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Former senator chosen for Lifetime Achievement in Business

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Former U.S. Sen. Roy Blunt is Springfield Business Journal’s 2023 Lifetime Achievement in Business honoree.

An independent panel of judges selected Blunt to be recognized on July 20 during the Economic Impact Awards, along with corporate awards and other individual honors. The awards recognize excellence in business, including employee and revenue volumes and impact on the community.

Blunt, a Springfield resident who cut his teeth in politics when he was appointed Greene County clerk in 1973 and rose through the ranks to become a two-term member of the Senate, officially left his legislative office on Jan. 3.

He served as president of Southwest Baptist University for four years prior to his first election to Congress in 1996 and was the top-ranking Republican on the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor & Pensions, which funds health and education programs.

As a member of the Senate Commerce and Appropriations committees, he supported the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act that was enacted in November 2021 and provided $25 billion over five years for airport projects around the country. In 2020, he helped to secure a $7 million federal Airport Improvement Program grant for the Springfield-Branson National Airport.

Blunt advanced from his Greene County clerk position – to which he was elected thrice and served 12 years – to become a two-term Missouri secretary of state. His election to the post in 1984 marked the first time a Republican had held the office in five decades. Blunt successfully ran for a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives in 1996, when he was elected to the 7th Congressional District for the first of seven consecutive terms. He was elected to the U.S. Senate in 2010.

SBJ’s 23rd annual Economic Impact Awards will present additional individual and company honors: SpringNet, a division of City Utilities of Springfield, as Business Advocate of the Year; Kum & Go LC as Philanthropic Business of the Year; Janet Dankert, president/CEO of Community Partnership of the Ozarks Inc., as Community Involvement Champion; and Care to Learn as Charitable Nonprofit of the Year.

Economic impact honors also will be announced in five categories based on years in business. Top honors in each category will be announced at the event next month. Finalists, in alphabetical order, are:

  • Hurts Donut Co., Next Level Solutions and TierOne Solutions LLC, in the 1-10 years in business category.
  • Jordan Valley Community Health Center, Phoenix Home Care & Hospice and Toth and Associates Inc., for 11-20 years in business.
  • Abacus CPAs LLC, Oasis Hotel & Convention Center and Discovery Center of Springfield Inc., for 21-35 years in business.
  • The Arc of the Ozarks, Citizens Memorial Hospital and Victory Mission and Ministry, for 36-74 years in business.
  • CoxHealth, Mercy Springfield Communities and Ollis/Akers/Arney, for over 75 years in business.

Find more information about the event at SBJ.net/EIA.

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reddings@missouritrustcompany.com

Lifetime Achievement in Business?? Per your biographic write up, the man has spent a grand total of zero years working in a for-profit business. For fifty years he has supported himself from the public treasury. Are there no actual business achievers you could recognize?

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