FLEMINGTON — The Hunterdon County Chamber of Commerce held its Annual Meeting and Dinner Dance in February at the Grand Colonial, Perryville.
With 200 in attendance, the 97th Annual Meeting featured the elections of new officers and the induction of new board members.
Ed Kurowicki, a managing partner of Bedard, Kurowicki & Co., CPA’s, PC, located in Flemington, has become the chairman of the board. He is a longtime member of the Chamber where he has served as treasurer and vice chairman. He succeeds outgoing Chairman Nicholas Pellitta, Esq., of Norris McLaughlin & Marcus, P.A., who served the Chamber for the past two years as chairman. He will remain on the Board of Directors as the immediate past chair.
Other officers include: First Vice Chair Don Pinner, of Hunterdon Healthcare; Second Vice Chair Mary Melfi, Hunterdon County clerk; Treasurer Sharon Michael, of Team Capital Bank; Secretary Christopher J. Phelan, of Hunterdon County Chamber of Commerce’ Advocacy Chair William Flahive, Esq., Law Office of William P. Flahive, L.L.C.; Economic & Workforce Development Chair George Ditzler, of TeamLink; and Chamber Legal Counsel Haekyoung Suh, Esq., of the Rotolo Law Firm.
During the meeting, the Chamber thanked Casey Crabil, of Raritan Valley Community College, for her tenure of service on the board. The Chairman’s Award was presented to Don Pinner for his service as chair of the Chamber’s annual Golf Classic held each September.
The President’s Award was given to the 40 volunteer hosts of HunterdonChamberRadio.com, which was launched in October of 2011.
HunterdonChamberRadio.com is an all-Internet based radio station featuring a wide array of programs on business and the community.
Jim Robinson, of Century Link, was thanked for his service as the first chairman of the Board of Trustees of Leadership Hunterdon.
Jacki Belin, Dean for Collage Advancement, Raritan Valley Community College, will join the board. She has been a member of the RVCC Executive Team for 10 years. Prior to becoming dean, she was an assistant professor of marketing in the Business and Public Service Department.
Ms. Belin earned her MBA at New York University’s Stern School of Business and her undergraduate degree at Binghamton University. Before entering Academia, Ms. Belin worked as a management consultant for – what was then one of the Big 8 accounting firms – Deloitte Haskins and Sells.
At RVCC, Jacki is committed to community service, overseeing RVCC’s nationally recognized Service Learning Program. Other areas of responsibilities include: Workforce Development, Theatre & Planetarium, Conference Services, Athletics, Community Education, Marketing & Public Relations, University Center and the RVCC Foundation.
Also joining the board is Robert Benjamin, president, Flemington Fur Company, Flemington. He is a long time and active member of the business community in Hunterdon County. He serves as the chairman, Flemington Business Improvement District, working to revitalize the Borough of Flemington. He served on the initial exploratory committee, led by the Hunterdon County Chamber of Commerce charged with examining the revitalization of the Flemington. Subsequently he was on the Steering Committee that worked to form the Business Improvement District with Flemington Borough Council and then he was a founding board member of the Business Improvement District.
He is also: A member, Fur Information Council of America; member and past vice president of the Greater Fur New York Board of Directors where he served as vice president; chairman, Hunterdon/Somerset Rail Coalition working to restore regular passenger train service to Flemington, and. is active with Hunterdon County Special Olympics, where he is the special events chairman. Bob is a past member of the Team Capital Bank Regional Director Board and past member of Hunterdon Central High School Board of Education.
Also joining the board is Jeffrey L. Weinstein, executive director of Hunterdon HealthCare Partners. The organization is comprised of 251 physicians, the Hunterdon Medical Center, a home care agency, two surgery centers and two free standing radiology centers. Hunterdon HealthCare Partners has positioned itself to succeed in the changing healthcare environment by being an early adopter of electronic medical records and by developing clinical protocols for its member providers.
He received his BS in political science and his MBA from American University in Washington D.C. He began his career in healthcare working in the health insurance industry, first with Empire Blue Cross & Blue Shield then with Sanus. After working for a specialty mental health HMO he moved to the provider side working first with hospitals and then setting up integrated healthcare organizations.
For more information, contact the Hunterdon County Chamber of Commerce at 908-782-7115 or visit: www.hunterdon-chamber.org

