Decked out in their best Oscar wardrobes, members of the Greater Silver Spring Chamber of Commerce awarded those who helped improve the area during its 32nd annual Awards and Installation event.
Billed as An Evening in Old Hollywood, chamber members feted each other Tuesday night at the AFI Silver Theatre.
Montgomery Housing Partnership was named the nonprofit of the year and Officer Alexander Hayden of Montgomery County Police District 3 was honored for all his efforts to proactively keep Silver Spring safe.
J. Hollinger’s Waterman’s Chophouse, 1st Choice, LLC and Darcars Automotive Group were named Business Champions.
Danielle Freedman, external affairs manager at Pepco, was named Trailblazer of the Year. Nichole Reilly, director of philanthropy at Adventist Health Center in White Oak was honored as Volunteer of the Year.
Mell Tull, vice president of Lee Development Group, was awarded the Bruce Lee Service to Silver Spring Award. Jennifer Meltzer, whose restaurants include All Set, Money, Muscle BBQ and Fryer’s Roadside, was honored.
A new board of directors was installed with. Jessica Wilson of CCI Health Services as its chair.
Keynote Speaker Brooke Lierman, Maryland’s first female comptroller, praised small businesses owners. There are 639,000 small businesses in Maryland which employ 1.2 million Marylanders, she said.
She called for small business owners to step up as federal employees seek other employment. She noted 5,300 federal employees in Maryland lost their jobs during March and April.
While crime is down, road closures and detours due to Purple Line construction have hurt many businesses, noted Chamber President and CEO Stephanie Helsing. But Purple Line and government officials help with grants, she added.
Congratulations to your @mcpnews 3rd District Officer A. Hayden on being recognized as the @GSSChamber Officer of the Year this evening.
Officer Hayden was awarded this due to his proactive policing and community focused efforts which have improved public safety for our… pic.twitter.com/lRTZfD3Afj
— MCPD 3D Commander (@MCPD3DCommander) June 25, 2025
