Chamber honors community supporters

U.S. Olympic downhiller Hilary Lindh will talk about her medal-winning experience — and a handful of Whitefish business and community leaders will get awards of their own — at the Whitefish Chamber of Commerce’s annual Community Awards Gala, set for the evening of Wednesday, Feb. 7 at the O’Shaughnessy Center.

Just days before the opening of the 2018 Winter Games in PyeongChang, South Korea, this year’s gala will have an Olympic theme and a local tie. Lindh, who now calls Whitefish home, captured the silver medal in the ladies downhill at the 1992 Winter Games in Albertville, France. She’ll talk about her Olympic experience on Feb. 7, then turn the podium over to a host of other winners — individuals and businesses who’ve been making outstanding contributions to the Whitefish community.

Among the awards to be presented are the Chamber’s Volunteer, Ambassador and Business of the Year honors, the Whitefish Lake Institute’s Excellence in Education Award, and both the Citizen of the Year and Great Whitefish awards.

“Opening ceremonies” begin at 6 p.m. with a no-host bar and a buffet of hearty Asian appetizers inspired by this year’s Olympic host city, provided by the Tea Kettle Cafe. The “games” begin promptly at 7 p.m., with the main event — the community award “Medal Ceremonies” — following at 7:30 p.m.

Tickets for the 2018 Go for the Gold Chamber Awards Gala are just $30 per person; reservations are due no later than Friday, Feb. 2. For reservations and more information, call the Whitefish Chamber at (406) 862-3501, or email lisa@whitefishchamber.org.