Spencerport area community members
feted at chamber's annual dinner

The 2001 Spencerport Area Chamber of Commerce awards recipients will be honored at the group's annual dinner Friday, January 25 at the Whittier Party House.

Ralph Pembroke will receive the Clyde W. Carter Citizen of the Year Award. Pembroke has been involved with the Boy Scouts for 47 years, starting as a Scout himself. He then worked with scouting groups when he was in the military in Norfolk, Virginia and later in Palmyra, New York. Pembroke now works four nights a week with Troop and Pack 165 at St. John's Church in Spencerport. He teaches the three citizenship merit badges: Citizenship in the Community, Citizenship in the Nation and Citizenship in the World. He also teaches the Safety Merit Badge and is a Weblos leader.

An active member of St. John's Church, Pembroke works for Spencerport Central Schools' transportation office as a bus monitor on buses for students with disabilities. He also volunteers for the safety committee at the transportation office.

He and his wife, Nancy, have been married 42 years. They have four children and six grandchildren. While the children were growing up, Pembroke worked with Little League baseball, youth football and taught a Christian craft class.

Joseph Peworchik, owner of Walker Brothers Funeral Home, has been chosen to receive the Business Person of the Year Award. The nomination indicated that Peworchik's "example as a fine business person is outstanding." He is a past president and a current member of the Spencerport Kiwanis Club and is also involved in various community projects.

Don and Eileen Magin of Spencerport nominated Peworchik for the award. "Joe was a tremendous help to our family when our son, Jim, died. He handled things so beautifully," Eileen said. Never having to make funeral arrangements before, the Magins were faced first with the accidental death of their son in a motor vehicle accident, then, two days later, the death of Eileen's mother. "Joe was supportive, compassionate, concerned," she said.

Denny Marra, owner of Barefoot Landing on North Union Street, will receive the Civic Beautification Award for his efforts in "making a good plaza look better," as the nomination reads. Marra said that he bought Barefoot Landing in 1986 and basically "transformed the whole place." At that time there was only one building with a lawn and garden shop and a welding shop. He said that he "gutted it and brought it up to code." He also expanded and remodeled it. Barefoot Landing is one of the first places one sees when entering Spencerport from the north.

Also to be recognized at the dinner will be a number of local organizations that have achieved milestones. They are Roberts Wesleyan College for 135 years; A.J. Hughes Screw Products Co. Inc. for 40 years; D'Angelo Plumbing and Heating Corp. for 35 years; Spencerport Lions Club for 45 years; Spencerport Rotary Club for 25 years and Spencerport Kiwanis Club for 20 years.

The music department of Spencerport High School will provide entertainment at the dinner. A social hour will begin at 6 p.m. followed by dinner at 7 p.m. Tickets are $20 per person and are available at the Ogden Community Center, Cardinal Landscape, The Unique Shop, Village of Spencerport offices and Westside News. No tickets will be available at the door.

Editor's Note: An interview with Joe Peworchik will be coming in a future edition.