By Denise Allabaugh, Wilkes-Barre Citizens’ Voice
PLAINS TWP. — Conrad Schintz received a standing ovation Tuesday night for winning the Lifetime Achievement Award at the Greater Wilkes-Barre Chamber of Commerce’s 132nd annual dinner at Mohegan Sun Pocono, attended by more than 500 people.
Schintz retired earlier this year following a 45-year career in health care administration and leadership.
He has held a number of senior positions at Geisinger, including senior vice president of the Geisinger Eastern Region. Since 2005, he served as Geisinger’s vice president for community relationships.
“Throughout my 45-year career, I was fortunate to have unbelievable support,” Schintz said. “The careers of most health care administrators are usually well short of 45 years… The reason I could be there for so long is that I was always working with great people.”
In addition to a health care career that spanned decades, Schintz has been active in numerous community initiatives and organizations and continues his community service in retirement.
That included decades of leadership with the boards of the Greater Wilkes-Barre Chamber. He is a past board chair and has led several committees through challenging times.
“I am happy to say that the situation has been rectified by a lot of hard work,” Schintz said. “Our chamber is in a much better place working to benefit our area. I have been very happy over the years to do what I could do to help move the chamber and our community forward.”
He also served on a number of other boards for organizations such as the United Way of Wyoming Valley, Wilkes-Barre Salvation Army, Luzerne County Community College Foundation, St. Vincent de Paul Kitchen, Catholic Youth Center in Wilkes-Barre and the Wyoming Valley Chapter of the American Red Cross.
McCarthy Tire Service Company, a fourth generation family-owned business that started in Wilkes-Barre 90 years ago, received the Large Business of the Year Award.
The business, now one of the largest commercial tire dealers in the country, recently opened a retread plant inside a 75,000-square-foot warehouse at Wilkes-Barre Boulevard and Butler Street.
John D. McCarthy Jr., president of McCarthy Tire, and his sister, Katie McCarthy Lambert, chief financial officer, accepted the award.
“We are humbled and honored to receive this award,” McCarthy Lambert said. “We would also like to congratulate our fellow honorees…You know you have arrived in this world when you are being honored on the same stage as Connie Schintz.”
Pepperjam, the internet marketing business formerly known as eBay Enterprise Marketing Solutions in the Innovation Center in downtown Wilkes-Barre, received the Emerging Business of the Year Award and a Healthy Workplace Award.
Pepperjam Chief Executive Officer Michael Jones, who accepted the Emerging Business of the Year Award, said his company now has about 300 employees globally and “succeeded because we were in Wilkes-Barre, not in spite of it.”
CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocate) of Luzerne County, a nonprofit organization established to serve abused and neglected children, received the Charitable Organization of the Year Award.
Fred Lombardo Real Estate received the Pride of Place in Restoration and Renovation Award for renovating a 14,700-square-foot building on Wyoming Avenue in Kingston to include eight luxury apartments and three commercial lease spaces on the first floor.
Fidelity Bank received the Pride of Place Environmental Enhancement Award for locating a branch in Pittston and helping to contribute to the revitalization of the downtown area.
Dallas-based Metz Culinary Management received the Healthy Workplace Continuing Excellence Award.
