The Scottsbluff-Gering United Chamber of Commerce Wednesday night honored a trio of individuals whose contributions have made a significant impact in our communities, county and state during the organization’s annual meeting and banquet.
Owen Palm, 21st Century Group Co-founder and Blueprint Nebraska Co-Chair, was the recipient of the 2022 Trail Blazer Award; Bytes President Todd Lewis received the Visionary Super Star Award from the Chamber; and Scotts Bluff County Volunteer Center Director Shanna Halstead was honored with the Chamber’s Rising Star Award.
The awards are presented to Chamber members who have not only followed their visions, but also
give of themselves, their time, and their talents to the community in such a way that the entire community benefits.
Below are the accolades of each winner:
2022 Trail Blazer – Owen Palm
The Trail Blazer of the Year Award is a prestigious honor bestowed annually. The award recognizes an individual who gives of his/her talents and resources to the community in such a way the entire community reaps the benefits.
Tonight’s recipient was born in Redwing, Minnesota. He grew up with three brothers and a sister and he is the oldest. He graduated from Waldorf-Pemberton High in Minnesota. He attended SD School of Mines in Rapid City, SD where he met his future bride. He received a degree in Geological Engineering. Germany was his home for four years while serving the Army. He finished his army stint in Tucson. In 1978, he married his bride in Hershey, NE. In 1979, he and his family moved to Casper, Wyoming for a career in the oil field industry, which later brought him to Houston. Not wanting to raise his sons in a metropolitan area. He and his wife returned to Western Nebraska where he was a marketing director for Supreme Beef. His journey changed to the sugar industry where he served thirteen years as the CEO of Western Sugar Company. Accomplishments included construction of the molasses desugarization plant and later dealing with the aftermath of the sugar dust explosion in Scottsbluff in 1996. It happened on July 20th and by October 20th the plant was put back together to process the crop. It took two years to rebuild the factory. There were endless streams of acts of courage, strength, professionalism and determination. Traits he still displays today. In 1996, he collaborated with others to purchase a John Deere dealership in Alliance. This initial purchase has now grown into sixteen locations in the region, with over 450 employees. The 21st Century Group purchased Valley Irrigation in the Panhandle and added a Leasing Company. They are a leader in sub-surface drip irrigation in the region, which can deliver limited water resources to crops much more efficiently. He has donated considerable equipment, knowledge and resources to the UNL Panhandle Research & extension Center for us in irrigation research.
He has an interest and commitment to conserving and improving our natural resources. He is a member of the Department of Natural Resources Commission and member and past state chair of the Nature Conservancy. Currently he is a board member and serves on the executive committee for the Platte Institute for Economic Development. He engaged the Nature Conservancy to support the Platte River Implementation Program.
He is actively engaged in production agriculture with his son, Bryan. They demonstrate and share their data, which demonstrates the value of all available agricultural technologies, such as soil moisture probes, telematics, yield monitoring, strip tillage, and variable rate seeding and fertilization to improve production practices. Through his 16 John Deere dealership locations, his team engages in farm-size demonstrations plots with field days to promote the adoption of the most current agronomic practices.
At the family’s annual calf branding, a great effort is put forth to invite non-farm/ranch participants to learn and preserve the old traditions of branding while demonstrating the humane methods of treating and raising beef cattle.
He and his wife have given of their time and talents to the community in many ways. Both served as presidents of Twin Cities Development. He serves on the Foundation of South Dakota School of Mines & Technology, Trustee for Chadron State College Foundation, Trustee & past president of Scottsbluff’s YMCA.
Perhaps one of his most significant endeavors was when he was appointed by the Governor Ricketts and University of Nebraska President Hank Bonds to Co-chair the Blue Print of Nebraska Commission, a statewide initiative for economic development. Blue Print Nebraska was a massive 12-month statewide visioning and planning process in 2018-19 to develop a comprehensive economic development strategy to propel Nebraska’s economy into the future. It involved 18 industry councils populated with over 200 people who represent a “who’s Who” in Nebraska. The resulting plan is currently being implemented through various organizations. Elements of the plan will reappear in many ways. One obvious one will be through aspect of legislation in the coming years. His co-leadership was a huge commitment personally and is point of pride for Nebraska agriculture.
Twenty years ago, he was recognized as Scottsbluff/Gering United chamber’s rising Star 2002. In 2005 he was Star-Herald’s Citizen of the year. In 2016, he was recognized by Nebraska State chamber in their Hall of Fame and in 2022, he received the Nebraska Hall of Agricultural Achievement. This trail blazer’s caring and serving the community does not stop. He joined forces with another entity to hold major benefit activities to raise money for the affected farmers from the irrigation canal collapse. He has and will continue to give a tremendous amount to the entire community but especially to the agriculture sector of the community, state, region and country.
2022 Visionary Super Star – Todd Lewis
The Visionary Super Star is presented to a chamber member who has been in business six years or more. This award recognizes a businessperson who has not only followed their vision by getting off to a successful start, but also hares time, talent and resources for the betterment of the community.
Tonight’s recipient was born in York Nebraska. As a child, he moved with his older sister and parents several times. Finally ending up in Bismarck, North Dakota where his father marketed helicopters to hospitals for medevac systems throughout the upper Midwest. Our Super Star fell in love with flying and accompanied his father whenever he could. His first taste of flying was when his father was an aerial applicator in Henderson, NE. and rarely missed an opportunity to fly in helicopters with his dad. This Super Star was active in choir and band, and a leader in track and field – setting a record in the triple jump. He was also involved in theater. He graduated from Century High School in Bismarck and attended college there on a vocal scholarship.
