South Valley Chamber to Recognize 2024 Titan Award Honorees & Small Business of the Year

SANDY, UT— The South Valley Chamber of Commerce (SVC) announced Sandi Hendry, James E. Clarke, and Keith B. McMullin as recipients of the 2024 South Valley Chamber Titan Award. Since its founding in 2009, the South Valley Chamber has presented the Titan Award – the highest honor offered by the Chamber - to business and community leaders who have demonstrated their long-term commitment to the community by being actively engaged, giving back, and making a significant positive impact. Honorees were selected by the Chamber’s executive committee and board of directors from a group of high-profile nominees.
 
"The individuals being honored this year add to the remarkable tradition of past awardees known for their exceptional business minds and outstanding contributions to the community," said Jay Francis, President and CEO of the South Valley Chamber. "Sandi, James, and Keith exemplify excellence as both accomplished business leaders and dedicated, caring members of our community."
 
This year's honorees will be recognized at the 15th Annual Titan Awards, presented by The Larry H. Miller Company, on November 6, 2024 at the Grand America Hotel in Salt Lake City.
 
"The annual Titan Awards offers the SVC a chance to acknowledge and celebrate leaders who have made a significant impact and difference in Utah," said Rob Brough, South Valley Chamber Board Chairman and Executive Vice President at Zions Bank. "Our heartfelt gratitude goes out to our Titan Award honorees. Their leadership and contributions have made Utah a better place to both live in and conduct business."
 
The SVC will also announce the 2024 Small Business of the Year at the Titan Awards event. Three years since its inception, the Small Business of the Year award is selected by the SVC Small Business Committee. Nominations for this award will open in late summer on the Chamber website. 
 
“Recognizing the Small Business of the Year allows us to honor enterprises that not only thrive, but also make substantial philanthropic contributions to our community," remarked Brian Epperson, Chair of the SVC Small Business Committee. "Though these recipients may be small in scale today, they hold the promise of becoming future powerhouses for good across Utah for generations.”
 
The 2024 Titan Awards event will be emceed by local TV personality, Deanie Wimmer, with speakers including SVC President & CEO Jay Francis and SVC Board Chair Rob Brough, along with entertainment. 
 
More information about this year’s honorees along with previous honorees can be found at www.southvalleychamber.com/titanawards
 
 
Honoree Biographies: 

Sandi Hendry
 
Sandi Hendry was born and raised in Orem, Utah. Sandi has always been one that stood out in a crowd and is loved by all with her beauty, both inside and out, and her warm and loving personality. She graduated from Brigham Young University with a degree in Education & Business and was a schoolteacher for 30 years (grades 1st - 6th).
 
After retiring from school teaching, she worked in HR and Personnel for Mountain View Title, a company she owned and operated with her husband, Mike.
 
In 2009, she added a third career - that of owner and founder of Minky Couture. That year, when Sandi’s daughter became very ill and was hospitalized for several months, her daughter asked for a “big baby blanket” to snuggle up with during her recovery. Sandi had a hard time finding the perfect cozy blanket for her daughter - one that was both fashionable and cozy. It was at this time that Sandi created the first adult-size Minky Couture blanket. Everyone in the hospital loved it! Sandi started having more blankets made to give as gifts to friends and family members. The blankets she gave were an instant hit, universally loved and used daily. She started designing her own blankets, using different combinations of fabrics. Each blanket was unique, created specifically for the recipient. Family and friends started asking if they could purchase the blankets to give to their own loved ones, and Minky Couture was born! 
 
Minky Couture has now grown to be a very successful and popular brand of blanket, not only in Utah, but all over the United States and the world. Sandi has now opened six beautiful retail stores throughout Utah with over 250 employees. Her flare for beauty and fashion makes her stores a wonderful experience for all her customers. 
 
Sandi is a wonderful leader. Her love and concern for others is infectious and draws people to her. She is a joy to work for and her love for the product and her customers is top priority. Sandi has received much recognition and many awards through the years, including Ernst and Young Entrepreneur of the Year 2019 and the Athena Leadership Award in 2020. Minky Couture has also repeatedly earned the “Best of State” award. 
 
Sandi has a heart of gold and is always giving to others. People who know her know she loves to give and would do anything for those around her. She has always kept “giving back to the community” top of mind as Minky Couture has grown. Her “Heart of Minky” program donates thousands of Mini Minky blankets to NICUs all over the country. These little Mini blankets bring such comfort and love to these tiny babies who are born a little earlier than expected, and to their families who have something comforting and beautiful to provide for their baby. She literally loves to “blanket the world with love” one blanket at a time. 
 
Sandi’s incredible business mind, her outstanding leadership qualities, and her kind and giving heart have made her not only an incredible businesswoman, but an incredible friend who is loved by all who are lucky enough to know her.

James E. Clarke
James Clarke is a founder, investor, and operator of private and public companies on five continents with over 36,000 employees globally. He currently serves as the CEO of Clearlink, a company he founded in 2001, sold in 2011, and returned to lead a decade later. 
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James is a graduate of BYU, Harvard, and holds a master’s degree in management from Oxford University. He serves on several boards of private and public companies, as well as regional and global nonprofit organizations. James serves as the Honorary Consul to the United Kingdom for the State of Utah and recently finished his tenure as the governor appointed Chair of the Board of Trustees for Utah Valley University, Utah’s largest university. 
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The Labor and Honor Foundation, the Clarkes’ family charity, focuses on poverty alleviation, education, and the arts.? The name of the foundation is derived from the Clarkes’ English family crest dating back centuries, which instills that whether a task be great or small, ALL work should be done?with honor.  Their hope is that through their efforts, they might improve the lives of others by giving back with humble thanksgiving for life’s many blessings. 
 

Keith B. McMullin
 
Keith B. McMullin — former Chief Executive Officer and President of Deseret Management Corporation from April 2012 to December 2023, now retired — has distinguished himself in business, leadership, and service. 
His perspectives on business, leadership, and the needs of society blend in important ways. He says, “Business interests, the needs of families, and challenges in society are uniquely tied together. A community grows stronger as business leaders and their enterprises unite in furthering the interests of all three. Such unity produces economic growth, productive workforces, wholesome families, and vibrant communities.” 
 
Keith is an ardent supporter of the work done by Chambers of Commerce, having served as chair of the Salt Lake Chamber. He is a graduate of the University of Utah and serves on the Advisory Board of the David Eccles School of Business. 
 
As a general authority and member of the Presiding Bishopric of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1995 to 2012, he traveled to countries across the world training Church leaders and members, overseeing Church ecclesiastical and temporal operations. He participated in the improvement of local communities, including Salt Lake’s city center. 
 
Prior to his call as a general authority, Keith was the managing director of the Church’s welfare and humanitarian activities. Earlier, he worked for Ford Motor Company and in several small businesses. 
 
In June of this year, Keith and his wife, Carolyn Gibbs McMullin, will celebrate their 60th wedding anniversary. They are parents of eight children, twenty-nine grandchildren, and one great-grandchild.
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About the South Valley Chamber:
 
With members across Salt Lake County, the South Valley Chamber of Commerce primarily represents member businesses and organizations in Sandy, Draper, Riverton, South Jordan, and Cottonwood Heights Cities. The South Valley Chamber supports business through the South Valley Business Institute, networking events, forums, and advocacy efforts. Additionally, the chamber is focused on creating and maintaining a vibrant business ecosystem that best supports ongoing business growth, collaboration, and job creation.