Chamber seeks award nominations, Leadership Abilene applications

The Abilene Chamber of Commerce announced in a news release Wednesday that it is seeking nominations for the 2022 Outstanding Citizen of the Year, presented annually at the chamber’s Membership Meeting and Awards Celebration.

The award recognizes Abilene residents who have had an impact on the city through civic involvement, volunteer efforts and other selfless activities.

Submit nominations to [email protected], or go to abilenechamber.com for more information. Nominations must be submitted by June 30.

The chamber also announced that it is accepting applications for its Leadership Abilene Class of 2023, intended for residents who wish to learn about the community and improve their ability to lead.

The program meets once per month from September through May, and is limited to a class size of 36. Participants must be at least 21 years old.

For information, or to request an application, go to abilenechamber.com.

First Abilene Federal Credit Union to change name

First Abilene Federal Credit Union announced recently that over the next few months it will be changing its name and branding to First Watch Credit Union.

The change will help the credit union to “become connected and identifiable within all 13 counties in which we serve,” according to a news release on the company’s website.

The change will not affect customer accounts or service, the release said, and is not a change of ownership or management. Existing checks, deposit slips and debit and credit cards will continue to work, and will eventually be replaced to reflect the new branding.

TxDOT in Abilene honored for long-lived road

The Asphalt Pavement Alliance announced in a news release Wednesday that the Texas Department of Transportation’s Abilene District will receive a 2021 Perpetual Pavement Award: By Performance, in honor of the district’s work on part of Highway 20.

The award honors long lasting roads requiring minimal maintenance, with winners evaluated by engineers at the National Center for Asphalt Technology. To be eligible for the award, pavement must be at least 35 years old and never had a structural failure, and have an average resurfacing interval of at least 13 years.

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The winning segment of Interstate 20 is a four-lane highway between mile markers 315 and 324 in Callahan County that was completed in 1973.

“This is a testament to TxDOT’s long-standing commitment to provide quality roads for the citizens and travelers on Texas highways,” Daniel Richardson, director of maintenance of the TxDOT Abilene District, said in the release. “This section of IH-20 is evidence that good design, construction and maintenance practices can result in roads that perform very well over a long period of time.”

Business loans still available for those affected by Eastland Complex Fire

The U.S. Small Business Administration is offering federal disaster loans for property damage caused by the Eastland Complex Fire, which burned more than 50,000 acres over two weeks in late March.

Business of all sizes, nonprofit organizations, homeowners and renters may apply for loans to replace or repair property damaged in the fire, and additional funds are available to help make improvements to properties to prevent or minimize the effects of future fires. Eligible counties are Brown, Callahan, Comanche, Eastland, Erath, Palo Pinto, Shackelford and Stephens.

Applications for these SBA federal disaster loans must be made by June 27. For information, call 800-659-2955 or go to disasterloanassistance.sba.gov.

This article originally appeared on Abilene Reporter-News: Business notebook: Chamber awards, Leadership Abilene coming up