton’s Great Chief Award, the chamber recognized a selection of community business leaders. Kristin Ahonen, of the Flathead Beacon, and Lloy Griffing, of FloodCo LLC, received the Outstanding Contribution Award, a new honor added by the Kalispell Chamber this year to highlight service to the chamber by a committee member.
Ahonen stepped up into the chamber ambassadors recruitment position and has since garnered 13 new members, each of which have contributed to the success at chamber programs and events.
Griffing chaired the chamber ambassadors committee this year, noted by the organization as one of the most active leaders ever on the committee. He contributed time and resources to each chamber event, while taking on work in public relations.
For her contributions to a breadth of local groups and organizations, Holley Jean Larson was named Businesswoman of the Year. The manager of the First and Main Building in downtown Kalispell has helped organizations like the Flathead Valley Community College Foundation, the ALERT program, Whitefish’s Alpine Theatre Project, United Way and others.
Mark Pirrie, co-owner of Western Outdoor, took the title of Businessman of the Year, nominated by several different Kalispell business owners. The chamber and his nominators nodded to Pirrie for Western Outdoor’s placement as a long-standing feature of downtown Kalispell. Outside the retail shop, Pirrie supports local 4-H programs, volunteers at St. Matthew’s Catholic School and its advisory council as well as its basketball program, and is involved with the Kalispell Parking Commission.
Reporter Seaborn Larson may be reached at 758-4441 or by email at slarson@dailyinterlake.com.