"These enterprises are recognized as outstanding chamber member businesses that have shown growth, innovation of product, exemplary customer service, response to adversity, and contribution to the community," said Aaron Nelson, chamber president and CEO.

The 2011 Chair's Award for Public-Private Partnership is awarded to Bernadette Pelissier, chairwoman of the Orange County Board of Commissioners. She was the director of Research and Evaluation for Durham County Community Mental Health Center from 1980 to 1985. She subsequently became Chief of Research at the Federal Correctional Institution in Butner and retired in 2006. She currently serves on boards for the Partnership to End Homelessness, Orange County Partnership for Young Children, the Durham-Chapel Hill-Carrboro Metropolitan Planning Organization, North Carolina Association of County Commissioners Environmental Steering Committee and NCACCC Justice and Safety Committee.

The Progress Energy 2011 Sustainable Business of the Year is Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools. CHCCS uses solar power, green roofs, water reclamation and other conservation measures, as well as taking measures to make its food service more ecologically friendly.

The 2011 Chamber Ambassador of the Year is Helen Antipov of Comfort Keepers. The sister-owned office provides non-medical in-home care to seniors and adults enabling independent living at home.

The 2011 Business of the Year (Small), presented by Polaris IT Solutions, is Showroom Shine, a mobile detailing service. Ricky Carroll, a graduate of East Chapel Hill High School, started Showroom Shine with the guidance and support of the Service Corps of Retired Executives (SCORE) of Chapel Hill.

The 2011 Business of the Year (Mid-Size), presented Harrington Bank, is Strata Solar. Strata Solar provides complete solar energy systems and installations for both commercial and residential buildings. Located across from the main entrance to Southern Village, Strata Solar expects to hire more than 100 workers this year and projects annual revenue to approach $100 million.

The 2011 Business of the Year (Large), presented by Fidelity Investments, is a tie between 3 Birds Marketing and Carolina Brewery.

The 2011 Non-Profit of the Year, presented by Time Warner Cable Business Class, is Community Home Trust. It manages almost 200 permanently affordable homes in Chapel Hill and Carrboro. Home Trust homeowners' average income last year was $36,000, and their homes cost around $100,000.

The recipients of the 2011 Duke Energy Citizenship and Service Award are The Employees of UNC Health Care. UNC Health Care added 300 jobs in the past year, breaking ground on a new hospital in Hillsborough, and continuing to expand in Wake and Chatham Counties. In its 2011 Quality and Accountability Scorecard, the University Health System Consortium ranked UNC Health Care number one for overall "patient-centeredness."

The 2012 Annual Meeting was sponsored by Duke Energy, Triangle Community Foundation, BB&T, Labor Ready, Jennings, Galloway Ridge, Progress Energy, Time Warner Cable Business Class, A Better Image Printing, University Mall, Fidelity Investments, Harrington Bank, Polaris IT Solutions, First Citizens Bank, Coastal Federal Credit Union, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and the 2012 Chamber Master Sponsors.

The Chapel Hill-Carrboro Chamber of Commerce serves more than 1,100 members that employ more than 80,000 people in the Triangle region.