Marian University is inviting the public to attend its virtual presentation of the 2020 Business & Industry awards at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 28, with former Green Bay Packers player and Senior Vice President for University Relations Dr. George Koonce serving as Master of Ceremonies. Those wishing to attend the 39th annual event may register at MarianUniversity.edu/BI-Registration. Established in 1981, the Business & Industry awards honor area businesses with Marian University’s awards for entrepreneurship, economic development, special achievement, and commitment to community. Steve Peterson will be presented the George Becker Business Spirit Award. Named after George Becker, former president of Giddings & Lewis and a member of Marian University’s Board of Trustees, the award is given to an individual, company, charitable organization or civic group whose good business practices benefit the community, either through the ways they do business or through the recipients’ contribution to the community. Peterson, a retired manufacturing executive who spent his entire career working for companies headquartered in Fond du Lac, has more than 45 years of leadership in domestic and international manufacturing businesses and a history of local community involvement. He completed an apprenticeship at the Giddings & Lewis Machine Tool Co. and served in many capacities during his 36-year career, eventually becoming President and CEO in 2000. He retired from Giddings & Lewis in 2005 and joined Mid-States Aluminum Corp. as President and CEO until his retirement in 2016. He currently serves as the board chairman of Society Insurance and as a board member of Mid-States Aluminum Corp. and Agnesian HealthCare.
Other awards being presented will be:
- Business of the Year: Baker Cheese Company
- Community Collaboration Award: The Boyke/Grinstead Family
- Economic Development Award: Faris Gourmet Popcorn and Treats/United Manufacturers, Inc.
- Entrepreneur of the Year: Sam Meyer
Money raised from the event goes directly to scholarships for students at Marian University. Traditionally, more than 200 individuals from area business communities have celebrated the awards. Marian University was founded in 1936 by the Congregation of Sisters of St. Agnes in Fond du Lac, Wis. The institution has one of the lowest student-faculty ratios in the state and strives to live its core values as a community committed to learning, dedicated to service and social justice and joined together by spiritual traditions. Marian offers undergraduate, adult, master’s and doctoral degree programs at its main campus, in facilities throughout Wisconsin and online.
