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BROKEN BOW-Former Husker and NFL (Rams, Redskins) defensive end Adam Carriker puts it simply: “If you believe that you will, then you can do it.”

Carriker, born in Hastings, served as Saturdays night's guest speaker during the Broken Bow Chamber of Commerce Annual Meeting and Banquet held at the One Box Convention Center. He spoke on the importance of believing in oneself and to surround yourself with the right people saying “you don't need a lot of people to believe in you, you just need the right people.”

“It's very simple. If you believe that you will, then you can do it. If you believe that you can't, then you won't. It's very simple. If it's something that you want bad enough you'll find away. If it's not, you'll find an excuse. At the core of it all is that word belief,” Carriker said.

Of course, Carriker also gave a shout-out to the faithful Husker fans residing here in Custer County. “I firmly believe Husker nation is the best fans under God's hot sun,” Carriker said.

The host of the Carriker Chronicles was named First-Team All-Big 12, Big 12 Academic Honor Roll three times, and Big 12 Defensive Lineman of the Year. He met his wife Angie at UNL and they now have six kids together.

The Chamber of Commerce welcomed Adam Carriker as well as Lieutenant Governor Mike Foley on Saturday. The Chamber celebrated 29 new members, 25 ribbon cuttings, and nine GROW awards this past year. The annual awards portion of the evening featured more than 30 nominees, with 414 votes. Forty-eight businesses/organizations celebrated milestone anniversaries.

Husker Ticket Raffle Winner: Julie Toline

Citizen of the Year: Danal Wilkie and Shirley McGinn

Chamber Business of the Year: Kinkaider Brewing Co.

Excellence in Customer Service Individual: Bailey Tebow/Triple Blessed Boutique

Excellence in Customer Service Business: Fiesta Brava

Chamber Volunteer of the Year: Tom Eacker

Broken Bow Public Schools-130 years

Schaper & White-105 years

Custer County UNL Extension-100 years

Broken Bow Country Club-85 years

Farm Credit Services of America-85 years

Holcomb Pharmacy-80 years

Custer Public Power District-75 years

KCNI/KBBN-70 years

Broken Bow Lions Club-65 years

Sargent Irrigation-65 years

OfficeNet, Inc.-65 years

Myers Construction Co.-55 years

Universal Insurance Agency-55 years

Sargent Pipe Company, Inc.-50 years

Broken Bow Optimist Club-45 years

Gateway Motors, Inc.-45 years

Marsh Law Office-45 years

Broken Bow Animal Hospital-45 years

Gateway Motel-45 years

Johnson Electric-45 years

Michelle Miller, CPA-45 years

Paulsen, Inc.-45 years

Pizza Hut-45 years

Edward Jones Investments-35 years

Farmers National/Dave Davis Auction-35 years

J&J Accounting-35 years

Trotter Fertilizer/Trotter Tire Pros-30 years

Sylvester's Bar & Lounge-30 years

Intellicom Computer Consulting, Inc.-25 years

Steffens Law Office, PC-25 years

Store More/Jacobson Rentals-25 years

Ag-Land ATV-15 year

A Kneaded Touch Massage Therapy Clinic-15 years

Valley Gutters R Seamless-15 years

Prairie Grounds Cafe & Gifts-10 years

Walker Entities, LLC-10 years

Broken Bow Wind II-5 years

Bruce Forrester Auto Sales-5 years

EZ IT Solutions-5 years

Ideal Realty-5 years

KBEAR 92.3 Country-5 years

Kinkaider Brewing Co.-5 years

X-Change 2-5 years

Jim Christen Auction-5 years

Keely Court-5 years

Marathon Press-5 years

Penny Ashenfelter, EA-5 years

ProPrinting & Graphics-5 years