His family relocated to Scottsbluff and he joined them in this new adventure and continued college at WNCC. He met his future bride in 1996 at Mi Ranchito’s. They married three years later. In 2001, he attended Microsoft Certified Systems Engineering School that pointed him toward the next phase of his career.
His first job in the world of technology was at Computerland, a place where he discovered the new world of sales and networking. After working his way through many intensive training programs, he worked as a consultant sharing his networking expertise. He later joined FALCO Intralinks as a Sales System Engineer. In 2005 his entrepreneurial spirit led him to join his father’s computer repair business and expand its scope. This business has grown to provide quality technology services to more than 100 businesses and institutions in four states, including healthcare companies, local governments and financial groups “He is an incredible leader and mentor who can bring people together and accomplish goals successfully,” said Landon Clark, Director of Sales & Marking for the company. “People can’t help but follow his lead. He is an all-around great guy, and anyone would be lucky to be able to call him a friend.”
In addition to his successful company, this year’s winner has spent countless hours over the last few decades volunteering for projects that supported his church, his children, and coaching his three daughter’s sports teams. He got his private pilot’s license in 2010 and continues to fly all the time. He was an active board member for the Riverside Discovery Center and served as the President of the Twin Cities Development Board of Directors in addition to charities like the United Way. He graduated from Leadership Scotts Bluff in 2017 and has been a sponsor of the program. Family is an important element in his life. He and his wife have worked together to achieve their success in business and in family. They have a group of wonderful daughters – Sarah, Caitlyn, Charlotte who grew up in Scottsbluff, and Sophia, who they hold in loving memory. Descriptive words shared about who he is include: kind-soul, very caring, honest, great businessman, strategic thinker and some who loves his community. The biggest surprise we had about researching this Super Star who definitely is a risk-taker is that he shares tender moments with those he loves. A favorite story is that Hazel, his 103-year-old great grandmother lost her voice due to a minor stroke; he would sit hours just talking to her and once he held her hand and sang Amazing Grace. Stephanie thanks for sharing him with our community!
2022 Rising Star – Shanna Halstead
The Rising Star Award is a prestigious honor. It is presented annually by the Scottsbluff/Gering United chamber of Commerce to a chamber member in business five years or less. This award is intended to recognize a new business person who has not only followed their vision by getting off to a successful start, but also gives of themselves, their time, their talents and their resources to this community in such a way that the entire community benefits.
Our rising Star was born in Scottsbluff and then moved to Cheyenne, WY where her dad was a highway patrolman. In her mid-teens, they moved to Glendale. Arizona. She has an older and a younger sister. This recipient was an avid tennis player in high school. In 1980 during her senior year, the family moved to Scottsbluff.
She had a friend selling chances for a trip for two to Australia and she wanted to support the effort for the Down Under Bowl. She ended up winning! So a good friend of hers joined her on a trip of a lifetime for three weeks. She taught tennis lessons in Scottsbluff the 1985/86 school year.
She met her future husband through a friend – which was his sister. She married in 2001. Their son Tucker is a sophomore at South Dakota School of Mines with plans to be an electrical engineer.
She worked at L. B. Murphy for her grandmother for five years. Then she worked for Crescent Electric for three years. Her next career move was to work for United Way for 32 years and served under nine different directors. She has also worked with Western Nebraska All Stars Football and Volleyball for 33 years.
Five years ago, she became the Executive Director of the Scotts Bluff County Volunteer Center. When you take on the leadership role of a non-profit, there are a few that will have the compassion to care about the volunteers and those that the non-profit serves. This is not a forty-hour week and most weekends if you drive by the center you will see her vehicle out front.
When Covid hit, there were concerns how they were going to get meals to clients. Not missing a beat, she met with the hospital and came up with a plan to get 100 meals out each day. Having to bag all the meals and hang them on doors or leave them on steps. Volunteers suited up with her in the lead. She made sure they had masks and gloves and got meals delivered which includes checking on those individuals, as several were isolated at the time. It was a challenge as some clients passed during covid and many times, it was the volunteers who found out something was wrong and assisted.
Shopping for seniors program works with Panhandle Coop. Orders doubled as clients with this program doubled, so instead of 45 orders it was well over 90 per week, again not missing a beat. In the midst of all of this, she would write encouraging notes on the bags delivered to the meal recipients. She refers to them as our little folks, not clients.
Emergency food bags, which are called Snow Angels, were put together and distributed for those in need to have a food source in case things were shut down from delivering.
Thanksgiving in the Valley is also a project where Scotts Bluff County Volunteer Center handles the routing and deliver of meals. 620 meals were delivered in forty minutes. They also deliver commodities for Community Action of Western Nebraska each month.
Another new service was started – Books on Wheels. Over 1500 books were gathered and a small library was put together to have a wonderful selection of books to be delivered to homes for people to enjoy and read. A great group of women took charge of organizing the books and getting books, magazines, or puzzles to homes.
This Rising Star also serves on the board for Larry Massie’s 11 13 Ministry. She assists the “By God’s Grace Mobile Meals.
Kendra Feather, states, “When you see the logo for the Volunteer Center, it is a heart, and we cannot think of a more perfect way to define Shanna except with a big heart. Congratulations to Shanna Halstead, the 2022 Rising Star.
