Buckner Brewing Co., Wymans receive awards

Buckner Brewing Co. and Jerianne and John Wyman received awards Thursday at the fourth annual Old Town Cape Dinner.

The event sponsored by the downtown renovation program drew approximately 100 people to the University Center Ballroom.

Phil Brinson, who with Mark Sprigg co-owns the microbrewery, accepted the first John Boardman Award for Excellence in Rehabilitation. The Wymans, owners of the Royal N'Orleans Restaurant in Cape Girardeau and numerous other commercial properties, received the Charles L. Hutson Visionary Award.

The Boardman Award was established by his widow, Councilwoman Evelyn Boardman and is named for the late architect who renovated many downtown buildings. The Hutson Award is named for the downtown merchant and civic leader who died in December.

Tim Blattner was given the award for Volunteer of the Year. Outgoing president Marsha Toll welcomed the new president, Dr. Steven Hoffman.

Speaker Sheri Stuart of the National Trust's Main Street Center is in Cape Girardeau to review the local program. She noted the program's accomplishments in various areas and said "it is time in Cape Girardeau to pull all of these elements together."

At the dinner, the Cape Girardeau Evening Optimist Club presented Old Town Cape with a check for $10,000 to help pay for Libertyfest, the city's Fourth of July celebration. Ted Coalter, owner of the Cape Girardeau Printing Co. and Heartland Insurance, presented the organization with a check for $1,000.