CHAMBER WINNERS

Narvol A. Randol accepted the Cape Girardeau Chamber of Commerce's Limbaugh Award Friday night with a simple thank you. That is the way he does most things. Without a lot of fuss or fanfare, he gets the job done. With quiet determination, he has served country, state and community beyond the call of duty.

The extensive resume of this unassuming man is nothing short of remarkable. A graduate of Southeast Missouri State University, Randol joined Farmers and Merchants Bank in 1956 and was named president in 1969. Since his retirement from the bank in 1982, he has been anything but retiring.

He served his country with the 35th Infantry Division during World War II. Later, he served with the Missouri National Guard's 35th Engineer Brigade in Cape Girardeau, retiring as a brigadier general with a total of 37 years of military service.

But Randol found time to extend beyond busy professional and military careers. He volunteered countless hours to the Crippled Children's Society, Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts, United Way, Chamber of Commerce, Southeast Missouri Hospital and Red Cross. He served in leadership roles and directed numerous projects to better the community and help others.

He also found time to be mayor in 1954, and later he chaired the Cape Girardeau Charter Commission, which wrote the city charter. He was also elected to a four-year term on the Cape Girardeau Board of Education, chairing the building committee that was responsible for the Central High School building.

Randol has also been a spiritual leader at Grace United Methodist Church for more than 50 years. He can also boast of a lovely wife, Dorothy, of 56 years, and four fine children.

The chamber also recognized Hutson's Fine Furniture with a well-deserved Small Business of the Year Award. This robust family business is a cornerstone of Cape Girardeau's downtown. Owner Charles Hutson is also a past recipient of the Limbaugh Award.

Randol and Hutson prove that nice guys can finish first.