Santee Chamber of Commerce Hosts Annual Business Awards Night

EL CAJON – The Santee Chamber of Commerce hosted its annual Business Awards Night last Thursday at Sycuan Casino Resort, as Sycuan was also the proud title sponsor of the event. Santee Chamber President/CEO, Kristen Dare, alongside past Board Chair, Eddie Vandiver, co-hosted onstage as the organization welcomed over 220 guests. Starting out with celebrating the top contributors to the Chamber of 2024, this elite group of just over two dozen businesses represents the chamber's strategic partners who have made a significant annual financial investment in support of the Chamber’s initiatives, programs and events. These members are Alison Construction, Allegiance Heating & Air, All-Pro Quality Garage Doors, Carlton Oaks Golf Course, Chick-fil-A, City of Santee, Coffee Corner, Deano’s Pub East, Expressions Dance & Movement Center, Goodman Orthodontics, Jimmy’s of Santee, John Olsen Realtor, Lennar, Mission Realty Group, Momentum Tutoring, Off Broadway Live, Pepper Farm Deli, Raceway Electric & Solar, Santee Family Optometry, Santee Firefighters Association, Santee School District, Staump Music School, Sycuan Casino Resort, Waste Management, and Whissel Realty Group.

Some other mentionable honorees were Karl Burris of Live Life Physiotherapy, Inc. for the Chairman’s Awards given by 2024-2025 Chair of the Board for the Santee Chamber, Susie Parks. Most notably, Awesome Family Chiropractic received the 2024 Business of the Year award. Owner of Awesome Family Chiropractic, Landon Amonette, better known as Dr. Awesome. Dr. Awesome’s journey was inspired by a chiropractor who saved his life, motivating him to help others achieve better health. For the past two years, they’ve been honored to serve the Santee community, offering personalized care and supporting several local events. With a commitment to giving back, they offer discounts to active duty and veterans and donate wellness packages to local events like the Veterans Appreciation Golf Tournament. Winning Business of the Year recognized their dedication to making people feel awesome and living healthier lives.

Continuing into the next portion of the program, the Chamber announced the winners of the Santee’s Favorites. Santee’s Favorites is a two-round voting process which allows Chamber member businesses and organizations to be voted as the “Favorite” in their category by clients, Santee residents, friends, family and more. This annual tradition has become popular among members as they each encourage votes for the thrill of being surprised with the winner being announced the night of the event. 

Winners of Santee’s Favorites of 2024 are:

Animal Services - FURology Pet SPaw

Automotive - Lloyd’s Automotive Group

Beauty and Salon Services - Salon Thrive

Brewing & Distilling - BNS Brewing & Distilling Co.

Business Resources - East County Magazine

Community Organizations - Santee Firefighters Association

Contractor (Artisan) - Allegiance Heating & Air Conditioning

Contractor (General) - Alison Construction

Dental & Orthodontic Services - Santee Children’s Dentistry

Education Private - Momentum Tutoring

Education Public - Santee School District

Financial Services - Mission Federal Credit Union

Government & Utilities - Santee Sheriff’s Department

Health & Wellness - Barker Chiropractic

Hospitality & Recreation - Santee Lakes Recreation Preserve

Insurance Services - Farmers Insurance - Mike and Marla Clinkenbeard

Manufacturing & Production - RCP Block and Brick, Inc.

Medical Services - Sharp Rees-Stealy Medical Center - Santee

Professional Service - The UPS Store Santee

Property Management & Living - Lantern Crest Senior Living

Real Estate - Mission Realty Group

Restaurant (Full Service) - Janet’s Cafe and Deli

Restaurant (Quick Service) - Pepper Farm Deli

Retail - Al’s Sport Shop

Specialty Food & Beverage - Handel's Ice Cream

Specialty Promotions & Advertising - TCB Embroidery

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