39 central Pennsylvania companies and individuals were honored during the prestigious eighth annual Business of the Year Awards event, held on Monday, November 7, 2011, at the Hilton Harrisburg.

Phil Wenger, Hasu Shah and Bob Kinsley were inducted into the Central Penn Business Hall of Fame in recognition of a sustained commitment to their industry, employees and community throughout their career.

Ann B. Barshinger, Grace Milliman Pollock and The Donald B. and Dorothy L. Stabler Foundation were each recognized with Spirit of Philanthropy Awards in appreciation of their charitable donations, which have supported civic and nonprofit organizations in the area and made a significant difference in the well-being of central Pennsylvanians.

Building the Community Awards were given to Giant Food Stores, GreenWorks Development and Memorial Hospital for their commitment to the region in the form of investments in workforce development, business expansion, regional cooperation and volunteerism in the community and its nonprofit causes.

Five other categories of recognition were open to public nomination, including the Business of the Year, Emerging Business of the Year and Executive of the Year Awards. Eligible nominees were privately-held, for-profit companies headquartered, or with significant operations, in Adams, Cumberland, Dauphin, Lancaster, Lebanon, Perry and/or York counties.

The nomination applications were reviewed by the judges' panel, from which six finalists were selected for each award. The winner of each category was revealed during the November 7 program.

Business of the Year Awards were taken home by LMS Commercial Real Estate, Keystone Custom Homes and D&H Distributing. The Emerging Business of the Year Award went to Lancaster's Smilebuilderz Dental Health Campus. And the winner of the Executive of the Year Award was Gary C. Butler, P.E., president and chief executive officer of Precision Custom Components in York.

A publication profiling the honorees, finalists and winners can be viewed here.

Photos from the black-tie event are available to view and purchase online.

Watch each honoree's Hall of Fame tribute video online:

• Robert A. Kinsley
• Hasu P. Shah
• Philip R. Wenger

The Business of the Year Awards are a program of the Central Penn Business Journal and are presented by Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney, PC. Other sponsors include: Capital BlueCross; Comcast Business Class; M&T Bank; McKonly & Asbury, LLP; Netrepid, Inc.; Harrisburg University of Science and Technology and Rutan Productions.

For more information about the awards, contact the event coordinator, Colleen Jones, at (717) 236-4300 or colleenj@journalpub.com.