Chamber honors business and achiever of the year

"What a year to start a business," Morgan Tillman said last night about starting her Elmer City salon in 2020 in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Tillman's Apothecary Salon was awarded Business of the Year by the Grand Coulee Dam Area Chamber of Commerce.

 "It was quite a wild ride," Tillman said. "I'm thankful to be a part of the chamber and the community that's been so welcoming."

"There's a lot of excitement around this business, which I think is fabulous," Patty Oliver of PK's Culinary said while presenting the award. "They've offered an upscale service to the area in a way we haven't really seen in Coulee, which is really exciting. ... They did such an awesome job remodeling the old Tillman's Store into an awesome salon."

Oliver added that the salon is bringing body piercing and nail services to the business soon.

Nic Alexander of Coulee Construction presented the Achiever of the Year award to Mark Piturachsatit who operates Siam Palace.

"The person that received it this year truly does an amazing job and has a list of accolades that goes along with it," Alexander said. "His sense of community, his contribution to the community... he's just a very good person. And if you know this person, you know exactly what I'm talking about. He has a heart much bigger than me. If you can spend some time with this gentleman, you'll realize ... very quickly that if you need something, he'll give it to you, he'll find a way. I've been very fortunate to fish with this gentleman, golf with him, spend time with him, work for him, work with him, and it's been a real pleasure."

Alexander said Piturachsatit's monthly free meals to teenagers is a notable contribution to the community.

"Kids love food," Piturachsatit said, noting that 30-50 come each month.

He said he wanted to give them a space to enjoy food as well as to have a safe place to go and be among friendly people, "an opportunity they might not have otherwise."