The Bowling Green Area Chamber of Commerce had two new honors to bestow at its 2023 Excellence Awards Luncheon Tuesday.

The Family Enrichment Center was picked for the chamber’s inaugural Nonprofit of the Year Award, and the Martin Management Group was named Minority and/or Woman-Owned Business of the Year at the National Corvette Museum.

“One of the things I’m most proud of, and I say every day when you talk to me, is that we are grassroots,” said Nickie Jones, executive director for the FEC. “There are a lot of organizations here that are doing great work, but they were mandated to exist. We were not.”

The FEC, founded in 1977 and incorporated in 1979, began when a group of Bowling Green residents banded together to form an organization to prevent child abuse.

According to its site, the nonprofit’s Victim Support and Education program works to stabilize families who have experienced domestic violence. The FEC offers parent education classes and supervised visitation services, along with running its Wee Care Childcare Center for kids ages 6 weeks to 5 years old.

“I think this is a testimony to what the community has done in backing us with volunteerism and financial support and just coming together,” Jones said. “Because we couldn’t do it on our own.”

Jones said she “wished we could close tomorrow” and not have to worry about child abuse prevention, but whether or not folks like to think about it, “children still are hurt.”

“We just work every day to continue that work, to continue to build families up, keep them together, support them,” Jones said.

Other nominees included the Alzheimer’s Association, the Barren River Area Child Advocacy Center, CASA of South Central Kentucky, the Historic RailPark & Train Museum, Hospice of Southern Kentucky, HOTEL Inc., Junior Achievement of South Central KY, Kentucky Apex Accelerator, Kentucky Kids on the Block, LifeWorks at WKU, New Path Recovery Home, the Salvation Army and United Way of Southern Kentucky.

Mother and daughter Gail and Amber Martin, CEO and business development director of the Martin Management Group, respectively, accepted the honor for their company that is somewhat of a rarity in the automotive business.

“Being a minority and a women-owned business, there are a lot of challenges with that,” Amber said. “In the automotive industry specifically, we are just one of 2% African American dealers in the nation.”

Cornelius Martin, previous president and CEO of the company, was killed in 2006 when a pickup truck struck his motorcycle.

Gail said the city embraced the family after her husband’s tragic death, and said the Martins are “loyal to Bowling Green. (We) love the people here.”

She said she stayed on as CEO to be an example to her children “and let them see what I could do, and then what they could do to pass on the legacy.”

Other nominees included: Allegiance Staffing, Be Happy Yoga & Salt Cave, Café Kindness, Jules with the Flowers, Mbellishevents, Mick Murf Construction, Nat’s Outdoor Sports, Timesavers Caregiving and Concierge, Triple Crown Auto and Glass and Wild Eggs.

Brooke Schakat, client assistant at the Perry Richey Group at Baird, was given the ATHENA Young Professional Award.

“This is something that I have worked towards for a long time. I actually started my career at the chamber and early on I adopted the ATHENA mission for myself,” Schakat said.

According to the award program’s website, ATHENA leadership awards are given to those who have achieved the “highest level” of professional excellence, contribute their time and energy to bettering the quality of life for those in their communities and work to assist others, “particularly women,” in realizing their leadership potential.

Schakat, a Greenwood High School alumna and 2011 Western Kentucky University graduate, has worked at the wealth management company since 2017. She is the immediate past president of Court Appointed Special Advocates of South Central Kentucky.

“I think surrounding yourself with the right team in place really helps with being flexible to go out and do things in the community,” she said.

She said a “set of fresh eyes” and the ability to incorporate new technologies are some of the benefits she brings as a young professional.

Other nominees included: Lydia Gilliam, Houchens Insurance Group; Maegan Hance, Triple Crown Auto and Glass; Jessica Heffinger, Glory Baby Ministry; Elizabeth Newbould, United Way of Southern Kentucky; Lisa Oliver, Abound Credit Union; Magen Siegrist, Farmers Bank & Trust; Katie Tabor, Foreman Watson Land Title and Ashlee Wilson of the Bowling Green Hot Rods.