Good time for all!

Such could be said of the Chamber of Commerce of the Mid-Ohio Valley's 100the anniversary dinner Thursday evening at the Blennerhassett Hotel. First-year chamber president/CEO Bonnie Grady, out-going chamber chairman Robin Ollis Stemple and their volunteers did an excellent staging the annual event ... the first held in a couple of years. The hotel-prepared food at the reception beforehand in the tent beside the hotel was superb and the 100 or so in attendance mingled freely meeting with old friends and making new ones.

Many of us had the opportunity to meet Bonnie's husband, George, who hadn't yet made the relocation to Parkersburg, and, as Bonnie said, has had to endure four-and-a-half-months of pizza while she was getting settled here.

As usual, the Blennerhassett staff and kitchen did an excellent job with the buffet meal — especially the desserts, which had everyone joyfully munching away.

Stephen G. Roberts, president of the West Virginia Chamber of Commerce, was the keynote speaker and urged all business people to contact their congressional delegation to urge opposition to anti-business proposed legislation, especially the Cap and Trade Bill and the Employee Free Choice Act, both of which will severely impact business in West Virginia, he contended.

Charton Management Inc. and Peoples Bank received Volunteer Business of the Year Awards for their organizational support hours of work spent organizing chamber events, respectively.

Barb Close, branch manager of Peoples Bank, was named Volunteer of the Year for hours of labor making the chamber more successful. To the chamber's credit, the well-organized evening moved along well and finished by 8:30 p.m.

For Bonnie's first chamber dinner here, this one will be hard to beat next year.

Good job all!