The 2014 recipient of the John W. Fitzgerald Lifetime Achievement Award – named for the founder of Ames Safety Envelope Company, now Ames Business Park, and the first Chair of the Somerville Chamber of Commerce –

will be Ken Kelly, a local serial entrepreneur, a great factor in the metropolitan Boston’s dining and nightlife scene and a genuine and generous community-oriented business owner. The award will be presented at the Chamber’s 68th Annual Dinner on Wednesday, November 5, at the Holiday Inn.
Ken Kelly is the owner of: The Independent and Brass in Union Square; Foundry on Elm, Saloon, and the Davis Square Theatre in Davis Square; and the forthcoming River Bar in Assembly Row. He is the owner of Vitalsite Services, Inc., a consulting company that leases and zones property for wireless communication equipment, cellular antennas and towers throughout New England. Ken has been a leader on the Chamber’s Board of Directors serving as the Union Square Business Group Chair and the former, Dining and Nightlife Group Chair. He also serves on the Union Square Citizens Advisory Committee and is former Vice President and current board member of Union Square Main Streets, which is charged with creating a vibrant neighborhood by enhancing the business district and surrounding neighborhoods through active community collaboration.
The keynote address will be delivered by Beverly A. Scott, PhD. Dr. Scott is General Manager of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority and the MassDOT Rail & Transit Administrator.
The Chamber is Somerville’s premier business organization. Led by a diverse and dynamic Board of Directors, it takes on local and state issues that affect the local economy and advocates for businesses large and small. It has been deeply involved with the redevelopment of Assembly Square, the Green Line extension project, and planning and zoning issues in and around the Innerbelt, McGrath, Union Square, Boynton Yards and Somerville Avenue. The Chamber’s Dining & Nightlife Group has been instrumental in the development of Somerville’s metropolitan appeal. Throughout the year, the Chamber produces outstanding business community networking events such as Business After Hours, Innovation Tours, and the Taste of Somerville.
The dinner, which is the foremost annual gathering of local business, civic, and community leaders, will be held Wednesday, November 5th at the Holiday Inn, 30 Washington Street. The Chamber is pleased to have Bunker Hill Community College as a major sponsor, along with East Cambridge Savings Bank which will be sponsoring the opening reception. Additional sponsorships are available.
The reception will begin at 6:30 p.m., followed by dinner at 7:30 p.m.. Tickets are $100 per person for Chamber Members, or $800 per table of eight guests. Non-member tickets are $150 per person, or $1200 for a table of eight guests. Reservations are being accepted on the Chamber website http://www.somervillechamber.org or by contacting Joanne Haley 617-776-4100, joanne@somervillechamber.org