Nominations currently are being solicited for the 2021 class of the Salina Business Hall of Fame.
The Salina Area Chamber of Commerce established the Salina Business Hall of Fame in 2005 to honor prominent business leaders both past and present, which have made extraordinary contributions to Salina, earned the respect of the Salina community and exemplified the Free Enterprise System.
Categories for nominations include the following.
• Pioneer Award – 1858 – 1925
• Historic Award – 1926 – 1975
• Contemporary Award – 1976-present
“The Business Hall of Fame honors the achievements of Salinans who have made outstanding contributions to the development and enhancement of Salina’s business climate and created a lasting impact on the Salina community overall,” said Eric L. Brown, chamber president and CEO. “It’s the chamber’s way of saying 'thank you' and recognizing the men and women who have helped make Salina the community it is today.”
Nominations can be made by both chamber members and the general public. Nominees will be considered on the basis of several criteria which include business excellence, entrepreneurial spirit, courageous thinking and actions, inspiring leadership, community impact, positive role model, enduring accomplishments and local influence.
Individuals nominated in previous years will be considered again this year.
Nomination forms are available at the chamber office, 120 W. Ash Street, or can be downloaded by clicking on the Hall of Fame quick link on the chamber’s website.
The deadline for nominations is 5 p.m., July 8.
A special task force will determine the inductees, who will be honored at a special luncheon this fall. A portrait of each inductee will be displayed in the physical business hall of fame room, located at the chamber office.
Following are the names of those who have been inducted into the Salina Business Hall of Fame.
2005: H.D. Lee, William Graves, JJ Vanier, Al Schwan, and Charlie Walker.
2006: Alexander Campbell, M.J. Kennedy, Milton Morrison, Charles W. Shaver, and Roy Applequist.
2007: Oscar Seitz, Ralph Reitz, William Exline, Murray Wilson, and Lee Young.
2008: Dean Evans and Paul Junk.
2009: W.W Watson, Whitley Austin, Verla Nesbitt Joscelyn, and Jack Vanier.
2010: Benjamin Aaron Litowich, Thomas Watson Roach, and Mike Berkley.
2011: James R. Allen, William R. Geis, and Ben A. Sellers.
2012: were William Phillips, Dick Brown, and George Frisbie.
2013: Ward Marshall and Karl Stutterheim.
2014: Charles R. Underwood and Charles E. Stevens. Jr.
2015: Frank Hageman, Baalis Kyger Smoot, and Tom Pestinger.
2016: Herman H. Sudendorf, Robert J. Laubengayer, and Sidney A. Reitz.
2017: Arthur M. Claflin, Dan Bolen, and Tim Rogers.
2018: Milton Stiefel, and Melvin and Marge Bergkamp
2019: Earl Bane, Marshall Stanton, and Eugene and Margaret Logan.
There were no inductions in 2020 because of the pandemic.