Serving Boone, Blowing Rock, Banner Elk, and other towns of the North Carolina High Country
Founded 05-05-05
April 17, 2008 issue
Thirteen Locals Receive Customer Service Awards from Boone Chamber
Story by Sam Calhoun
Residents may have thought the Publishers Clearing House Prize Patrol was visiting Boone last week, but it was actually the Boone Area Chamber of Commerce Customer Service Prize Patrol cars zipping to a dozen different businesses in the High Country handing out awards for exceptional customer service.
Twelve different businesses and thirteen individuals received awards last week during the Boone Chamber’s Customer Service 
Week. During the week, employers got the chance to nominate one of their employees for a customer service award. Lynda Norris of Wachovia, T.J. Penley of GDS, Bill Fisher of MTN, Betty Watson of the Watauga Medical Center Wellness Center, Billy and Nicole Shoemake of the Foscoe Country Store, Billie Foster of the Town of Boone, Christine Millington-Sheets of diSanti Watson Capua & Wilson, Kathy Parham of The Playhouse, Ashley Laws of 
Woodlands Barbecue and Sandy Shook of Mountain Times Publications all won the awards that were distributed at surprise times from Monday to Friday of last week.
In the past, the Boone Area Chamber of Commerce held a luncheon to honor award winners, but this year the chamber staff decided that more people would take notice if 
they surprised winners with the awards at random times throughout the week. The new format also allowed the chamber to honor more people with the awards than in years past.
“It gave us a greater opportunity to celebrate more people’s exceptional customer service,” said Dan Meyer, president of the Boone Area 
Chamber of Commerce, who, with his staff, greeted every award winner personally. “We had more fun doing it. We surprised everyone—no one knew we were coming.”
The nominators of each award helped to assure that the awards were surprises. Ginny and Bill Campbell, co-owners of The Webb Moving Company, delayed departure times for 
their trucks so that all of their employees could be available to see Ray Freeman get his award. One employer and nominator even took the step to tell all of his employees that they had to attend a 401-K meeting the next morning. Instead of the meeting, the employees were greeted with the Boone Area Chamber of Commerce Customer Service Prize Patrol when they arrived. The prize 
patrol even interrupted a taping at MTN to surprise Bill Fisher.
Each award winner received a bouquet of flowers, a gift card to a local restaurant and a plaque to hang on the wall of his/her office.
“We generally made a ruckus everywhere we went,” said Meyer, who passed out awards in front of customers and employees. “[By passing out the awards in public and by surprise] it really focused the awareness. It was all about honoring outstanding customer service; it’s what makes or breaks businesses every day.”
