Eighteen of Vicksburg and Warren County’s business sector leaders and event coordinating organizations were honored as heroes Thursday in the mood-lit atmosphere of the Vicksburg Auditorium.

The sixth annual event showcasing those who attract businesses and new dollars to the local economy is part of the Hometown Heroes program, geared to those who assist the Vicksburg Convention Center and Auditorium book conferences, conventions, banquets and other special events to the two venues.

Honorees in individual, business/organization and lifetime achievement categories were singled out and awarded certificates for making significant and positive impact on the community, said Erin Powell, sales and marketing manager for the two facilities.

Recipients in the individual category were:

• Lewis Burke, as coordinator of the annual Martin Luther King Jr. breakfast sponsored by Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity.

The event, held at the convention center since 2006, awards scholarships to local junior high and high school students.

• Dr. John Walls, as coordinator of the Alcorn State University Alumni Association’s annual banquet.

The banquet hosts the university’s Hall of Honor inductees and alumni awardees.

• Kim Hopkins, as a key player in bringing the Mississippi Main Street Association’s summer managers training meeting to Vicksburg.

About 50 managers from Main Street groups across the state attended this summer’s event, including Vicksburg Main Street, of which Hopkins is director.

Recipients in the business/organization category were:

• Mutual Credit Union, which has held its membership meeting at the auditorium for the past five years. Accepting for the credit union was Sandra Evans.

• The Society of American Military Engineers, which has held its annual E-Week luncheon at both facilities for several years. Accepting was Suzanne Artman, wife of member Jeff Artman.

• The Rotary Club of Vicksburg, which has helped attract the statewide organization’s presidents-elect training seminar to Vicksburg for the past four years. Accepting was club President Lynn Foley.

• Vicksburg Chapter of Blacks in Government, which has co-coordinated the Martin Luther King Jr. breakfast with the local NAACP for more than 10 years. Accepting was Bobbie Bingham Morrow.

• Les Soeurs Charmantes Social and Civic Club, which has held its annual cotillion at the auditorium. Accepting were Debra Potts and Carolyn Strothers.

• The Miss Vicksburg Organization, which hosts its pageant in the auditorium. Accepting for the group was Skipper Guizerix.

• Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, which hosts its annual Beautillion scholarship event locally. Accepting was member Sheila Lowe.

• Mount Carmel Ministries, which hosts its annual Harvest Ball at the auditorium. Accepting for the group was Shirley Hedrick.

• Vicksburg Cotillion Club, which hosts its annual holiday party locally since 2004. Accepting was Margie Heltzel.

• Warren County-Vicksburg Public Library, for helping bring the Mississippi Library Association’s state convention to Vicksburg in October. Accepting was Director Deb Mitchell.

• Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, for hosting candidate forums during election seasons. Accepting was member Jo Ella Walls.

• Kappa Alpha Psi, for hosting a Teen Dance locally for several years. Accepting was Mike Warren.

Receiving Lifetime Achievement Awards were:

• Vicksburg Warren School District, which has had science and reading fairs, choir concerts and proms and dances hosted locally for years. Accepting was VWSD Superintendent Dr. Elizabeth Duran Swinford.

• Alcorn State University Department of Fine Arts, which has held its annual jazz festival in Vicksburg since 2003. Accepting was Director Dr. Dave Miller.

• Vicksburg Convention and Visitors Bureau, for its body of work in tourism and convention marketing. Accepting was Executive Director Bill Seratt.

Usage days at the Vicksburg Convention Center were down 24 percent for the fiscal year’s third quarter, though Larry Gawronski, executive director of the facility’s manager, VenuWorks, stressed the importance of honoring regular contributors to the center and auditorium’s bookings and was hopeful a lagging economy is merely trailing national indicators and is on the way up.

“In this day and age, people like to be recognized for what they do,” Gawronski said. “They’re directly responsible for hundreds of thousands of dollars of direct spending in this community.”