Rod Carew Among Chamber Honorees

Baseball Hall of Famer Rod Carew and Italian restaurateur Bruno Serato will be among the community leaders the Anaheim Chamber of Commerce will honor tonight.

The chamber will host its first “An Award Winning Affair” at the Anaheim Marriott hotel to pay tribute to outstanding business leaders and Anaheim police officers.

Carew, who raised awareness about the National Marrow Donor Program after his daughter, Michelle, 18, was diagnosed with leukemia and died last year, will receive the Lifetime Achievement award.

“Michelle wanted me to continue the fight to help other kids who are going through what she went through,” said Carew, the Anaheim Angels batting coach, who has lived in Anaheim 19 years.

Cathy Dutton, the chamber’s special events manager, said Carew was chosen for the award because “he’s done a lot in the community--and quietly. He’s not a grandstander by any means.”

A decade ago, Serato started his elegant restaurant, Thee White House, inside a turn-of-the-century colonial-style craftsman home on Anaheim Boulevard. He will be recognized with the Small Business of the Year award.

Others who will be recognized are Nancy Ince, Mary Kay Cosmetics consultant, Business Woman of the Year; and Ned Snavely, Anaheim Marriott hotel general manager, Business Man of the Year.

The Large Business of the Year award will go to AM Medical Center, which has provided health care for nearly 40 years.

Awards will also be given to Anaheim police officers Bill Moss, a 25-year veteran, for his community policing efforts, and Dave Hermann will be honored with “Rookie of the Year.”