3 volunteers, business leaders to be honored by Lawrence Chamber of Commerce

Three longtime local volunteers and business leaders will be honored by the Lawrence Chamber of Commerce at its annual meeting on Friday.

The chamber will award Sharon Spratt the Buford M. Watson Jr. Public Service Award, Ranelle Fischer the Wally Galluzzi Volunteer of the Year Award, and Jane Bateman the Athena Award.

“Each of these honorees contribute to our community on a daily basis and make Lawrence a better place in which to live and work,” said Cindy Yulich, chair of the chamber’s board of directors.

The chamber will host its annual meeting and awards banquet at 5:30 p.m. Friday at the Holiday Inn Lawrence, 200 McDonald Drive.

Longtime Lawrence Chamber of Commerce leader Gary Toebben will be the keynote speaker. Toebben was the president of the Lawrence Chamber of Commerce from 1981 to 1999. He now is the president and CEO of the Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce.

The chamber selected its award winners from a list of nominations made by its membership and the general public.

Spratt is the chief executive officer of Lawrence-based Cottonwood Inc., an organization that serves people with developmental disabilities. In addition to her work there, she also has been a board member with Douglas County Visiting Nurses, the Douglas County Dental Clinic, and the Kansas Commission on Disability Concerns.

Fischer is a vice president for Lawrence’s Emprise Bank. Since moving to Lawrence in 1995, she’s been an active volunteer with the Kiwanis club, the Boys and Girls Club of Lawrence, the Leadership Lawrence program, the Douglas County Senior Center, the United Way of Douglas County and several other organizations.

Bateman is the president of Lawrence’s Jane Bateman: The Interiors Store. She has won several business and volunteer awards including the Wally Galluzzi Volunteer of the Year Award, and has served as the president or chair of several local organizations, including the Bert Nash Community Mental Health Board, the Lawrence Community Theatre, the Lawrence-Douglas County Planning Commission and Rotary International of Lawrence.