Honoring Merrick's Merchant, Professional of the Year

The Merrick Chamber of Commerce held its annual Merchant and Professional of the Year ceremony at R.S. Jones Restaurant on Merrick Avenue on May 17.

Douglas Mills, owner of Printing Emporium on Merrick Avenue, was honored as Merchant of the Year, and Dr. Gary Shore was named Professional of the Year.

"Serving the community has become a full-time passion of mine," said Mills, who has been a chamber member and owner of Printing Emporium for 25 years. "My parents have been here for almost 50 years and I was born and raised here. I love this town, the people in it, and the true sense of community that we have."

"I'm very humbled," Shore said of earning his new title. "I really have to give credit to Merrick and the surrounding areas, the members of my practice and my staff for making things so easy for me."

Mills began working at Printing Emporium as a Calhoun High School student in 1979, and bought the business by the age of 19 when he also became a member of the chamber and the Kiwanis Club of Merrick. He served as president of the Merrick Kiwanis Club for two terms in 1992-93 and 2004-05 and for two months in 2007. He served as president of the Merrick Chamber of Commerce in 1989 and 1990. In 1981, he founded the Merrick Festival, which continues again this October, and he served as the festival chairman for five years.

Mills has been active in the Girl Scouts of Nassau County, as chairman of the Golf Committee, which generated tens of thousand of dollars for the organization. In 1992, he was named Merrick’s Man of the Year by the Merrick Chamber. In 1995, he was honored as the Small Business Person of the Year by the Nassau County Council of Chambers. In 1990, he was named one of Long Island’s Top 40 Under 40 by Long Island Business News. Mills is on the Board of Directors on Merrick-North Merrick Little League, where he serves as director of fundraising. He and his wife, Marsha, were recently honored by the Nassau County Coalition Against Domestic Violence for the dedication and support, and Doug continues to serve on the coalition's President's Advisory Council.

Mills lives in Merrick with his wife and sons Gregory, a student at Hofstra University, and Matthew, a student at Calhoun.

Shore has been a member of the Merrick Chamber of Commerce for just under a year. He opened an internal medicine practice in Merrick in 1995, where it remained for six years when the practice moved to Bellmore. Shore returned to a Merrick location in 2009.

Shore graduated from the School of Medicine at Stony Brook University Medical Center in 1988. He lives in Oceanside with his wife, Peri, his daughter Dori, 17, and son Justin, 14.

Comments about this story? SZeidler@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 236.