Each January, the Harney County Chamber of Commerce hosts a banquet to “honor Harney County’s finest” in a number of different categories.

In past years, award recipients were selected by committees of past award-winners, which were formed for each category. This year, however, a different selection process will be used.

Lola Johnson, the executive director of the chamber, explained that the chamber’s board of directors will make the selections. Nomination forms will be submitted to the chamber office, and the board will review them and make the decision. In an added twist, the board will only see the nominees’ accomplishments, not their names.

Johnson said the number of nominees has dwindled in the past few years, and they hope to get more people involved in the process and the awards. Her goal is to receive at least five nominations for each award, excluding the student awards, which are selected by the schools.

The next banquet, to be held Jan. 25, 2020, will be the 70th anniversary of the awards ceremony, and the theme is “Ladies and Gentlemen’s Night Out.”

Nomination forms are available at the chamber office on North Broadway, and the categories are as follows: Man of the Year, Woman of the Year, Senior Man of the Year, Senior Woman of the Year, Grassman of the Year, Outstanding Young Farmer/Rancher, Distinguished Service, Business Person of the Year, Educator of the Year, Boss of the Year, and Beautification. Students of the Year are selected by Burns High School, Crane Union High School, and Silvies River Charter School.

Nominations are due back to the chamber office by Wednesday, Nov. 27.