Happy days are here again!At least this seemed to be the sentiment among the many dozens of business owners, employees, family members and community leaders who gathered Saturday night for an evening of celebration and recognition at the Tolowa Dee Ni banquet room at the Lucky 777 Casino.Hosted by the Crescent City and Del Norte County Chamber of Commerce, the event honored the businesses and individuals who persevered during the past two years of frustration with the COVID crisis, and the on-again, off-again closure policies that took a heavy toll on local businesses.#placement_573654_0_i{width:100%;max-width:550px;margin:0 auto;}var rnd = window.rnd || Math.floor(Math.random()*10e6);var pid573654 = window.pid573654 || rnd;var plc573654 = window.plc573654 || 0;var abkw = window.abkw || '';var absrc = 'https://ads.empowerlocal.co/adserve/;ID=181918;size=0x0;setID=573654;type=js;sw='+screen.width+';sh='+screen.height+';spr='+window.devicePixelRatio+';kw='+abkw+';pid='+pid573654+';place='+(plc573654++)+';rnd='+rnd+';click=CLICK_MACRO_PLACEHOLDER';var _absrc = absrc.split("type=js"); absrc = _absrc[0] + 'type=js;referrer=' + encodeURIComponent(document.location.href) + _absrc[1];document.write('');Saturday night was a time to celebrate those who survived. Winners were named from among nominations made in various categories.Business Leader of the Year: Baird Rumiano, Rumiano Cheese Company.Other nominees: Marissa Borges, from Alexa Rose; and Lisa McKeown of State Farm.Business of the Year: Alexandre Dairy Family Farm.Other nominees: Fog Bank; Del Norte Office Supply; Fisherman’s Restaurant; Potter Real Estate; and Grocery Outlet.Community Volunteer: Kassi Marques and Doug Plack.Other nominees: Pete Craig; Connie Reidel; Paula Margarino; Dan Love; and Andrew Napier.Chamber of Commerce Volunteer of the Year: Jim Hooper.Non-profit of the Year: CASA of Del Norte.Other Nominees: Del Norte Mission Possible; Del Norte Trail Alliance; Del Norte and Tribal Lands Community Food Bank; and Humboldt Area Foundation/Wild Rivers Community Foundation.New Business of the year: Schmidt’s House of Jambalaya.Other nominees: King of the Grind Boxing; and Lillie’s Little Bakery.Resiliency Business of the Year: Christina’s Mexican Restaurant.Other nominees: Del Norte County Fair Association; Del Norte County Library; Port O’ Pints; Schmidt’s House of Jambalaya; and Sea Quake.Chamber of Commerce Ambassador of the Year: Tiffany Brown.Special Award as the “Greatest Emcee Ever!”: Kevin Hartwick for 34 years of amazing and amusing service to the Chamber of Commerce at special events, and for being “the greatest emcee on earth!:”Community Pride Award, presented by the Del Norte Triplicate to Chairman Jerry Lynn Thompson, on behalf of the more than 1,000 members of the Tolowa Dee Ni Nation, and its all-Tribal construction management of the new Tribal headquarters, set back from Highway 101 in the Smith River area, south of the Lucky 777 Casino. googletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.display('ad-1515727'); });