The City of Statesboro recently honored Peggy Chapman for her outstanding contributions to the city and to the Statesboro Convention & Visitors Bureau.
        Chapman received a proclamation from Mayor Jan Moore thanking her for her dedication in helping make the new Regional Visitor Information Center on South Main St. a reality.
        "I cannot think of anyone more deserving of a proclamation from the City of Statesboro than Peggy Chapman," Moore said. "She has long been a champion of Statesboro and Bulloch County, and her work on behalf of the Convention & Visitors Bureau is just another in a long list of positive things she has done for this community."
        Moore read the proclamation to Chapman at a Convention & Visitors Bureau Board of Directors meeting.
        Chapman retired as president of the Statesboro-Bulloch County Chamber of Commerce and as executive director of the Development Authority of Bulloch County on Dec. 31, 2010. She served for 20 years as president of the Chamber.
        Chapman has an impressive list of accomplishments accumulated after more than 40 years of service to Georgia.
        Throughout the years she spearheaded plans for industrial development that resulted in the purchase and completion of three full service industrial parks in Georgia, helped develop a Retail Recruitment Program that led to much of the new development in Bulloch County today, and received the Georgia Economic Developers Association prestigious Rip Wiley Award for professional excellence.
        Her influence led to the development of major industries in Bulloch that created more than 4,000 new jobs and $700 million in new and expanded investment.
        "Peggy did for the Convention & Visitors Bureau what she has done for other organizations and for our community as a whole, which is to roll up her sleeves and go to work to make things better," said Barry Turner, Convention & Visitors Bureau vice-president. "Her tenacity in helping make the new CVB building a reality is greatly appreciated."
        Her leadership and guidance helped influence the communities of Jesup, Cairo, Statesboro and Athens. She has served as the president of the Georgia Chamber of Commerce Executives Association, the Middle Coastal Unified Development Authority, and the Southwest Georgia Regional Committee.
        Even after retirement, Chapman continued to serve Georgia by assisting the economic development of Athens and Clark County. She currently serves as the secretary and treasurer of the Statesboro Convention & Visitors Bureau Board of Directors.
        "When the history of Statesboro is written, Peggy Chapman will be listed as one of the prominent leaders and facilitators of Statesboro and Bulloch County," said Darin Van Tassell, president of the Statesboro Convention & Visitors Bureau Board of Directors. "Visionaries are rare. And to use the phrase that I associate with her more than any other, ‘Working Together...works.'"