By Sharon Gittleman
ROYAL OAK – No one was more stunned to learn LGBT activist Jim Domanski was named the Royal Oak Chamber of Commerce's "Businessperson of the Year," than Jim Domanski.
"I was shocked," said Domanski, a co-owner of Pronto! and Pronto! Corner Store in Royal Oak. "It was totally unexpected."
While Domanski may have been caught off-guard, the Chamber's Executive Director Liz Tillander said he was the natural choice.
"We looked at three main points – involvement and dedication to the Chamber, involvement and dedication to the city and community and excellence in one's profession," she said. "He surpassed all those qualifications."
Domanski, a Chamber board member and a board member of Royal Oak's Downtown Development Authority, helped develop several communitywide events, from "Steppin' Out/AIDS Walk Detroit," to the first "Taste of Royal Oak" restaurant sampling event held in 2004, in conjunction with the yearly "Clay and Glass Show," Tillander said.
"During 'Royal Oak in Bloom,' an annual flower sale we have each May, Jim is one of the volunteers we can count on to be there at 4 a.m. to greet the farmers as they arrive to set up," she said.
Domanski also helped create, "We Dig Royal Oak," the community's annual beautification effort that saw 70,000 plantings added by volunteers in one day last year, said Tillander.
"Bottom line, he is just such a community activist," she said. "There are so many organizations in Royal Oak that have benefited from his generosity in time, talent and treasure. He's a perfect candidate for this year."
Tillander said Domanski's restaurant Pronto! is another plus for the city.
"It's a place everyone feels welcome," she said. "It's a place in metro Detroit where everyone congregates and everyone enjoys it equally."
Chamber Board President Jim Schneider was on the committee that selected Domanski for the honor. Schneider, who said he's known Domanski for 14 years, described Royal Oak's businessperson of the year as an individual who has shown an "incredible devotion to the community."
"He's been part of so many significant things that happened downtown over the course of 14 years. He's an incredible guy," said Schneider. "He's like the Pied Piper. He has an idea and he has a way of bringing everyone in the fold with him and making things happen."
Domanski picked up his engraved award from the Chamber at the organization's "Best of Royal Oak Business Luncheon," held last week. He also walked away with a round trip airplane ticket to any place in the domestic United States and a half-page ad in a community newspaper.
Domanski said he may use his free ticket to fly to Key West or California to visit family or friends.
Volunteering has gained him an address book full of friends who feel like his own family, Domanski said.
"I love to do what I do for the city of Royal Oak and to be honored for it was really outstanding," he said.
While he was surprised to win his award, Domanski wasn't surprised to see Royal Oak choose a gay man for the honor, he said.
"I never treated being gay as being anything different than a lifestyle. I don't make a big deal about it – and if you don't make a big deal about it they don't," he said. "I always looked at Royal Oak as being a quilt. It takes a lot of different squares to make a quilt. We're just one of those squares."
