A large crowd gathered this past Thursday evening, at the Louisville Community Saferoom, for the dedication and ribbon-cutting of the facility, as well as the annual Chamber of Commerce Celebration.
The festivities began with a ribbon-cutting ceremony in front of the new facility, with Mayor Will Hill wielding the scissors. In attendance were all City of Louisville elected officials, along with other city officials and employees, members of Winston Partnership, state representatives, representatives of those companies who had a hand in the construction of the facility, and members of the community.
Hill began his dedication remarks with, “Welcome to your Louisville Community Saferoom, also known as The Dome. Tonight we make history. We dedicate this building and we have already ceremonially cut the ribbon, and now we dedicate this building for present and future generations, for the purpose of lifesaving.”
He added that like any project it has taken planning, perseverance and patience, and explained the process which led to locating the saferoom near the elementary schools on North Columbus Ave.
Hill stated that what has taken place within the past couple of years is unprecedented and spoke with great pride about the people of Winston County and Louisville, for there is a zeal to get things done.
He recognized the City leaders and thanked them for their courage and bold leadership, stating that it is a team effort and acknowledged that they took some risks to see the project through to completion.
Also recognized were Gregg Kennedy of Broaddus & Associates; Joey Henderson and Neil Waggoner of JBHM Architects; Ricky & Jordan Mordecai of Burks-Mordecai Builders and Louisville’s own David Crowson.
Also in attendance were State Representatives Joey Hood and Carl Mickens, Willy Weddle representing U.S. Congressman Trent Kelly, Noxapater Mayor Sammie Carter, and Tax Assessor/Collector Darlene Bane.
The celebration continued with a number of awards going to local residents:
Stevie Herrington – Forestry Award, presented by Winston County Extension Director, Jim McAdory.
Rusty Suttle – Farmer of the Year, presented by McAdory.
Just Teasin’ Boutik (Pam Higgason, Olivia Grimshel) – Retailer of the Year, presented by Will & Sarah Hill, 107.1 The Refuge.
Louisville Chief of Police L.M. Claiborne – Excellence in Public Service Award, presented by Will Hill.
Heather Thompson – Woman of the Year, presented by Brandi Krajewski, Pilot Club President.
Steve Quinn – Man of the Year, presented by Randall Johnson, Winston County Journal and Past Recipient.
Farrell Rigby and Gale Gregory – Lifetime Achievement, presented by Giles Ward, Past Recipient.
