Lakeshore Chamber Tabs Williams Buildings as 2017 Business of the Year

In 1979 Marc Williams was a teen-aged newspaper delivery agent pedaling up and down St. Joseph Avenue in Stevensville. That year his father, Dave Williams, decided to quit his construction sales job and start his own company. Tonight, nearly 40 years later, Marc stood before a room full of fellow Lakeshore Chamber of Commerce members and accepted his peers’ award as 2017 Business of the Year for Williams Buildings of Stevensville.

The irony for Marc, who became a partner with his father in Williams Buildings at a time when they had only two employees, is that their company built four new buildings along St. Joseph Avenue alone in the past year, including one for a guy who used to have his newspaper delivered by Marc those many years ago.

What started out as a company with two employees who built about a dozen buildings a year is now a firm that boasts three full-time construction crews who erect almost 50 buildings a year within a 150 mile radius of their home office in Stevensville.

Williams says, “Dad started this business in the basement of our house, and with the addition of our latest office across from the Dairy Queen (on Red Arrow Highway) I’m very happy to say that Stevensville will be our home for a very long time to come.”

Interim Lakeshore Chamber President Kellen Van Hulle, who is now also the incoming official President of the organization, presented Williams with the Business of the Year award citing the company’s role as “A premier post frame construction company with a diverse client portfolio in Southwest Michigan and Northern Indiana, providing creative, affordable solutions for the commercial, residential, agricultural and equestrian industries.”

Additionally, citing their commitment to client satisfaction and excellence in execution, Van Hulle pointed to their capabilities in the design-build process, “Whether it’s a 16×20 garage for a homeowner or an 80×220 structure for one of the largest blueberry growers in the U.S., every project receives the same level of attention to detail and quality materials for an end product that lasts for generations.”

The Lakeshore Chamber’s other major award winner tonight was Lisa Micunek from the Martin’s Super Market School of Cooking at the Stevensville store. Lisa has been the manager of that eclectic school since the new Martin’s Store opened in 2011, and she oversees in-store and community-based events for Martin’s. She was cited for her regular visits to Lakeshore elementary schools to teach eager learners about being a locavore, eating things grown locally.

Lisa, who has lived in France twice while studying her trade and traveled throughout Europe has made an art out of meeting people from varied cultures and trying out the diversity of foods a global palate can bring. Studying under a French chef, she learned her international flair and her love of cooking from scratch with local, seasonable ingredients. Her Farm to Table presentations are a hallmark of the Martin’s School of Cooking, and her legendary love for the community and everything in it led to her selection for the Lakeshore Chamber’s Community Spirit Award tonight.

A surprise recognition of founding Chamber member Bernice Tretheway awarded her lifetime Honorary Membership status for being a vital cog in the wheel of commerce since the very first day of the organization.

Cook Plant spokesman Bill Schalk was the keynote speaker and delivered an engaging peek behind the curtain at the utility’s huge community asset and the huge investments made here to assure continuity of electrical service well into the future.

New Officers for the Lakeshore Chamber were elected, including: