St. Mary Chamber of Commerce honors locals

Hundreds of people gathered Thursday evening at the Cypress Bayou Casino in Baldwin for the 2017 St. Mary Parish Chamber of Commerce banquet and annual meeting to honor community members for their contribution to the business community.
Receiving the Hospitality Award was Cheryl Kemper with the Fairfax House Historic Inn in Franklin. Kemper has been the Innkeeper at Fairfax House since 2009 and was nominated for the award by several businesses in Franklin for her staunch support of the local business community.
The Business of the Year Award went to the owners of DaT Sauce. Don Tabor and Scott Green started the family-owned company in 2012 and have since expanded to multiple store locations in 17 states.
The Citizen of the Year Award went to Raymond Price, who was described as someone who was always willing to lend a hand to a wide variety of causes within the community. Price was described as a selfless and tireless volunteer and advocate for the St. Mary Parish community.
Accepting the award for Non-Profit Community Service Award was Jennifer Gray on behalf of the Junior Auxiliary of East St. Mary. The organization was honored for their efforts focusing on child welfare and the needs of the citizens and children of St. Mary Parish.
The Virginia Tyler Guillotte Award, presented to an individual for exceptional contribution to improving the quality of life within the parish, went to Beverly Domengeaux. Among other activities, Domengeaux is active with the St. Mary Parish Council on Aging which is a non-profit organization which works to aid elderly citizens of the parish and help them maintain their independence for as long as possible in their own homes.
The last award of the evening, the President’s Award, was presented to three individuals who came together in the face of disaster to aid and rescue victims of the catastrophic flooding in and around Baton Rouge in 2016. Nicholas Loupe, Joshua Loupe and Chris King were recognized for their efforts in forming the ‘Cajun Army’, a group of people who descended on the affected region with boats to help in the rescue effort.
The numbers of people participating in the effort swelled due to the three honorees’ social media savvy and soon hundreds of people with boats were helping in the rescue operation. The ‘Cajun Army’ was featured in a number of mainstream media stories and received international attention for their heroic efforts to save lives in the wake of tragedy.