Local businesses receive recognition for hospitality, support, longevity
RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Brooke Bishop and Greg Stine, co-owners of Basil Wood Fire Kitchen and Lounge in Muncy, receive the Emerging Business award at the 137th Annual Meeting of the Williamsport/Lycoming Chamber of Commerce on Thursday at the Holiday Inn in Williamsport. Shown from left are Timothy J. Keohane, Director, Penn State Small Business Development Center, Robert J. Glunk, Chamber Chairman of the Board, Brooke Bishop and Greg Stine and Jason Fink, Chamber President and CEO.
RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Shannon Massey, Sr. Vice President and General Manager of Lycoming Engines thanks her co-workers while receiving the Staiman Family Large Business award at the 137th Annual Meeting of the Williamsport/Lycoming Chamber of Commerce on Thursday at the Holiday Inn in Williamsport.
RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Gus Genetti, owner of the Genetti Hotel, receives the Phillips/Plankenhorn Small Business award at the 137th Annual Meeting of the Williamsport/Lycoming Chamber of Commerce on Thursday at the Holiday Inn in Williamsport. Shown from left are Gabe A. Sinicropi, Jr.VP of Marketing, Willimasport Crosscutters, Jason Fink, Chamber President and CEO, Gus Genetti, and Robert J. Glunk Chamber Chair of the Board.
RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Brooke Bishop and Greg Stine, co-owners of Basil Wood Fire Kitchen and Lounge in Muncy, receive the Emerging Business award at the 137th Annual Meeting of the Williamsport/Lycoming Chamber of Commerce on Thursday at the Holiday Inn in Williamsport. Shown from left are Timothy J. Keohane, Director, Penn State Small Business Development Center, Robert J. Glunk, Chamber Chairman of the Board, Brooke Bishop and Greg Stine and Jason Fink, Chamber President and CEO.
RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Shannon Massey, Sr. Vice President and General Manager of Lycoming Engines thanks her co-workers while receiving the Staiman Family Large Business award at the 137th Annual Meeting of the Williamsport/Lycoming Chamber of Commerce on Thursday at the Holiday Inn in Williamsport.
RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Gus Genetti, owner of the Genetti Hotel, receives the Phillips/Plankenhorn Small Business award at the 137th Annual Meeting of the Williamsport/Lycoming Chamber of Commerce on Thursday at the Holiday Inn in Williamsport. Shown from left are Gabe A. Sinicropi, Jr.VP of Marketing, Willimasport Crosscutters, Jason Fink, Chamber President and CEO, Gus Genetti, and Robert J. Glunk Chamber Chair of the Board.
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Hospitality, staff support and longevity.
These three words/phrases were among those that summed up the focused theme of the 137th annual meeting and awards banquet of the Williamsport/Lycoming Chamber of Commerce on Thursday at the Holiday Inn.
Winners were: Emerging Business Award 2022 recipient, Basil Wood Fired Kitchen and Lounge, Muncy; Staiman Family Large Business of the Year, Lycoming Engines; and Phillips/Plankenhorn Small Business of the Year Award, Genetti Hotel and Suites.
Brooke Bishop and Greg Stine, owners of Basil, congratulated their staff and thanked customers for supporting them through the challenging years of the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
They described the support they received from the community and the committed staff through this pandemic period as "phenomenal."
Shannon Massey, senior vice president and general manager of Lycoming Engines, which, as a manufacturing plant, has been in existence for 177 years, also lauded the multiple members of the workforce at the plant on Oliver Street.
She noted their "passion to make high-quality products," and the commitment the staff has to share and give back to the community in a multitude of ways.
Currently, 15% of the workforce at the aircraft engine manufacturer are military
veterans.
The company also continues its strong relationship with United Auto Workers Union 787, Pennsylvania College of Technology and the U.S. Department of Defense.
Over the years, Lycoming has had different names, and early on produced sewing machines, before switching to automobile and then engines for aviation, Richard Staiman stated before handing out the award to Massey.
Gus Genetti, owner of the hotel at 200 W. Fourth St., said he was "deeply touched" by the recognition. Hospitality, he said, remains the second-largest industry in terms of economic impact in Pennsylvania.
Genetti also mentioned how two of the awards were focused on hospitality, and he drew a link to his own life as a pilot and Lycoming Engines as owner of a Piper airplane with an engine made at the factory.
"I'm a testament to their reliability," he said, adding, "I'm still here."
Genetti said he makes it a weekly endeavor to visit Williamsport every Thursday, leaving from his office in Wilkes-Barre.
He also joked about how the awards were given at the Holiday Inn, and how maybe the owner of this property, George Tsunis, could be feted at his hotel next year.
The awards included an opening video of 2022 business highlights narrated by Ted Minier.