Joe George Named 2011 EOY




	Home Thiel Headline News Experts and Speakers Graphics Standards Public Relations Office T-Notes Today at Thiel		THIEL COLLEGE AWARDS 2011 HALLER ENTREPRENEURIAL HONOR TO JOY CONE CO. PRESIDENT JOSEPH A. GEORGE Sept. 21, 2011 GREENVILLE, Pa. – Joseph A. George, president and owner of Joy Cone Co., will receive the 2011 Haller Enterprise Institute Entrepreneur of the Year Award from Thiel College at a dinner ceremony on Wednesday, Oct. 5, at 6:30 p.m. in the Sawhill-Georgian Room of Thiel’s Howard Miller Student Center. Given annually to a business owner who has demonstrated entrepreneurial leadership, the award, now in its 17th year, will be presented by Thiel President Dr. Troy VanAken and Professor David Miller, executive director of the Haller Enterprise Institute. George graduated from Sharon High School in 1954 and later earned an A.B. degree from Harvard College. In 1964, he returned to his hometown to revive the George & Thomas Cone Company, the ice cream cone company his family started in 1918. Under his leadership, George & Thomas Cone Company transitioned into a modern, profitable, employee-owned company. In 1964, Joy Cone’s sales were $25,000. In 2011, sales are projected to reach $90 million. The company now sells more than 1.5 billion cones per year, including gluten-free ice cream cones. A “local boy,” George maintains an active presence in his community. He is or has been a member of the Shenango Valley Chamber of Commerce, the United Way of Mercer County, Penn Northwest Development Corp., F.H. Buhl Club and the Thiel College Board of Trustees, among many others. He has received numerous awards, including the Louis & Barbara Thiel Distinguished Service Award from Thiel, the Boss of the Year Award from the American Business Women’s Association and the Shenango Valley Chamber of Commerce’s Phoenix Award, among others. George is a member of Notre Dame Parish in Hermitage, Pa., and lives in Sharon, Pa. He and his wife, Ruthanne Beighley ’73, who is Joy Cone’s legal counsel, have six children and nine grandchildren. The Haller Enterprise Institute, originally named the Thiel College Enterprise Institute when it was organized in 1983, was renamed in 1996 when Pittsburgh residents Dr. Henry E. and Grace Mary Haller provided a $1 million gift to develop entrepreneurial education at Thiel College. *About Thiel College* Thiel College is a liberal arts, sciences and professional studies institution located in Greenville, Pa., that provides a great balance of academic challenge, personal and social involvement, and exceptional value to its 1,100 students. For more information about Thiel College, visit www.thiel.edu or call 800-24-THIEL. –30– .