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2008 Innovator of the Year – The Grainless Bakery, Inc.
Necessity is the mother of invention—the adage plays well in this story of a husband and wife, taking their 25 years of baking experience, and applying it to new ways to improve the health of their family.
The Grainless Baker, Inc. is a company devoted to manufacturing foods that are gluten-free, and thus able to be enjoyed by individuals with celiac disease. Those afflicted with this aliment cannot eat any food that contains wheat, rye or barley, grains that are typically in bakery products. Founded in 2004 by Dan and Jane Trygar, The Grainless Baker manufactures breads, pastries, cookies and other food products from their own gluten-free recipes.
The Grainless Baker is one of only a handful of food manufacturers in the United States making this type of product, and some of the foods made in their Wayne County facility are not produced anywhere else in the world.
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2007 Innovator of the Year - Calkins Creamery
Calkins Creamery blends technology and innovation with the daily rigor of operating a dairy farm.
 Emily Bryant Montgomery knows what it is like to grow up on a dairy farm. She and her siblings are the fifth generation raised on Highland Farms, a 240-acre dairy farm established by the Bryant family in 1841 near the eastern edge of Wayne County, PA. Emily left her home to attend Penn State University, obtained a degree in food science, and eventually settled with her husband Jay in California. Both gained knowledge in food processing – Emily took a course in cheese-making at Cal Poly University and Jay worked with an ice cream manufacturing company. Love of family and country living, and the desire to have their children experience the life Emily knew as a child, brought the Montgomery’s back to Wayne County. Their efforts to create a value-added product to improve the farm’s sustainability, while also adding to tourism within the County, has led to Calkins Creamery’s selection as Innovator of the Year.
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2006 Innovator of the Year - South Canaan Telephone
Transformation- this single word may best describe our 2006 Innovator of the Year. For a technology-based company to survive for over 100 years, it must have the ability to transform itself in order to remain competitive and provide the best possible services to its customers.
 South Canaan Telephone was selected by WEDCO as the 2006 Innovator of the year because of its progressive management and continued technology investment. Customers of the small, independent telephone company have access to an array of telecommunication services which enables them to have a significant advantage over many other rural communities. At a time when telecom technology is at its most critical, South Canaan Telephone has not only competed, it has thrived.
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2005 Innovator of the Year – Fox Ledge, Inc.
Since beginning operations in 1994, the company has grown to a workforce of 70 that bottles spring and distilled water under many private labels for delivery from Maine to Washington, D.C.
 Technology, innovation, creativity all have a place in the story of this thriving bottled water company, and have led to Fox Ledge’s selection as Innovator of the Year. Fox Ledge captures water that bubbles up from a clear, natural spring tucked in the hills of northern Wayne County, filters and purifies it, and then bottles it for consumers in an expanding northeast market.
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2004 Innovator of the Year – New Wave Custom Woodworking, Inc.
“We have gradually used machines to do jobs that were formerly done by hand, yet have not changed the hand-made quality of the frames we produce.” – Rudy Schemitz, President
 Like so many other furniture manufacturers in the country,
New Wave has felt the sting of foreign competition. Modern tooling has moved away from the handmade, individual piece paradigm towards one of high volume mass production. New Wave’s desire to produce high-quality products while improving production processes to meet customer demand, has led to innovation in tools and techniques, and has earned them this year’s award.
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2003 Innovator of the Year – Boyce Products, Ltd.
 David Boyce, founder of Boyce Products Ltd., has directed the growth of his company from a small millwork business operating out of a garage to a national company with renown clients such as CNN, National Geographic, American Museum of Natural History, and Paramount Pictures. Right: CNN NewsNight with Aaron Brown
Designs by PDG A Jack Morton Company
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September 2008 - WEDCO is seeking nominations for its annual Innovator of the Year Award. To be eligible, a business entity must be for-profit with a minimum of three employees, a WEDCO member, or located in Wayne County.
Click on the links below to download nomination forms (PDF format). The forms are not lengthy, and should take an hour or less to complete.
The recipient will be honored at WEDCO’s Sustaining Member Luncheon, scheduled for Friday, November 7, noon, at The Settlers Inn in Hawley. James Howarth, Vice President of New York, Susquehanna & Western Railway Corporation, will present the Award and be the featured speaker.
The scope of the award includes, but is not limited to, the application of new equipment or technology. Equal consideration is given tocreative approaches in customer service, human resource issues / personnel relations, management, marketing, or production processes.
Nomination forms must be returned by Friday, September 26, 2008.
2008 Innovator of the Year Nomination Form page 1 PDF (104 kb)
2008 Innovator of the Year Nomination Form page 2 PDF (42 kb)
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