STRICTLY BUSINESS: SMALL BUSINESS AWARDS A MONTH AWAY

We're a month away from a new Small Business of the Year and a new Rush H. Limbaugh Sr. award, a pair of elite awards presented annually by the Cape Girardeau Chamber of Commerce.

Last year, J. Ronald Fischer, a native of Cape Girardeau who served more than three decades in city and county government before his retirement as Cape Girardeau city manager in 1995, was the 12th recipient of the award named for the late Rush H. Limbaugh Sr., a practicing attorney in Cape Girardeau for more than 75 years and the first recipient of the award.

The Rush H. Limbaugh Award was established in 1989 by the local Chamber of Commerce to recognize area business people who have expended exceptional effort on behalf of the community for an extended time.

Also honored a year ago was Cathy Schlosser, who received the Go-Getter Award for outstanding work with the chamber's membership committee.

This year's banquet will be held Feb. 2. at the Show Me Center.

This year's Small Business of the Year award will be the 10th presented by the chamber. Last year's winner, R&M COCO, distributes decorator drapery and upholstery and other fabrics throughout 48 states, Puerto Rico, Mexico and a number of South American countries. Jim Rust is president of the locally-owned company, which was established in 1969 in a 12-by-15-foot space.

Businesses and industries of the year awards abound throughout the state, from small communities to the larger metropolitan areas, where chambers of commerce and economic development groups select top businesses each year.

Ten industries have received the Commitment of Excellence award in Cape Girardeau in the past decade. The annual fall award is designed to honor the Industry of the Year.

The award has been presented since 1988, but three manufacturers have received the award two times each, including last year's winner, Dana Corp.

The local Small Business of the Year award has been chosen during the past nine years in Cape Girardeau.

For the first time, in 1999, a statewide Missouri Industry of the Year program was presented by the Associated Industries of Missouri.

Nominations for the program, now in its third year, are being accepted, said Chris Long, AIM president, and a member of the Missouri Industry of the Year Awards Committee.

AIM has organized a program dedicated to showcasing the innovations, entrepreneurial spirit, leadership and economic success of Missouri industry.

John Mehner, president and CEO of the Cape Girardeau Chamber of Commerce, is impressed with the AIM project and said the local chamber will submit its annual winners for the contest.

AIM's program will include awards in three categories:

* Employers of 50 or fewer Missouri-based employees.

* Employers of 51 to 250 Missouri-based employees.

* Employees with 251 or more Missouri-based employees.

The awards will be announced April 24 during a banquet at Capitol Plaza Hotel in Jefferson City, Mo., sponsored by AIM, the Mid-Missouri Business Journal, and the Missouri Department of Economic Development.

Nominations for the awards must be received at AIM offices, 411 Jefferson St., P.O. Box 1709, Jefferson City, Mo., by 4:30 p.m. on March 12.

Criteria include business, resources and personal leadership skills in making a contribution to the area where the business is located; leadership role in former cooperative partnerships with local schools and involvement in legislative issues that impact Missouri businesses and industry, and dedication to the employer community via participation in organization that advance business and industry.

Additional information and nomination forms are available by contacting Long, John Jones or Annette Wallace at (573) 634 2246.

Some impressive names dot the two lists of businesses and industries honorees in Cape Girardeau over the past decade.

A quick review:

Industry of the Year recipients

* 1988: General Sign Co., largest custom sign maker in Missouri.

* 1989: Lone Star Industries' Cape Girardeau cement plant, which produces about 1.1 million tons of cement annually.

* 1990: Procter & Gamble Paper Products.

* 1991: Biokyowa Inc., recently announced two major plant expansions (about $100 million) for increased production of new product

* 1992: Concord Publishing House Inc., operates daily and weekly newspapers in seven states, including the Southeast Missourian.

* 1993: Dana Corp., which started production in Cape Girardeau in 1990 with 20 employees and now has more than 400.

* 1994: Florsheim Shoe Co., a firm that manufactured as many as 2,800 pairs of shoes a day before moving its operation overseas in 1999.

* 1995: Spartech Corp., has more than 35 plastic-producing facilities, including two at Cape Girardeau.

* 1996: Thorngate, manufacturer of men's suits and sports coats, produces about 6,000 suits and coats a week.

* 1997: Nordenia, previously known as M&W Packaging USA, Inc., started production in the spring of 1990, recently announced a major expansion project.

* 1998: Lone Star Industries, first company to repeat as Industry of the Year, following numerous expansions and improvements over the past decade.

* 1999: Procter & Gamble, second-time for honor, recently had a major expansion project, and now employs about 1,700 workers.

* 2000: Dana Corp., a repeat winner, the firm manufactures components for the center section of driving axles on vehicles.

Small Business of the Year recipients

* 1991: Advance Business Systems

* 1993: Bluff City Beer

* 1994: KBSI-TV

* 1995: Ford Groves Motor Co.

* 1996: Hutson's Fine Furniture

* 1997: Horizon Promotional Products

* 1998: Johnson Tel-Link

* 1999: BART

* 2000: R&M COCO Designs