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Joyful noise heard at Chamber gala

By Abbey Doyle The Herald Bulletin The Herald Bulletin Fri Jan 14, 2011, 12:16 AM EST

PENDLETON, Ind. — The theme of Thursday’s Madison County Chamber annual meeting and dinner was, “Make a Joyful Noise.”

The 250 business and community leaders in attendance not only made that noise with every joyful step — thanks to bells jingling from their name tags — but Bill Gaither also convinced those gathered to join in the chorus of one of their gospel songs.

“Thank God for the promise of spring,” reverberated in the BluFalls Arts & Event Center in Pendleton.

“I don’t care what you’re going through,” Gaither said. “Spring is on the way.”

Chamber President Kyle Morey said Bill and Gloria Gaither’s message — which was heavy on hope — fit in perfectly with the mission and goals of the organization.

“I really liked the message of hope they brought forth because Madison County needs a lot of it,” he said. “And spring is coming. I truly believe our spring of economic success is coming.”

Gloria Gaither said her love of words, her husband’s love of music and their shared passion for hope is what created and has sustained their business.

She told those gathered that in addition to always having hope, passion is needed to make anything, including business, succeed.

“I don’t know what your passion is,” she said. “I’m just telling you, you have to have one.”

Passion was something that wasn’t lacking from Keith Pitcher, the Chamber’s long-time president who passed away about six months ago. The Character in Business award that he’d helped create with Keith Trent, vice president and chief foundation officer at Community Hospital Anderson, was renamed the Keith J. Pitcher Character in Business award and given to Pitcher’s family to posthumously honor Pitcher’s passion and dedication for the community.

The award each year is given to a business person who has a work ethic that goes above and beyond expectations and is committed to the Six Pillars of Character established by Character Counts! of Madison County.

Trent said it was an honor for him to present the renamed award to Pitcher’s family.

“While Keith is certainly missed, he will never be forgotten,” he said. “Every year this award will give us the opportunity to recognize the recipient, but it will also be a time to remember Keith.”

Trent said the renaming of the award in honor of Pitcher was fitting as Pitcher was a man of character.

Patricia Pitcher spoke to those gathered, sharing fond memories and laughs with the audience. Afterward, she choked up saying she was honored by the award.

“He was so deserving,” she said. “He was the same man at home as he was in public. He was as giving and caring when no one was around. He was the real article.”

Patricia Pitcher joked that her husband would shrug off the honor and insist it go to someone else as he was very humble. But she is hopeful the stories she continues to hear about her husband and all that he meant to the community can be shared with her grandsons, Shane and Luke. Pitcher asked that those who knew and loved Keith to write down memories for the boys.

“You can’t know Keith Pitcher and not respect him,” Patricia Pitcher said with a smile. “It is a fitting award.”

Contact Abbey Doyle, 640-4805, abbey.doyle@heraldbulletin.com.