Business Advocacy Award given to SCCC club

NEWTON — At its 7th annual Economic Development Awards Luncheon, the Sussex County Economic Development Partnership (SCEDP) honored the Sussex County Community College Business Club with the prestigious Business Advocacy Award, an award reserved for "an organization that continually supports local business by providing consultation, site location, programs and/or financing for either business start-up, retention, expansion, or capital uses." The club meets weekly and frequently invites local business leaders to join them to share career advice. They also run four separate bi-weekly mentoring programs and are involved in service learning that supports domestic abuse victims and breast cancer research. "These are the next and best business leaders," said SCEDP President Tammie Horsfield when presenting the award. "When we're all retired, these students will be our community leaders." Attending the Nov. 29 luncheon at the Lafayette House was the club's advisor, Assistant Professor Mary Ellen Donner, along with the five club officers: Miguel Hernandez, Brett Olsen, Ashley Jentzen, Kevin Rogers and Kellianne Mazza. Senator Steve Oroho was also in attendance and gave congratulations to the club who rose above the other seven nominees in their category. Accepting the award on behalf of the club was Co-President Brett Olsen. "You can't get this from a text book," said Olsen. "Hearing from local business leaders has given us an inside look at how businesses are really run, it's a huge step toward our success."