The Development Authority of Bulloch County, or DABC, saluted existing industries, or “legacy businesses,” with an inaugural breakfast event Tuesday. Three brand-new awards, named for past DABC chairmen, were awarded to individuals.

About 100 people attended the 8 a.m. Jan. 27 Legacy Business Breakfast, held in the Oak Room of the Jack Hill Building at Ogeechee Technical College. Students from Statesboro High School’s culinary arts program catered the meal.

“Every day we pat ourselves on the back at the Development Authority office. … We get excited every time we hear somebody in the region bragging about the industry that’s in Statesboro,” current DABC Chair Billy Allen told the assembly, which included leaders from several of the industries. “It is well deserved because you do such an excellent job, not only for the folks that you work for but the whole community, investing in the community, and I would just like to say thank you.”

The Development Authority of Bulloch County’s CEO Benjy Thompson explained the effort to recognize long-established industries and related businesses as part of the authority’s new strategic plan in follow-up to a recent, successful focus on attracting and welcoming new industries. But attention to existing industries has always been part of the agency’s traditional mission, he suggested.

“For most of the Development Authority’s history, our primary mission has been to attract new businesses and support existing businesses in Bulloch County, and for us, ‘businesses’ have always equated to manufacturers and distribution companies … and that will continue to be an important part of what we do,” Thompson said.

But as part of the four-county Savannah Harbor I-16 Corridor Joint Development Authority’s effort to bring Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America to the Bryan County Mega Site, Bulloch County and its Development Authority have been basking in that success and dealing with its implications for several years now.

The DABC “has also been pretty successful the past few years,” he said, in attracting new manufacturing and distribution plants to Bulloch County itself.

“So we’ve had a nice run,” Thompson told the legacy-industry audience. “We’ve added jobs and capital investment to those of you who have been here for a while. …

“I hope you feel the same way, that we’ve been fortunate to have the growth that’s come to our community the last few years,” he continued, “but what it does to the Development Authority is it gives us an opportunity to kind of take a deep (breath) and think about what the rest of the future of Statesboro and Bulloch County ought to look like, and the role that we can play in helping our community to get there.”

Strategic shift

With slides, he presented part of the executive summary of the new Forward Statesboro-Bulloch five-year strategic plan the DABC developed last year.

Among four color-coded strategic goals, the Red Goal is “Support Legacy Business & Plan for Future Growth.” One of the “action items” linked to this goal is an “annual update and legacy business appreciation event.” Thompson welcomed attendees to Tuesday’s breakfast as the first and predicted that they will be invited back the next four Januarys.

With a printed flier at each seat, the DABC also shared findings from a “Manufacturing Industry Economic Impact Summary.”

Billion, with a ‘B’

This report, by the Center for Business Analytics and Economic Research at Georgia Southern University, shows the annual economic impact of manufacturing in Bulloch County in 2025 as $1.55 billion. This sum includes a little over $1.23 billion in direct revenue for manufacturers, $209 million worth of indirect purchases and almost $108 million in “induced transactions,” such as those resulting from increased income of employees.

A circular, color graph on the report shows manufacturing making up 12.2% of Bulloch County’s private-sector gross regional product, roughly tied at that percentage with “healthcare and social assistance” for the third-place share in the local economy. “Real estate and rental and leasing” ranked first with a 19.9% share, and retail trade, second, reportedly making up 12.3% of the local economy by dollar value.

However, Thompson noted, manufacturing is “the top sector for employment for average annual wages.” The average manufacturing wage here was reported as $54,761, followed by average wages of $48,860 for health care workers, $35,251 for those in retail trade and just $18,931 for hospitality jobs.

Now, the awards…

After noting that bestowing awards is a new thing for the Development Authority, Thompson presented the first one before calling on other presenters. At their creation, all three awards were one-for-two honors, each named in honor of a past DABC chair but awarded to a different, current industry representative.

The first, the Kenny Stone Workforce Champion Award, is named for retired attorney Stone, who chaired the authority in the 1990s.

He helped “our community successfully recruit businesses such as our Walmart Distribution Center, Briggs & Stratton and Viracon Architectural Glass,” Thompson said, noting that Stone has received multiple awards from other organizations and served in various community leadership positions. Stone has served on the board of East Georgia Regional Medical Center since 1995, including as its chair for the past 12 years.

“And importantly for today, Kenny was a member of our Bulloch County Board of Education, a businessperson who is committed to the education of our young people,” Thompson said. “That background makes this award a great fit for his legacy.”

Barnes a ‘champion’

After having Stone stand up for applause, Thompson presented the namesake Workforce Champion Award to Brittany Barnes, human resources manager at Cardinal LG, the glass manufacturer that took over the former Viracon plant four years ago.

A Georgia Southern graduate, Barnes had begun her career with Viracon in 2015.

“But most importantly for this award, Brittany has been fully invested and committed to the workforce efforts that happen in our county and in the region,” Thompson said.

Barnes supports the DABC’s Manufacturing Day event, participates in workforce planning activities with the colleges and schools, and also backs the work of the Regional Industry Support Enterprise, or RISE.

Jones honored

Another new DABC honor, the David Holland Industry Support Award, was presented by Fred Hill, who is vice president of human resources at The Sack Company and serves on the area Industry Group. Holland, who was Georgia Power’s Statesboro area manager beginning in 2003 to around 2005, served as DABC chairman from 2009 to 2012, and was “an active part in getting Great Dane Trailers here,” and GAF Roofing, as well as establishing what is now the Bruce Yawn Commerce Park, Hill said.

Hill presented Holland’s namesake Industry Support Award to Bobby Jones, manager at JTEKT’s Koyo Bearings plant. The bearings factory is actually located in Screven County, but Jones, who attained his bachelor’s degree in manufacturing engineering technology at Georgia Southern, chairs the Industry Group, made up of representatives from about 25 industries in six counties.

A legacy to Roesel

The final award, named for the late Bruce Yawn, was poignantly presented by his son, Jeff Yawn, executive vice president of Georgia Living Senior Care and Abide Home Care. Long the owner of the historic Snooky’s restaurant, Bruce Yawn served as chair of the DABC board from 2012 until his death in 2022.

“He was a tremendous community leader, serving on multiple boards and positions with, among others, East Georgia Regional Medical Center, Georgia Southern and Bulloch County Parks and Recreation,” said Jeff Yawn. “He was a leader in his church families, and he was a pretty good dad to me and my sisters. His patience and wisdom served our board and this community so well.”

Adding that it was “fitting that the inaugural Bruce Yawn Legacy Award goes to someone with a strong connection to our community and similar commitment to its future success,” he then presented it to Paul Roesel.

Roesel retired last year as president of The Sack Company, which was a family-owned business launched as H.A. Sack Company by his uncle of that name in 1945. Roesel had worked there since 1979.

Billed as one of the largest commercial and industrial contractors for mechanical, electrical, plumbing and equipment installation in the Southeast, the company is now under other ownership but remains headquartered in Statesboro.

Roesel continues as a member of the Development Authority of Bulloch County board, which he has served on for 22 years. He has volunteered in other community organizations and boards and was previously recognized by Ogeechee Tech as a board member emeritus.