MOSS POINT, Miss. (WLOX)- Grit, pioneer, and thrive are typically buzzwords, but in this case, those words serve as recognition pieces for the 2023 Anchor Awards.

“The small businesses will win the day, every day,” said Paige Roberts with the Jackson County Chamber of Commerce.

There were the Grit, Pioneer, and Thrive award winners at the annual event, as well as other honors as the anchors of the Jackson County business world were recognized.

Speaking of thriving, Dixie Glass won this particular honor. The Pascagoula-based company has been blazing, or in this case, glazing, a trail for small businesses in Jackson County since 1946.

“We have stood the test of time, obviously, and when we heard our name called today, it was awesome,” said Crystal Westmoreland.

Even coming out of the post-pandemic business climate, Dixie Glass expanded about a year ago.

“We came from a 6,000-square-foot building to a 20,000-square-foot building, so it was much-needed room. The glazing industry has no vocational or technical schools for it, so it’s really a taught trade. It’s very difficult for us to find experienced labor. It’s like that from the top down,” said Sean Westmoreland. “When we pull up in the mornings and get to see what we’ve worked for, we’re really grateful and really blessed.”

The GRIT non-profit award went to the Junior Auxiliary of Pascagoula-Moss Point, and the Pioneer Award went to Kitchen Sisters meal prep service.

Chevron also gave out 16 5-C initiative awards at today’s event.

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