Gold's Gym owners J.D. and Varner Holmes received the 1999 Sam Walton Business Leader Award at a special ceremony yesterday.

The award is sponsored by the Wal-Mart Foundation and Holmes was chosen the winner by the Fayette County Chamber of Commerce. The chamber received a $500 grant in Holmes' name.

Wal-Mart established the Sam Walton Business Leader Award in 1995 to recognize local business people who best exemplify the principles of its founder Sam Walton: respect for the individual, service to customers and a commitment to strive for excellence.

“The Sam Walton Business Leader Award allows our Wal-Mart associates and Sam's Club partners to salute outstanding local business men and women and to show our pride in the local business community,” said David Glass, president and CEO of Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.

Holmes was one of more than 1,600 recipients around the country. Participating chambers received a total of more than $800,000 in grants from the Wal-Mart Foundation and their local Wal-Mart stores and Sam's Clubs as part of the awards program

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