By Gerardo R. Partido
Variety News Staff

THE Guam Chamber of Commerce has announced its business laureates for 2007.
Former Governor Paul M. Calvo, president and chairman of the board of Calvo Enterprises Inc., was named as the Chamber’s individual laureate while Atkins Kroll Inc. has been named as the business laureate.
Both will be admitted into the Guam Business Hall of Fame this year.
The laureates will be inducted during the Guam Chamber of Commerce’s 83rd Anniversary Gala Celebration on Saturday, May 5, 2007 at the Hyatt Regency Guam. A video commemorating the accomplishments of the 2007 laureates will be featured that evening. A symbolic award will also be presented.
A significant part of the Chamber’s anniversary celebration will be the recognition of Chamber member companies celebrating 20 years plus, in five-year increments, of doing business in Guam. A special award will be presented to 28 member companies celebrating 20 to 60 years of providing services to the Guam community.
“For the past 15 years, the Guam Chamber of Commerce has, through the Guam Business Hall of Fame, paid tribute to outstanding business leaders who have contributed positively to our island’s economic growth,” said Chamber president Eloise R. Baza. “We thank the community of Guam for the continued support of the Guam Business Hall of Fame. It is our hope that all of Guam’s outstanding business role models and visionaries will be given the honor and recognition they truly deserve.”
This year’s individual laureate, Paul M. Calvo, is the president and chairman of Calvo Enterprises Inc., a conglomerate of diverse companies owned by brothers Paul, Thomas “Jerry” and Edward M. Calvo (deceased).
Companies under the Calvo Enterprises Inc. umbrella include: Calvo’s Insurance Underwriters, Pay-Less Markets Inc., Pepsi Cola Bottling Co. of Guam, Mid-Pacific Liquor Distributing Company, Market Wholesale & Distributors, Title Guaranty, Calvo Realty, Pacific Trading Company and Pacific Telestations dba KUAM.
Calvo is also a major shareholder in the Bank of Saipan, Mr. Rubbishman and Bruno’s Quality Produce. He owns both Governor’s and Rosie’s Apartment complexes and has numerous real estate holdings throughout the island.
The Chamber’s 2007 business laureate, Atkins Kroll Inc., came out of Atkins Kroll and Co. Ltd., which was established by G. David Atkins and Clifton Kroll in San Francisco in 1906 to facilitate trade between the United States and Australia.
In 1914, at the invitation of appointed Guam Governor, Captain W.B. Maxwell, USN, through the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce, the founders established Atkins Kroll (Guam) Ltd. to coordinate the copra trade in the Pacific Islands.
Atkins Kroll Inc. is the oldest corporation on Guam growing alongside Guam’s economy since its establishment over 90 years ago.
The company’s contribution to the people of Guam has been through automotive services, sales of consumer products, insurance and shipping services, employment opportunities for hundreds of residents, and major civic contributions to numerous non-profit organizations year after year.