Grace Leong

The Startup family is known in Utah Valley for its Clear Toy candy suckers and Fruit of Paradise chocolate-covered bars. But candy making isn't all they're good at.

"It was a shock. It's an honor that we never expected and we're proud to receive this. We were told we got the award for service," Karma said. She had been an active member of the Women's Division of the Provo-Orem Chamber of Commerce since the 1970s, serving on many committees and also as the chamber's president in the late '80s.

The Startups, who have been married for 61 years, are both active in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. In addition to managing Startup Candy's business for 25 years, Karma, a native of Spring City, also volunteered with the PTA and the Provo City Center.

A native of Provo, Harry is the fourth generation of candy makers that originated in England. Founded in 1869 in Provo, Startup Candy had as many as 150 workers at one time, but lost much of its prosperity after the Great Depression in 1929. The family managed to buy part of its business in 1938 and has since rebuilt it. After high school, he attended Brigham Young University part time, while working in the family's candy business until he was drafted into the Army in 1942.

For nearly 10 years, Kye Miner has channeled her passion for community health and service into concrete projects that have improved the lives of hundreds of individuals and families in Utah County.

Miner directs the Utah County Dental Campaign, which was recently honored by the American Hospital Association for helping children at 22 Title I elementary schools receive dental hygiene education and urgently needed dental treatment over the past five years. Miner has served as the manager of community health partnerships for Intermountain Healthcare's Utah County Region for the past six years.

Warren Osborn has founded, funded and operated companies in a variety of industries including manufacturing, promotion, direct mail, importing and retail. In 2004, one of his companies was ranked the second-fastest growing company in Utah; another developed the new Blu-ray DVD case.

Osborn is the founder and CEO of Seastone, the industry leader in gift card packages, accessories and programs. Last week this company ranked as the second-fastest growing company in Utah County.

The Writing Way was founded in September 2007 by Susan McLain to provide professional writing and graphic design services to businesses of all sizes, and marketing consulting and advertising support to new and small businesses.

McLain has more than 13 years experience in technical and marketing writing and graphic design. Part of McLain's program of giving back to the community and assisting small businesses in developing their marketing plans includes teaching for the Small Business Development Center in Orem.

Dave Young, president and founder of Paragon Wealth Management, has helped his clients enhance their financial well-being since he began managing money in 1986. Later that year, he started his own investment firm. When he avoided the 1987 stock market crash, his methods sparked a lot of interest.

Today, this undiscovered money manager, located in Jamestown Square in Provo, currently manages $60 million-plus for 150 clients. Over the past several years, Paragon has helped several Utah charities raise close to $30 million.

APX Alarm is now the largest privately owned residential security alarm installation company in the United States. Since its founding in Provo in 1999, APX has installed more than 325,000 home security systems. The company has an average annual growth rate of 105 percent since it began operations.

APX currently fields 100 teams with more than 4,000 employees across the country. Company President Keith Nellesen and CEO Todd Pedersen, who launched APX in 1999, were joined in 2004 by current CRO Shawn Brenchley, who previously owned SafeHome Security, another alarm company.

Bruce Rowe and Sebo Marketing have done incredible things throughout the past few months for the Provo-Orem Chamber of Commerce. Donating many hours of service, Rowe and Sebo Marketing have been an invaluable asset to the Chamber of Commerce and the community as a whole.

Bruce Rowe, president of Sebo Marketing:

Rowe has more than 15 years of business management and sales experience with large, well-established companies. Throughout his career, Rowe has proven very successful at both building and managing teams, which have been as large as 200 employees.

Sebo Marketing:

The concept of Sebo Marketing came from a combination of ideas from Rowe and Steve Elderkin, Sebo's founders. Elderkin suggested the creation of some smart software tools that would combine Rowe's Internet marketing expertise with the power of software to make Rowe more efficient in working with his clients. Sebo Marketing Inc. was officially formed on August 22, 2005.

Shauna Leavitt Theobald served seven years as the regional director of the Small Business Development Center before beginning work with the Novell Open Source Technology Center in March 2007.

In addition to recruiting and helping to accelerate the growth of emerging IT companies through the OSTC, Theobald was also instrumental in bringing the Utah Open Source Conference as well as the Home Runs in IT Conference to the Novell campus in 2007. She is the 2008 chairwoman of the Utah Valley Entrepreneurs' Forum and serves on the UVU Foundation Board.

Larry Hatch has worked for the Daily Herald for more than 27 years. He started in the mail room and has worked his way to director of production for Herald Communications. He is a phenomenal boss and an excellent leader.

Under his direction, the Daily Herald recycling program recycles more than 90 tons of paper and 2,000 pounds of aluminum in just one month. This recycling effort in turn saves 1,542 trees; 34,458 gallons of oil; 272 cubic yards of landfill waste; and 362,720 kilowatts of energy.

Art McKinlay, president of Provo-based America's Freedom Foundation, came to the organization in 2006. America's Freedom Foundation is the fundraising arm supporting the Freedom Festival at Provo, and other patriotic celebrations and events throughout Utah and beyond.

Born in Salt Lake City and raised in Provo, McKinlay has spent a major part of his career in marketing and public relations. During his 11 years with what is now LDS Philanthropies at BYU, McKinlay and College of Engineering Technology Associate Dean Dave Anthony introduced Phoenix philanthropists Ira and Mary Lou Fulton to BYU.

Glen Jensen is the CEO of Agel Enterprises, a privately held nutritional supplement company that he founded in 2005 when he formulated the concept of suspending vitamins and minerals in gel and packaging them in single-serving packets. Currently, Agel manufactures and distributes nine gel-based nutritional products and a recently launched anti-aging skin care line.

As founder of Agel, Jensen established a company with a revolutionary business plan that allowed for quick and effective market expansion and support. Agel is currently operating as a debt-free company in more than 40 countries, launching simultaneously in 10 foreign markets on the first day of business.

The Shops at Riverwoods, located amid residential neighborhoods, required a design unlike the typical sprawling suburban mall. In 1998, the design architects answered that challenge with a new retail prototype, combining the mall concept with that of a residential downtown.

The use of varied earth-tone colors and curved roof forms were used to create the unique identity for the center without conflicting with the residential nature of the community. Natural materials blend with the natural setting and contribute to the lasting quality of the neighborhood, providing a vivid pedestrian experience and a connection with the beauty of the natural setting.