The ninth annual Best of Bolingbrook Business Awards, better known as the BOBB Awards is scheduled to be held on Friday, March 8, 2013 at the Bolingbrook Golf Club.
Now known as the area’s most elite business awards event in the western suburbs, the 2013 BOBB Awards will be presented by a cast of several sponsors including Adventist Bolingbrook Hospital, G & W Electric and The Promenade Bolingbrook. The evening is expected to draw hundreds of
attendees consisting of residents, businesses and civic leaders.
A host of celebrities and entertainers will welcome and entertain guests throughout the evening, including FOX News, Good Day Chicago Reporter and Bolingbrook resident, Sondra Solarte who will interview business celebrities on the red carpet upon arriving at the event. WTTW’s “Chicago Stand-Up Project” creator/host and Zanies Comedy Club House emcee since 2008, Patrick McGann will be emcee for the 2013 BOBB awards. Live musical entertainment by Sylvia Myintoo Duo.
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Along with the business awards, each year the Bolingbrook Area Chamber of Commerce recognizes two outstanding individuals for their commitment to business and community at the BOBB Awards. Tom Castagnoli, general manager of The Promenade Bolingbrook and chairman of Bolingbrook Chamber’s Board of Directors announced with honor the 2013 honorees are Sandra Swinkunas with the 2013 Lifetime Achievement Award and Patricia Fiaccato with the Business Leadership Award.
"Many of us have had the honor of working closely with both of these individuals and hold them in the highest regard,” Castagnoli stated.
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Sandra Swinkunas has been a resident of Bolingbrook since 1983. One of the first things she did after moving to Bolingbrook was to apply to be a commissioner for the Civic and Cultural Affairs Commission. In 1993, she was elected to her first term as a Bolingbrook Trustee; since then she has served five consecutive terms (20 years). Sandy has been committed to helping the residents of Bolingbrook in good times and in bad.
As a member and chair of the Public Safety Committee for the Village, she is committed to making Bolingbrook “A Place to Grow”, and safely. Besides the Public Safety, she is also a member of the Public Works Committee.
Swinkunas earned her BS in Elementary Education from Illinois State University in Normal, Illinois. She then earned her MS in Gifted Education from National Louis University and taught in the Valley View School District for 24 years before retiring in 2004. For the past nine years, Swinkunas has enjoyed being a Substitute Teacher in the District.
Swinkunas keeps herself busy with community events, friends, and family. She is a member of Westbrook Christian Church where she serves as team captain during church services, helps out with a Sunday school class, and volunteers for many activities within the church as well as mission trips. She has been a member of the Valley View Educational Enrichment Foundation for many years serving as a Board member and as the Fund Raising Chair for 13 years. She has also served on the Adventist Bolingbrook Hospital Foundation Fund Raising Committee, and the Will County Cares Advisory Group.
Upon moving to Bolingbrook in 1981, Pat Fiaccato
opened Pat’s Pals, a State Licensed Home Pre-School / Day Care in the Indian Oaks Subdivision. For 25 years Pat’s
Pals Preschool/Day Care provided a safe nurturing educational environment for parents and families of Bolingbrook and the surrounding communities. Her commitment to children has been long and steadfast throughout her career as a small business owner and that commitment carried over to the various activities and committees in which she served as a volunteer and committee member during the years of raising her family.
In December of 2003 the Fiaccato family purchased Nancy’s Pizza in Bolingbrook and developed a Mission and Vision Statement to be an active community partner and “Pay It Forward” by being personally and corporately involved in community organizations that benefit the youth of the community.
As the family representative of Nancy’s Pizza, she has offered her personal and professional service to organizations which give back to the youth of the community. Each of the organizations she has partnered with offer a wide variety of important services to the youth and families of Bolingbrook and the surrounding areas. Fiaccato has also served as a Board Member of the Rotary Club of Bolingbrook, a Board Member of Exchange Club of Bolingbrook Community, Kiwanis Club of Bolingbrook /Romeoville, Take Back the Night of Northern Will County Bolingbrook as Community Representative and the Bolingbrook Women’s Club and has formerly served as a committee member of Character Counts Coalition of Bolingbrook / Romeoville. In addition the Fiaccato family are annual sponsors to Bolingbrook Hospital Foundation, Fountaindale Public Library, White Oak Public Library, Naperville Public Library, H20, DuCap, Power Connection, Take Back the Night, American Cancer Annual Relay for Life, and Families in Transition.
An active member of the Bolingbrook Chamber of
Commerce serving on the Board of Directors as Board Liaison of Program & Signature Events she also volunteers her time to serve as a sitting committee member on many of the many Chamber events.
“Individuals like Swinkunas and Fiaccato are why Bolingbrook continues to be a vibrant place to live and to do business in the region. The Bolingbrook Area Chamber of Commerce is privileged to have them involved in our community and lives," Castagnoli stated.
Various other award nominations and awards will be presented at the event. For more information on the 2013 BOBB Awards or to learn about upcoming Chamber of Commerce events please call (630) 226-8420 or visit our
website at www.bolingbrookchamber.org.
