South Georgia Technical College Vice President for Economic Development Wally Summers was honored by the Sumter County Chamber of Commerce at the 99th annual awards celebration at the South Georgia Technical College John M. Pope Industrial Technology Center recently.
Summers was singled out as the recipient of the Sparky Reeves Sumter Trustee Award. This award was established four years ago to recognize and honor the lifetime achievements of individuals who helped in the growth of this community – one person at a time. This award was initially given and named in honor of former South Georgia Technical College President Sparky Reeves. Reeves truly exemplified what it meant to be a Trustee of this community, holding the trust of Sumter County and a commitment to its growth first and foremost throughout his career. It was been awarded to other deserving individuals each year.
Reeves and Summers dedicated their careers to helping others find their paths in life by giving them opportunities, investing in their futures, and believing in their higher aspirations. When presenting the Sparky Reeves Sumter Trustee Award to Summers, Chamber President Faith Pinnell said that Summers “uses his profession, and his life, as a ‘force for good,’ inspiring nearly everyone he meets.
“He has vision and he lives his life and invests in this community. Through his business ventures and while serving as the Vice President of Economic Development at South Georgia Technical College, Wally Summers has strived to use his business dealings as a tool to build relationships that ultimately make the work a better place,” said Pinnell.
Wally Summers shares his 45 years of experience in sales, marketing, distribution, relationship development and management with the businesses and industries in this area in his role as the Vice President of Economic Development at South Georgia Technical College. He has a strong work ethic and a ‘can do’ spirit.
Summers was instrumental in starting and managing five successful companies prior to joining South Georgia Technical College and he has been committed to using that experience to create strong business and industry partnerships for the college and the community. He is also a certified economic development specialist.
In addition to Summers, several other individuals were recognized. Pineland Communications was singled out as the Community Partner of the Year award, Leon Holloway of Gatewood’s Flowers and Cousins Catering as the Citizen of the Year, and Imerys received the Business of the Year award. The One Sumter Visionary Impact Award was presented to Kimothy Hadley of Americus High School and the Junior Service League captured the first ever Non-profit of the Year award.
