FAIRBURY - Lights. Camera. Fairbury.

The city of Fairbury hosted its annual Chamber of Commerce banquet on Friday night at the local Elks Lodge.


The theme? Starstruck, where many people dressed up as their favorite characters from movies or TV, like The Great Gatsby, Star Trek or Gilligan's Island.


The host? Fairbury's finest, Trevor Steinmeyer, who dazzled the crowd with an opening address augmented by a colorful stack of visual aids a la Demetri Martin, one of the local funnyman's favorite famous comics.

“At this point, it wouldn’t be the Chamber banquet without him as our emcee,” Chamber president Jenn Mau said in her introduction.  

“Sixteen years of standing up here talking to you all, and somehow, you keep inviting me back." Steinmeyer said in his address. "Tonight...we celebrate the true stars of our community, all of you. Every small business owner here is the lead in their own action movie. The plot: surviving another year of inflation, staffing shortages, and that one customer who still pays with a check...you know who you are.” 

The annual event honors local businesses who help make this small community thrive, as this year more than half a dozen businesses and organizations like Blue River Archery, Larkins Ace Hardware and Ziggi’s Coffee, joined the chamber's ranks for the first time.

The group sold off more than two dozen lots of auction items, orchestrated by Justin Schultis, a fourth-generation Nebraska realtor and decorated former international auctioneering champion. Items ranged from ticket packages to Nebraska football or Lincoln Stars hockey games to offers from local enterprises like Den’s Meat Market and On The Bricks Lofts, with proceeds going to support the now annual Christmas at Crystal Springs holiday light show.

And it also serves as a chance for the Chamber to honor one select member of the community for their efforts and work in giving back to the area.

“We always honor a special person that is an asset to our community in Fairbury,” said Mau.  

This year's Community Service award winner was Dennis Traeger, selected in honor of his, really, liftetime of service to and activity in Fairbury and Jefferson County.

"Tonight’s community service winner has been active in service in Fairbury and Jefferson County for more than 60 years," said Tony Likens, who presented Traeger with the award. "His service began at a young age, since he was active in 4H and FFA. He served his country as a member of the Nebraska National Guard, and a member of the VFW. Last but not least, our community service winner has served on the Jefferson County fair board since 1981, and will celebrate 45 years of service next year. He works hard to make sure the fair is a great place for youth and adults to exhibit, and for residents in our community and surrounding area to find enjoyable entertainment. He has often been part of the entertainment in the fair board’s popular ‘Front our Front Porch’ event, even wearing a dress when the skit calls for it.”

Humbly, Traeger said at the end of the night that there's a lot of people who have put in a lot of work over the years to help make an award like this happen. It's not work if it's fun, he added.

Last year's Chamber banquet theme was centered around The Roaring 20s and this year's was Hollywood, and though event organizers were mum about the theme and scope of next year's event, now that this installment of a sold-out event that filled more than 20 tables with at least 200 people from around the Southeast Nebraska community, the prevailing sentiments among people responsible for making this event - and local business in Fairbury and beyond - possible, were relief, gratitude, satisfaction, and excitement.