The Brundidge Rotary Club honored Brundidge businessman and entrepreneur Chuck Caraway at its annual banquet Thursday night with a prestigious Paul Harris Fellowship Award.

Paul Harris founded Rotary more than 100 years ago,” said Dixie Shehane, club awards chair.  “A Paul Harris Award is given as recognition of what Paul Harris stood for and that is ‘Service Above Self.’ No one deserves this award more than Chuck Caraway.”

Chuck Caraway has all of the tributes of a Paul Harris Fellow. It’s shown in his work ethic and in the way he treats people. It’s best to never say to Chuck, ‘I can’t do it’ because his reply will be, ‘Why not?’ and never say that something is not you job because he will tell you that you should never be afraid of learning about any job.”

Shehane said Caraway grew up on a farm in Louisville and was taught to make things work and, if for some reason, you couldn’t work it out, you should have an alternate plan.

“Chuck was taught when you tell somebody you’re going to do something, do it,” she said. “He sees the glass half full instead of half empty. When discussing anything with Chuck, he wants details and I mean full details.”

Shehane said she has known Caraway for more than 14 years and during that time, he has formed his own company, Southern Classic Food Group, which specializes in industrial food service, export and retail arenas with a full line of mayonnaise, salad dressings and other oil-based products, marinades, barbecue sauces, ice cream topping and beverages.

Southern Classic Food Group employs more than 200 fulltime employees.

“Just a couple of weeks ago, Chuck announced the opening of Magnolia Vegetable Processors where various types of vegetables will be process for sale to various markets,” Shehane said. “Chuck and his wife, Myrlene, along with Olaf and Tina Lieb, are in the process of opening a restaurant and event center in Brundidge that will provide dining and entertainment experiences for residents of Brundidge and the surrounding areas.

Shehane said the Paul Harris Award was established in 1957 to show appreciation and encourage contributions to the Rotary Foundation.

Our contribution to the Rotary Foundation on behalf of tonight’s Paul Harris Fellow Chuck Caraway makes this recipient a part of the eradication of polio, malaria and other diseases, a partner in creating peace and supporting clean water and sanitation where water is worth gold, and is measured in lives.”

Shehane said the Paul Harris Award includes Caraway among those who believe that all babies, children and moms should have good medical resources, micro-credit and equal rights.

“Fifty percent of the money we donate to the Rotary Foundation comes back to our district and 50 percent goes to the World Fund, to which we can apply for grants for projects in our own community,” she said.

Chip Wallace, chair of the club’s scholarship committee, recognized the club’s 2015 scholarship recipients who were in attendance, BreAnna Sewell, Pike County High School, who received the J. Ralph Dickert Rotary Scholarship; Lexie Carroll, Zion Chapel High School, who received the Sara Spano Memorial Scholarship; and Sh’ana Lee, Pike County High School, who received the Robert L. Godwin Memorial Scholarship.

Scholarship recipients who were not present were Faith Dewberry, Zion Chapel High School, Harold Rodgers Memorial Scholarship; Kimberly Ketchum, Ariton High School, Wilburn E. Howard Rotary Scholarship; and Abigail Berrey, Pike Liberal Arts School, Reynolds E. Wallace Jr. Rotary Scholarship.

Rotarians who were recognized for perfect attendance during the 2014-2015 club year were Sandy Boutwell, Ben Busbee, Moses Davenport, Don Dickert, Jennifer Garrett, Homer Homann, Jimmy Ramage, Larry Shiver and Lamar Steed.

Jennifer Garrett, 2014-2015 club president, passed the gavel to Don Dickert who will serve his third term as president of the Brundidge Rotary Club. Serving with Dickert will be Ben Busbee, president elect; Dixie Shehane, vice president; Sandy Boutwell, secretary and Larry Shiver, treasurer.