MANCHESTER, NH — The Greater Manchester Chamber of Commerce (GMCC) is pleased to announce Andy Crews as its 2016 Citizen of the Year. The award will be presented to Andy on Thursday, April 14 at the Chamber’s Annual Dinner at the Radisson Hotel in Manchester. The Citizen of the Year award is an annual tradition of the GMCC which first began in 1954.
Andy Crews, AutoFair Automotive Group President and CEO, has proven that serving the community can also be a critical part of building a successful company. Andy, who has significantly expanded the AutoFair family of dealerships and businesses, has personally championed annual fundraising efforts across the Greater Manchester community year after year. His efforts range from the Granite State Baseball Dinner to giving an annual percentage of November proceeds to New Horizons of New Hampshire. Andy helped launch Manchester’s annual Make-the-Grade competition, which rewards one high school student who has excelled in the classroom with a new automobile.
Andy’s most recent endeavor may be his most inspirational, helping to lead the development of Manchester’s first home for integrated drug treatment and recovery. “The [recovery] center will be a game changer and it will be the difference that our community desperately needs and would not have been possible without the leadership and dedication of Andy Crews,” said Mayor Ted Gatsas, in his recommendation for Andy Crews’ Citizen of the Year nomination.
With more than 25 years of experience in the automotive industry, Crews, who is originally from Georgia, moved to New Hampshire to lead AutoFair in 2006. Andy and his wife, Melissa, live in Bedford with their two daughters, Carli and Tyler.
“Andy is an amazing role model for how to achieve business success while also giving selflessly to the community through leadership, civic engagement and philanthropy,” said Michael Skelton, GMCC President and CEO. “We are honored and thrilled to name Andy as our next Citizen of the Year.”
Andy was nominated for Citizen of the Year by Sarah Cadden, Executive Assistant at AutoFair. In her nomination, Sarah said, “Andy has demonstrated a deep concern for improving the greater community of Manchester, both in terms of the quality of life for its citizens as well as for his more than 650 employees year after year.”
Since 1954 the Greater Manchester Chamber of Commerce has presented one outstanding individual the Citizen of the Year Award. This outstanding group of individuals has been paramount in shaping the GMCC’s agenda and the community. The Citizen of the Year award recognizes an individual with outstanding leadership and citizenship in the community, while demonstrating exemplary vision, civic pride and commitment to the betterment of society. To be nominated, the individual should live in the greater Manchester area and his or her activities should be centered in the same area. Recognition is given for leadership and performance in several areas of community service over a period of years.
Andy Crews will be recognized as 2015 Citizen of the Year at the Greater Manchester Chamber of Commerce Annual Dinner, presented by Eastern Bank, on Tuesday, April 14, 2016 at 5:00 pm at the Radisson Hotel in Manchester. For information and to purchase tickets, please visit www.manchester-chamber.org/COY.
