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March 3, 2007

4 more make it into JA's Business Hall of Fame

By Jamie Jones

Surprised. Humbled. Gratified.

Those are just a sampling of emotions expressed by the 2007 inductees in the Junior Achievement of Northwest Georgia Northwest Georgia Business Hall of Fame.

While last year’s inaugural class all shared ties to the floorcovering industry, the second group is more diverse. It includes the late James Brown, founder of Brown Printing Co.; Norman Burkett, president emeritus of Hamilton Healthcare System; the late Harry Saul, founder of Queen Carpets; and Jack Turner, current chairman of the board of Alliance Bancshares Inc.

“In making the selections, we tried to get a diverse group,” said Judy Norris, executive director of the local Junior Achievement. “I think we’ve got a great slate. We’re very excited.”

The new laureates will be inducted into the Northwest Georgia Business Hall of Fame on April 24 during a black tie optional ceremony at the Northwest Georgia Trade and Convention Center. A reception begins at 6:30 p.m. with the dinner and program following at 7.

Junior Achievement uses community volunteers to teach students from elementary school to high school how economics and finance apply to the real world. About 250 volunteers during the school year teach some 7,800 students in the eight-county Northwest Georgia district, which includes Murray and Whitfield counties.

The nonprofit organization has been in Dalton since 1964.

A five-member committee pored over about 25 nominations from the community, including some that were made in 2006. They made their decisions based on business excellence, courageous thinking and actions, vision, innovation, inspiring leadership, community mindedness, and being a role model.

“You hope that the people you ask will always say yes,” Norris said. “Sometimes that doesn’t happen because some people don’t want to be in the limelight.”

Turner, a Dalton native, said he was honored to be named to the hall of fame.

“Of course I feel a sense of gratitude and it’s very humbling because I don’t think I’ve really merited all of this attention,” Turner said. “But certainly it’s good to see that some people think that I have made a contribution to the community.”

However. John Bowling, current president of Hamilton Health Care System, thought Turner definitely deserved the attention. Turner is a trustee for Hamilton Health Care System and a past chairman of the Georgia Hospital Association.

“When Jack speaks, people listen with an immense respect for his ability to concisely articulate the issue and a practical course toward its resolution,” Bowling wrote in Turner’s nomination letter. “His quick wit, homespun philosophy and breadth of life experience enable him to make the point in such a way that it is convincing, poignant and empathetic.”

Burkett also shared a sense of surprise to receive the honor.

“I feel very fortunate to have been able to be involved in the community,” Burkett said. “All of these people who have received this honor have served as tremendous role models and great friends.”

Their photos will join the five founding members in a display at the trade center: Jack Bandy, co-founder of Coronet Industries; Alan and Shirley Lorberbaum, co-founders of Mohawk Industries; V.D. Parrott Jr., former president of Dalton Utilities; and Catherine Evans Whitener, a pioneer in the bedspread industry, which evolved into the carpet industry.

For information about the event, contact Junior Achievement at (706) 278-9180.



Here is a biographical sketch of each new laureate:

• James Brown. A co-founder of the local Junior Achievement program in the 1960s, Brown founded Brown Printing Co. in 1958 to support the emerging carpet industry. The Dalton native was extremely active in community and statewide organizations including the Dalton Recreation Department, the Dalton State College Foundation, Dalton Public Schools Board of Education and a member of the University of Georgia Board of Regents. Brown passed away in 2004.

• Norman Burkett. Although Burkett was not born and raised in Dalton, he has nonetheless been intensely involved in Whitfield County. During his 42-year career in health care administartion, with 37 of those years as administrator of Hamilton Medical Center, Burkett oversaw operations at the hospital. He is currently a member of Dalton Utilities’ governing board and president emeritus of Hamilton Healthcare System.

• Harry Saul. Considered one of the pioneers in the carpet industry, Saul founded what would become Queen Carpets in the 1940s. The company began in the chenille business but grew to one of the largest carpet producers in the world. Dalton-based Shaw Industries bought Queen Carpets in 1998. But business wasn’t Saul’s only interest. He co-founded Boy Scouts of Dalton and was one of the founding members of the local chamber of commerce. He was also active with Junior Achievement. Saul passed away in 1994.

• Jack Turner. Also a Dalton native, Turner has been involved in a myriad of activities from banking to the carpet industry to health care. He is past chairman of the Dalton State College Foundation, past president of the Dalton-Whitfield Chamber of Commerce, past president of the Carpet and Rug Institute and a trustee of Hamilton Healthcare System. He is currently the chairman of the board of Alliance Bancshares Inc.

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