Lincoln Chamber Crowns Business Award Winners

Everyone needs a champion in their life, someone who is in their corner advocating for their success at every turn in the road.

At the Lincoln Chamber of Commerce, we want to be your champion.

That’s why we celebrate the successes of our members through the Celebrate Business Awards. Once again we have eight outstanding winners. I hope you will join me in congratulating them for being recognized by their peers.

THE 2016 CELEBRATE BUSINESS AWARD WINNERS ARE:

BURNHAM YATES CITIZENSHIP AWARD: Angie Muhleisen

BURNHAM YATES CITIZENSHIP AWARD: Angie Muhleisen

Angie Muhleisen serves as President and CEO of Union Bank & Trust Company. She is responsible for the company’s growth, financial performance, bank-wide succession planning and bank culture. The bank’s success is based on the simple philosophy of caring about each other, the customer and the community. A key element in developing this caring approach is promoting a work/life balance. Associates are encouraged to make life outside of work their highest priority. As the CEO, Muhleisen is dedicated to the associates of the bank and acknowledges they are the most important ingredient to the UBT’s success.

ROGER T. LARSON COMMUNITY BUILDER AWARD: Doug Emery

ROGER T. LARSON COMMUNITY BUILDER AWARD: Doug Emery

Doug Emery is a lifelong Lincoln resident of 63 years who served in the Nebraska National Guard, is a veteran of the U.S. Army and retired from the U.S. Postal Service in 2007 after 35 years of service. He is married to Denise and has two children, Jennifer and Shane, and four grandchildren. Emery was on the Lincoln City Council for eight years.

CORNERSTONE AWARD: Nelnet

CORNERSTONE AWARD: Nelnet

Nelnet’s roots go back to the formation of UNIPAC in 1978. UNIPAC was created to service student loans for two Nebraska banks: Union Bank & Trust and Packers National Bank. In 2000, UNIPAC merged with Nelnet, a student loan acquisition and financing company that formed in 1996. The combined company built on this initial foundation to become a leading originator, holder and servicer of federal student loans. Today, Nelnet is a diverse and innovative company with a focus on delivering education-related products and services and student loan asset management.

ENTREPRENEURIAL SPIRIT AWARD: Quantified Ag

ENTREPRENEURIAL SPIRIT AWARD: Quantified Ag

Quantified Ag is a precision livestock analytics company that provides state-of the-art sensors and software subscriptions to livestock producers throughout the concentrated feeding industries.

GREEN BUSINESS OF THE YEAR AWARD: Bosch

GREEN BUSINESS OF THE YEAR AWARD: Bosch

The Lincoln, Nebraska location began its zero-waste-to-landfill initiative in the fall of 2013. Since that time, additional local partnerships have been set up for recycling packaging materials, pallets and foam. These efforts have allowed Bosch to switch from a 40-yard roll-off compactor to a 2-yard dumpster. As of September of 2016, Bosch’s facility has reduced landfill waste by 97% since the initiative began.

SMALL BUSINESS OF THE YEAR AWARD: Honest Abe’s

SMALL BUSINESS OF THE YEAR AWARD: Honest Abe’s

GroundUP Restaurants was created in 2011 by Erik Hustad and his cousin, Gabe Lovelace.

GroundUP’s first venture was the “GUP” food truck. The first Honest Abe’s opened in 2012 and quickly amassed a loyal following. Due to the restaurant’s overwhelming success, “GUP” was retired, which allowed Hustad and Lovelace to dedicate all their energy to making Honest Abe’s the best burger restaurant possible.

MANUFACTURER OF THE YEAR AWARD: Benchmark Biolabs & Antelope Valley Bios

MANUFACTURER OF THE YEAR AWARD: Benchmark Biolabs & Antelope Valley Bios

Benchmark Biolabs (BBL) is a 20-year-old biologics service company that brings biological assets and technologies to market around the world. BBL provides clients with a full range of scalable services focused on validation, development, licensure and commercialization of unique technologies. Collectively, BBL’s 40 team members are responsible for over 100 patents, 200+ USDA and FDA licensed products and establishments and many groundbreaking technology introductions.

TOURISM DEVELOPMENT AWARD: Pink Gorilla Events

TOURISM DEVELOPMENT AWARD: Pink Gorilla Events

Pink Gorilla Events is an independent event production company based in Lincoln, Nebraska. Founded in 2008, their events have grown to over 20,000 runners and include the Market to Market Relay Series, Good Life Halfsy and the Born & Raced In Nebraska 10K Series. Pink Gorilla Events is a small business that provides large-scale economic impact, community wellness and charitable programs through their events.


Logo-Lincoln-Chamber-of-CommerceThe Chamber’s mission is to improve the lives of Lincoln residents by providing increased economic opportunity and can only be accomplished together. For more information on the Lincoln Chamber of Commerce, (www.lcoc.com) please contact Jaime Henning at jaimehenning@lcoc.com.