The Woodlands Area Chamber of Commerce honors award recipients

THE WOODLANDS, Texas - The Woodlands Area Chamber of Commerce recently celebrated its Annual Awards luncheon.

In addition to recognizing long-term chamber members for years of service, the following awards were handed out.

Diplomat of the Year - Zach Richmond, Rock Star Realty Group-Keller Williams

“After many years of Chamber involvement and sitting on several teams and committees, the Diplomat team has been one of the most rewarding committees that I have served on," said Diplomat Team Leader Kristy Villareal or Urban Woods Reality. "You may not know this, but the Diplomat team is the hardest working team in The Chamber. Next to Chamber staff, the Diplomats play a huge role in the way The Chamber operates. They welcome new members, attend ribbon cuttings, call you on your anniversary, help to run the networking events and assist the membership department in maintaining an annual target income. This years’ Diplomat of the Year came onto the team and took it by storm. They worked hard to attend events and welcome their new members. This person has brought laughter and liveliness to the team and we are so lucky to have them as a part of our group and our Chamber.”

Volunteer of the Year - Kathy Rifaat, Interfaith of The Woodlands

“She is impactful, caring, helpful and in one word: Selfless," said Missy Herndon, Interfaith of The Woodlands. "Over the years, this person has been committed to The Woodlands Area Chamber of Commerce, serving the Community Relations, Chairman’s Ball and Diplomat Teams. This person has been a Team Leader of both the Community Relations Team and Chairman’s Ball. A servant leader at heart, you will have seen this person working at the CrawPHish Festival, Taste of the Town Event, attending Business After hours, Ribbon Cuttings or Meet The New Member events. This person talks the talk and walks the walk of service, spending the last 12 years of her life helping building a more loving and caring community at a local social service organization. She has a tremendous love of people and the programs that serve them. Those that know her well have seen her shed many tears as she speaks about her work and the people impacted, especially, children. Her weekends are filled with serving others through one of the many projects of the National Charity League with her daughter or cheering on her son at his sports events or serving at one of the many events of Interfaith of The Woodlands. She is a great role model, leader, volunteer and amazing Mom to Ashley and Reed."

Citizen of the Year - Melanie Bush, Better Bookkeepers

“Our community and this Chamber are blessed with great leaders and some outstanding citizens," said Barry Blanton, Blanton Advisors, LLC. "We pride ourselves on civic responsibility, giving back, and community involvement. This person does all those things and more. They truly go above and beyond as a citizen. This person seriously cares deeply about everything that they dedicate time to. Their love and passion for people and causes is obvious. They are especially passionate about our youth, our schools and education. Their level of caring is evident in their actions and their hard work has resulted in positive actions. Our community, our schools and our children are better off because of the efforts and dedication of this person. This person is the Past-President and Lead Mentor for the Executive Women’s Alliance, which is a mentoring program for high school students, they are also the Power Mentor for the Montgomery County Association of Business Women. She has played a significant role in bringing the community together after all the teenage suicides that our community was faced with last year. She has emphasized the importance of letting all the children in our community know their individual worth. And she worked to help bring programs to fruition that drove the kindness matters campaign in an effort to raise suicide awareness. She is secretary of the CISD Board, the Founder and President of Better Bookkeepers, Inc. She is married to Alan and they have two wonderful young daughters Rebekah and Audrey."

Legacy Award - Ray Sanders, Woodforest National Bank

"The Legacy Award recipient is one of these rare individuals who reflects all that is good, and has never asked 'what’s in it for me,' rather how to be of help in any way," said Dr. Ann Snyder of The Woodlands Township. "He is a role model for the young and old. His dedication to The Woodlands and the county during the past several decades PLUS has been both unending and distinctive. His tireless efforts accent his numerous leadership roles focused on the community/people aspects of our area. He has served on many Boards and always displays true leadership. Serving on the Conroe Independent School District Board of Trustees as Immediate Past President, the Interfaith of The Woodlands Board of Directors serving as Chairman of the Board as well as Chairman of the Interfaith Community Clinic Board of Directors. An active public speaker and community advocate, he also has served on Boards of South Montgomery County YMCA, The Woodlands Chamber of Commerce serving as Chairman, and the Economic Development Partnership. For many years, he has been involved with The Woodlands United Methodist church and feels that it is part of his duty as a citizen to give back to help future generations by continuing to display eagerness, enthusiasm and commitment in these entities. He is Regional President of Business Banking for Woodforest National Bank where he has been employed for over thirty years. He has a Bachelor’s of Business Administration in Finance and a Masters of Art in Counseling, both from Sam Houston State University. He is a Licensed Professional Counselor and National Certified Counselor. He has taught workshops on lay chaplaincy and has taught courses on personal finance, budgeting, conflict resolution, anger management, leadership, customer service and has been a finance instructor for Sam Houston State University. Simply, he exemplifies all that the Legacy Award represents."

For full award details, visit The Woodlands Area Chamber of Commerce.