Awards, toasts and hearty back-slapping were on the menu when the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce held its annual winter gala at the El Caribe Country Club.
Business and political leaders from across the borough were hailed for their work at the Dec. 8 fete — and some were even singled out for special accolades.
Those honorees included state Sen. Marty Golden (R–Bay Ridge), Assemblyman Joe Lentol (D–Williamsburg) and Councilman Domenic Recchia (D–Coney Island), in addition to Bay Ridge Ford, the Brooklyn Nets, and Luna Park.
Lentol and Golden were named 2011 Chamber Champions for sponsoring legislation supporting Brooklyn Health Works, the chamber’s low-cost health insurance program covering more than 700 small businesses.
Lentol returned the good faith by crediting the organization with the borough’s commercial successes.
“Brooklyn is on the move, and it’s not only because of the things we have been able to do in Albany, but it’s because of the dynamic leadership that this Chamber and [its] members provide,” he said.
Astoria Federal Savings’s Perry Shapiro, a retired chamber board member, also received a special lifetime achievement award.
— Shavana Abruzzo
Reach reporter Shavana Abruzzo at sabruzzo@cnglocal.com or by calling (718) 260-2529.
