Vermont Business Magazine The Burlington Business Association announced its winner for the Tim Halvorson Award for Business Person of the Year at its annual dinner Thursday night. This year’s winner is Brigitte Ritchie, Director of Public Affairs and Community Relations at KeyBank. Ritchie is based in KeyBank’s Vermont District headquarters office at 149 Bank Street in Burlington. Prior to rejoining KeyBank, Ritchie was director of Public Affairs and Community Investments for Citizen’s Financial Group. She also worked as vice president and commercial real estate lender for Citizen’s Financial Group. Ritchie originally joined KeyBank in 1991, serving as vice president and commercial real estate and small business lender.
Brigitte Ritchie, KeyBank. Vermont Business Magazine photo.
An active member of the community, Ritchie has served as Chair of the Board for the Committee on Temporary Shelter (COTS) and on the boards of the Greater Burlington YMCA, and the Lake Champlain Regional Chamber of Commerce Workforce Investment Board. She has also managed the United Way’s loaned executive program. In 2009 she received the Vermont Bankers Association Award for Excellence and the Lake Champlain Regional Chamber of Commerce’s Community Excellence Award. In her free time Ritchie runs Golden Huggs, “a very small group of volunteers who have made it our mission to find loving suitable homes for (otherwise) displaced, abandoned, or stray golden retrievers and golden mixes.”
“Brigitte Ritchie is an amazing member of the Burlington business community. She understands in a deep way the important role our local business plays in keeping our economy vital and our social safety net strong,” says BBA Director Kelly Devine.
Formerly the Nate Harris Award, the Tim Halvorson Award was established in 2009 and acknowledges an individual’s “outstanding contributions to the economic vitality of Burlington.”
BBA Business of the Year award is Perrywinkle’s Fine Jewelry. Perrywinkle's Fine Jewelry is committed to supporting the Burlington community, customers & local institutions. Their jewelry is Vermont-made using ethically sourced precious metals, diamonds and gemstones. Perrywinkle diamonds are purchased direct from Debeers mines, cut in their own factories with Perrywinkle’s proprietary patented cut. Perrywinkle’s Fine Jewelry prides themselves on finding beautiful and exquisite jewelry by hand selecting the finest diamonds and colored gemstones from around the world.
Although they have five stores scattered through Upstate New York and Montreal, Perrywinkle’s considers Burlington to be their home. In the back of their Main Street location is a national manufacturing facility, which allows them to create custom jewelry and do all of their gem cutting in house for the entire chain. In addition to Perrywinkle’s original designs, they also team up with local artists to produce new lines, most recently was with Burlington sculptor Kat Clear.
Perrywinkle’s creates a satisfying customer environment by working to create friendships rather than making sales. These friendships don’t end in the store. Perrywinkle’s is continuously giving back to the Burlington community by being a frequent donor to charity auctions.
The winner of the 2016 Architectural Award is the King Street Center.
The new King Street Center is double the size of its predecessor, at about 23,000 square feet. The sleek red exterior is modern, yet it still fits the character of the neighborhood, an important consideration to principal architect Rolf Kielman of TruexCullins. The roof of the building has solar panels and a play area with a great view of the neighborhood.
The Architectural Excellence Award was established in 1986 in honor of Hertzel Pasackow, owner of the Mayfair on upper Church Street, and founding member of both BBA and the Church Street Marketplace Commission.
Award winners were announced and honored at the BBA Annual Dinner at the Hilton Burlington on April 7th.
Visit www.burlingtonbusinessassociation.com for more information