The annual Martinsville State of the City event, hosted by the Martinsville Rotary Club and the Greater Martinsville Chamber of Commerce, was slated to take place in mid-March this year, but like so many other local events, was postponed due to the ongoing pandemic. In this everchanging COVID-19 climate, the planning committee, led by Karen Dransfield, decided that there was not a clear path to holding an in-person event yet this year. However, Rotary members and the Chamber board of directors felt that it was important to preserve the major aspects of the occasion that brings business and community leaders together to celebrate all things Martinsville.

While the delicious dinner prepared by Lisa James, Heavenly Helpings Baked Goods and Catering will have to wait until the 2021 event, the committee chose to create separate virtual events – the silent auction, the awards presentations, and the State of the City speech by Mayor Kenny Costin (along with remarks by Darcy Quakenbush, Chamber board chair, and Steve Sonnega, outgoing Rotary president). 

“The State of the City Dinner is always a popular celebration and we hated having to postpone it, but it was the right thing to do. It has been fun coming up with different ways to honor the spirit of our annual gathering without doing it in person,” said Karen Dransfield, chair of the joint Rotary and Chamber planning team. She went on to say how much the committee appreciated the patience and understanding of the many generous sponsors who had committed to support this year’s event.

The Martinsville Chamber and Rotary Club would like to express our appreciation for the sponsors who have been so patient and flexible during this unprecedented time.

Platinum sponsors include Barnes & Thornburg, Boren, Oliver & Coffey, LLP, FBF Originals, Franciscan Health, Home Bank, HWC Engineering, Inside Morgan County, IU Health Morgan, Ivy Tech Community College – Bloomington, KeyBank, Kimley-Horn, Reporter-Times, and WCBK 102.3 FM Mid-American Radio. Those sponsoring at the Gold level are Citizens Bank, Collier for Commissioner, Edward Jones – Martinsville, Foley, Peden & Wisco, Meadow Lakes, Morgan Insurance Group, and SCI REMC. The planning committee looks forward to working with event partners Heavenly Helpings Baked Goods and Catering, Flowers By Dewey, Jacksonjunk.com, MWP Images, and Shields Designs in 2021 and is grateful for their understanding and support when the postponement decision was made.

Thank you, one and all!

Silver sponsors include Baird Private Wealth Management, Banning Engineering, First Merchants Bank, Hobson Chevrolet Buick GMC, Keller Office Supply & Printing, and Neal & Summers Funeral & Cremation Center. Bronze sponsors for 2020 are Berries & Ivy, Bradley & Darcy Quakenbush, Dalton & Co., DLZ Engineering, The Sterling Butterfly, and Visit Morgan County. We appreciate you all!

The planning committee looks forward to working with event partners Heavenly Helpings Baked Goods and Catering, Flowers By Dewey, Jacksonjunk.com, MWP Images, Inside Morgan County, and Shields Designs in 2021 and is grateful for their understanding and support when the postponement decision was made

To retain the surprise element of the awards presentation, the Chamber’s Outstanding Business Professional, Outstanding Business, and Ruth Rusie Spirit of Service Awards were presented to this year’s recipients at their businesses and recorded for posting on social media and websites. Jamin Baxter, Inside Morgan County, and Luke Helmer, Home Bank graciously agreed to assist us with these presentations.

Mayor Kenny Costin’s State of the City speech was recorded, along with remarks by Rotary president Steve Sonnega and Martinsville Chamber board chair Darcy Quakenbush, and was highlighted on the Chamber website, and the Chamber and Rotary Facebook pages.

The silent auction was a Facebook event and featured such items as a framed, signed Victor Oladipo jersey, donated by KeyBank; a beautiful necklace and earrings set designed and donated by Pam Hurst Designs; a desk chair, courtesy of Keller Office Supply & Printing; a stylish Coach purse contributed by Citizens Bank, and two high-end bourbon baskets donated by Duke Energy, just to name a few. The auction was conducted as a Martinsville Chamber Facebook event with bidding from June 19th to June 29th. We had great participation by our community and it was much appreciated!

The State of the City dinner also gives the Chamber an opportunity to honor its outgoing board chairperson. Tracy Scott, WCBK, served his second term as our board chair in 2019 and the Chamber is grateful for his leadership! 2020 board chair Darcy Quakenbush recently presented Tracy with the traditional gavel plaque as a small token of the Chamber board and membership’s appreciation.

The net proceeds of the State of the City event benefit Rotary Club and Chamber community projects, with a portion also being donated to a charity of the mayor’s choosing. Mayor Costin has chosen to donate his portion to the Haven Youth Center, now in its 22nd year of providing a safe place for middle school youth to hang out with friends, study, learn new skills, and to have an opportunity for service to the community.

Thanks to the support of our sponsors, Mayor Costin, along with Darcy Quakenbush, Martinsville Chamber board chair, and Sara Dungan, incoming president of the Martinsville Rotary Club, recently presented a check for $1500 to Haven Youth Center representatives Linda Presley, Director, and Pastor Roxie McNelly.