By By ROBBIE BYRD
News Editor
The Atmore Area Chamber of Commerce will hold its annual banquet Thursday, Jan. 10.
The sit-down dinner and speaker banquet, held each year to welcome incoming leadership and recap the chamber's progress during the previous year, will be held at 6:30 p.m. at the Lions Community Center.
Allen Bell will be officially inducted as the 2002 chamber president at the banquet.
Bell said he has many ideas for the upcoming year, as well as a new mantra for the retaining the cities young people.
Bell praised recent strides by other community leaders to improve the quality of life in Atmore, but says more must be done to coordinate these efforts.
Dr. Charles Petty, world renowned motivational speaker and comedian, will be the events keynote speaker.
Petty, a member of the National Speaker Hall of Fame, is self-described as a "family humorist, packaging profound, life-changing truths in humor."
Petty's topic for the banquet is "Winning communities are made of these: Strong economy, Caring volunteers and Stable families."
Bell said he is excited to have Petty speak at this year's banquet.
The chamber will also announce it's highly coveted Citizen of the Year award at the banquet. Nominations will be accepted until Jan. 4.
Reservations for the event can be made by calling the chamber at 368-3305. Tickets are available for $20 for chamber members and $25 for non-members.
Mims advises those who plan to attend to make their reservations early, as seating is limited.