Biz Hall of Fame Nominations Sought

Nominations are being currently being solicited for inductees into the 2022 class of the Salina Business Hall of Fame.

The Salina Area Chamber of Commerce established the Salina Business Hall of Fame in 2005.

According to the chamber, the special hall of fame is to honor prominent business leaders both past and present, which have made extraordinary contributions to Salina, earned the respect of the Salina community and exemplified the Free Enterprise  System.

Categories for nominations include:

  • Pioneer Award – 1858 – 1925
  • Historic Award – 1926 – 1975
  • Contemporary Award – 1976-present

“The Business Hall of Fame honors the achievements of Salinans who have made outstanding contributions
to the development and enhancement of Salina’s business climate and created a lasting impact on the Salina
community overall,” stated Eric L. Brown, Chamber President and CEO. “It’s the Chamber’s way of saying
thank you and recognizing the men and women who have helped make Salina the community it is today.”

Nominations can be made by both Chamber members and the general public. Nominees will be considered
on the basis of several criteria which include business excellence, entrepreneurial spirit, courageous thinking
and actions, inspiring leadership, community impact, positive role model, enduring accomplishments and
local influence. Individuals nominated in previous years will be considered again this year.

Nomination forms are available at the Chamber office, 120 W Ash, or can be downloaded by clicking on the Hall of Fame quick link on the Chamber’s homepage www.salinakansas.org.

The deadline for nominations is 5:00 p.m., Monday, July 25, 2022.

A special task force will determine the inductees. The inductees will be honored at a special luncheon this
fall. A portrait of each inductee will be displayed in the physical Business Hall of Fame room, located at the
Chamber office.

Inductees include:

  • 2005  – H.D. Lee, William Graves, JJ Vanier, Al Schwan, and Charlie Walker.
  • 2006 – Alexander Campbell, M.J. Kennedy, Milton Morrison, Charles W. Shaver, and Roy Applequist.
  • 2007 – Oscar Seitz, Ralph Reitz, William Exline, Murray Wilson, and Lee Young.
  • 2008 – Dean Evans and Paul Junk.
  • 2009 – W.W Watson, Whitley Austin, Verla Nesbitt Joscelyn, and Jack Vanier.
  • 2010 – were Benjamin Aaron Litowich, Thomas Watson Roach and Mike Berkley.
  • 2011 – James R. Allen, William R. Geis, and Ben A. Sellers.
  • 2012 – William Phillips, Dick Brown, and George Frisbie.
  • 2013 – Ward Marshall and Karl Stutterheim.
  • 2014 – Charles R. Underwood and Charles E. Stevens. Jr.
  • 2015 – Frank Hageman, Baalis Kyger Smoot and Tom Pestinger.
  • 2016 – Herman H. Sudendorf, Robert J.Laubengayer, and Sidney A. Reitz.
  • 2017 – Arthur M. Claflin, Dan Bolen, and Tim Rogers.
  • 2018  – Milton Stiefel, and Melvin and Marge Bergkamp.
  • 2019 – Earl Bane, Marshall Stanton, and Eugene and Margaret Logan.
  • 2021 – were August (AJ) Holmquist, Frank Norton, and Steve Ryan.