St. Marys wins Stahr Award
City was recognized at the GGLRVC awards reception
The St. Marys Theater was host to the Greater Grand Lake Region Visitors Center (GGLRVC) Annual Awards Reception on Thursday, with attendants celebrating the contributions and efforts of people who bring tourism to Auglaize and Mercer counties.
The event was done in conjunction with the Friends of St. Marys Theater and Grand Opera House, with Doug Spencer glad to help set things up. He set up tours for the participants to take before the event to show what they’ve done so far and what they plant to do in the future.
“I hope you have as much excitement as what the members of the Friends of St. Marys Theater and Grand Opera House have for bringing this place back alive,” stated Spencer. Construction and fundraising has been going on since late last year and they’ve made good progress so far. “I hope you can see as much potential in this place as what we do for resuscitating a downtown and really give a regional draw for events we hope to have happening here.”
Spencer was proud to announce an event coming to the theater within the upcoming bicentennial year.
The Lima Symphony Orchestra wants to hold an event on Jan. 22, 2023, where they will play their Heart by Candlelight on the stage.
“It will have about 45 professional musicians, our conductor is coming form Vancouver to be a part of all of this celebration and we’ll have a wonderful evening,” said Elizabeth Brown-Ellis, executive director of the symphony explained. She believes in the
project and she figures the stars aligned to bring the orchestra to the stage.
Spencer is excited about this event, as well as all of the progress the theater has made into getting restored within the past few years. He hopes to see the theater fully open by the summer of 2023, with plenty of events planning to grace its halls.
As for the GGLRVC, the two counties have had a really good year when it came to bringing back tourists.
While the pandemic had hit many popular places hard, the center is planning on bringing more people back with the new digital ad campaign and ongoing projects.
“We’re going all out this year,” said GGLRVC Executive Director Donna Grube. They have around $195,000 to spend on marketing and they intend to make it count by making videos focusing on cities like St. Marys, Celina and many more, as well as more physical ads. “All in all, it was a pretty good year last year, we’re very pleased with the rebound, and we’re hoping that we’ll be next year to talk about 2022, which is how we really blew it away.”
The event was helped along by past GGLRVC President Jonathan Williams, who received the Past President’s Award from current President Stacy Beougher. He was thankful for the opportunity to be at the ceremony.
“In appreciation for your leadership and dedication as 2021 president of the Greater Grand Lake Region Visitors Center Board of Trustees, we thank you
for your time, service and positive attitude,” Beougher said of Williams. They were thankful for the time he spent working with them and look forward to working with him in the future.
The Stahr Award and the Ambassador Award were also given out during the ceremony to deserving people and business that worked hard to make Auglaize and Mercer County great. The winner of the Stahr Award for the year of 2021 was the city of St. Marys for its work in upgrading its city and its potential hot spots at every opportunity.
“The current and former administrations have been very active proponents of developing the canal corridor, of building a vision and enhancing this part of local and regional history,” stated Wapakoneta Area Economic Development Director Logan O’Neill, who presented the award
alongside Jackie Martell, current director of the Wapakoneta Chamber of Commerce, as previous recipients of the Stahr Award. “They have moved those efforts forward by working together with local organizations and even other communities along the canal to achieve that vision.”
The Stahr Award goes to a group or organization that has done significant work toward developing the counties, which St. Marys has been named worthy of receiving. Kraig Noble accepted the award for the city.
The Ambassador Award, on the other hand, is the highest honor the organization can give to an individual that has given time and effort to make the two county area a better place. The award was given to former president and wearer of the Dancing Seymour the Seagull costume,
Matt Berry.
“This is a fun group, as it should be,” stated Berry. His work as president and mascot is something people are appreciative for and he’s glad to put it on at every opportunity. “I just want to thank everybody for being a part of that and really encourage everybody here to be involved in your community, be an active participant in your community.”
The reception ended not long after, with door prizes handed out to anyone that participated.
Make sure to take a look around or spread the word of events in both counties to support local businesses and tourist attractions. To donate money to the Friends of St. Marys Theater and keep an eye on the project’s progression, go to GrandOperaHouseLive.com or make a check payable to them at PO Box 382, St. Marys, Ohio, 45885.