Irwin, Austin to enter Chamber Business Hall of Fame

QUINCY — The Quincy Area Chamber of Commerce will induct two members into the Business Hall of Fame at 11:30 a.m. Jan. 19 at the Oakley Lindsey Center.

“This year’s honorees exemplify excellence and have made remarkable contributions to our community on so many levels,” said Bruce Guthrie, President/CEO of Quincy Area Chamber of Commerce. “The Chamber Hall of Fame allows us to celebrate the substantial investment of innovators, leaders and business owners whose efforts have made the Quincy community a better place.”

The Class of 2022 will consist of the late George Irwin and Terry Austin of Austin Group, LLC.

George Irwin

Irwin was the founder of the Quincy Society of Fine Arts, now known as Arts Quincy, the first community arts council in America. He went on to found the Illinois Arts Council in 1963 and was the founder and first chairman of Americans for the Arts in 1961. His contributions shaped policy that led to the creation of the National Endowment for the Arts, which now funds organizations across the entire country.

Irwin was active in architecture and historic preservation projects in Quincy for more than a half-century. Since the early 1950’s, he saved several local landmarks from planned destruction, restored some, and placed several on the National Register of Historic Places. In 1983, he received a National Honors Award from the Landmarks Preservation Council of Illinois for his extensive work in historic preservation, mostly in Quincy.

Irwin worked with architectural historian Paul Sprague in 1972 to complete a county-wide survey of historic architecture. In 1973-74, through the Quincy Society of Fine Arts, he helped produce a nationally financed study of the arts and architecture in smaller cities. He organized Quincy’s first historic house tour in 1976 through the Quincy Society of Fine Arts, which resulted the next year in the organization of the private group, Quincy Preserves.

Irwin died Nov. 24, 2020. He was 99.

Terry Austin

Austin, owner and president of Austin Group, established the company in 1987 and has products spanning a wide array of different industries, providing innovative solutions for both everyday and one-of-a-kind items. At the time, no other business was doing this type of engineering and design work. The industry was a new emerging segment of an established market.

Austin Group is a design firm, specializing in CAD/CAM designing including product, tool and prototype design, a consulting firm, specializing in foundry process development and control, project management and developmental casting programs, and a developer of prototype models and tooling to assist in bringing new projects into the market rapidly.

Austin was born in the Chicago area but raised in Quincy. He graduated from Quincy High School and went to Western Illinois University, where he co-founded the Theta Chi fraternity and graduated with a degree in industrial arts education. He served in Vietnam in the U.S. Army as a reconnaissance pilot taking aerial photos. Austin resides in Quincy with his wife, Sandy.

The Business Hall of Fame was started in 2006 to honor current and past business leaders, businesses and organizations making important contributions to the Quincy-area business community.

The event is open to the public. Cost is $30 per person and includes lunch. Reservations are required by Jan. 14 and can be made by going to www.quincychamber.org.