Kathy Swan earns Limbaugh Award at Cape Chamber annual dinner

Former Missouri state Rep. Kathy Swan was honored with the Rush H. Limbaugh Award at the Cape Girardeau Area Chamber of Commerce’s 2025 annual dinner Friday, March 21.

Some 700 people attended the event at the Show Me Center, 1333 N. Sprigg St. in Cape Girardeau, where Swan was one of several award recipients. She was recognized for her years of serving Cape Girardeau and the State of Missouri as a whole. Swan served from 2013 to 2021, representing District 147.

“Oscar Wilde once said, ‘Wisdom comes with age, but sometimes age shows up alone.’ Hopefully I’ve gained some wisdom along the way, enough to know that the very most important answer to yes is to God and to family, and to always follow my mother’s directive of doing the right things,” she said at her acceptance speech.

The Drury Family Spirit of Entrepreneurship Award went to the Patrick and Young families, whose members have owned and operated Patrick Furniture and Mattress in Cape Girardeau for 79 years and four generations. Their company expanded into Paducah, Kentucky, in 2022. The award is presented annually to established businesses.

“… I often reflect on the lessons both my grandpa and my dad taught me, lessons about resilience, sacrifice and never forgetting about the people who make success possible,” said Laura Young Eck, one of the three siblings who run the business.

Raechel Cantoni, the director of marketing and public relations for First Missouri State Bank, was recognized as the 2024 Cape Chamber Ambassador of the Year.

This award honors a chamber ambassador for their volunteering and recruitment efforts. Cantoni attended 76 chamber events in 2024 and recruited seven new chamber members.

Bryan and Tyra Johnson, owners of The TeeHouse Complex at 2901 Hawthorne Road in Cape Girardeau, received the 2024 Small Business of the Year Award. This award is given to business owners with fewer than 50 employees who aim to grow within the Southeast Missouri area.

The golf shop and driving range opened as Arena Golf in 1997. The Johnsons purchased it in 2012 and rebranded it to The TeeHouse Complex seven years later.

The Young Professional of the Year Award is itself a young honor, having first been presented in 2024. Brittney Swicionis, owner of Board & Brush Creative Studio at 20 N. Main St. in Cape Girardeau, was this year’s recipient. To qualify, candidates must be 40 years old or younger.