NASHUA – Fresh faces – and more than a few familiar ones – gathered at the Radisson Hotel in Nashua Tuesday to celebrate The Telegraph’s “Best of Greater Nashua” annual awards ceremony.

In more than 150 categories, the newspaper honored the best of the best before a large audience in a night that included food, fun and plenty of awards.

Heather Goodwin Henline, publisher and general manager of The Telegraph, was on hand to host the event and hand out some well-deserved hardware.

“This is one of my favorite nights of the year,” Goodwin Henline said. “It’s a honor to help recognize the hard work and dedication of local business owners and their staff as well as community and civic leaders who go above and beyond. These individuals are the backbone of our community, the first to answer the call to support local causes, and tonight is their night. I salute them and their achievements. They truly are the best.”

One of the night’s big winners was The River Casino & Sports Bar, located in downtown Nashua.

The River’s Thomas Rafferty spoke about the casino’s charitable contributions and impact on nightlife for frequent downtowners.

“Moving to Nashua from Milford has been a really great step for us,” he said. “In terms of being downtown, and being part of the community, that means a lot to us – especially with regard to the charitable gaming aspect.”

The River donates 35 percent of its revenue to a different

charity each day. Rafferty said downtown Nashua was a “perfect fit.”

“It’s where we wanted to be for a long time. It’s been really fun since we took over the Arena Sports Bar and having the new sports bar aspect that we didn’t have in Milford,” Rafferty added.

The River’s “Best of,” awards included Bar/Pub, Casino, Place to Watch the Game, Burger, Chef (Mike Sullivan), Happy Hour and Food-To-Go.

“It’s really a great place to hang out in,” Rafferty said. “There wasn’t that environment – that social aspect – the fun place to hang out before, in this kind of setting. We’re very excited about it and continue to grow.”

Dr. Pierre Dionne of Hudson Medical Associates was another award recipient.

“This is the third time we’ve won in four years,” Dionne said. “It’s been a great thing. And I think it’s important to see that other people care so much. When my father retired, I told him, ‘Dad, you’ve got to go to the retirement party. They want to celebrate you.’ That says and sparks the idea that everybody else who is doing what you did knows that there’s an achievement at the end of the line.”

“There’s a lot of response, people are proud, and they support the way you’re doing things. And when you do things in a certain way, it let’s you know you’re going in the right direction,” Dionne added.

Many recipients emphasized the importance of good, old-fashioned print

advertising.

“Seven years in a row,” shared Nancy Keyslay of Fancy Nancy’s Salon and Spa. “I feel like there is the obvious – that level of achievement in being named a ‘Best of Greater Nashua.’ But also, today, with all the marketing and everything else, if someone Googles ‘Best of Nashua,’ we come up. That really is a big thing.”

Keyslay said she is proud to display her salon’s many plaques for clients to see.

“People still know The Telegraph and what it represents to Nashua,” she said. “People subscribe, people read it. But while social media is out there, I believe in hard, real newspaper advertising. We keep the paper in the salon. My husband always told me that you have to be prepared to advertise. You can’t afford to, some people say. But I say, you can’t afford not to.”

Advertisers and readers alike recognize the accomplishment of “Best of” winners and the quality customer service they provide.

UFO Party Rentals’ owner Greg McAdams emphasized the correlation between winning and offering a winning service. His company offers the likes of inflatable bounce houses, photo booths, obstacle courses and even portable, miniature golf course rentals for practically any

occasion.

“We have a little bit of everything,” he said. “This definitely lends to our marketing. If someone is considering you or someone else, you can say, ‘Hey, we won ‘Best Of.’ Plus, there is that sense of community. With something like this, it is definitely a boost to what we’re doing, knowing that we treat our customers right with expert safety. I assume that’s a big reason we’re here. We’re the only company in New Hampshire that does what we do, who is safety certified to install inflatables. That’s a big thing.”

Dr. Brandon Linatsas of Nashua Family Chiropractic, a winner for a fourth consecutive year, said receiving the award matters.

“I think it’s important for a couple of reasons,” he said. “It makes people aware of local businesses. We all know we can go to Walmart to buy a T-shirt. But maybe there’s that haberdashery downtown that we didn’t know or think about. And secondly, it boosts our business and gives people something to talk about. Being voted ‘Best Chiropractic,’ four years in a row: That’s a really powerful message.”