Assemblymember Juan Arambula (D-Fresno) today announced that Harry Gill has been named the 31st Assembly District Small Business Owner of 2006. Gill, who owns Gill Farms and Gill Insurance & Properties in Caruthers, serves clients from Chico to Los Angeles and is a leader in San Joaquin Valley’s Sikh community.

Gill will be honored Tuesday in Sacramento during a morning discussion and luncheon program arranged by the leadership of the State Legislature and the California Small Business Association. The festivities will recognize winners from around the state and will include discussion of issues facing California’s small business owners.

Harry and his wife and business partner, Jyotan, are strong supporters of the small community of Caruthers. The Gills annually provide four scholarships to college-bound Caruthers students, and give generously to other efforts to benefit children. Harry serves on the Fresno Unified School District Human Relations Board, the Sheriffs Foundation, and the Mayor’s Advisory Committee.

“Harry and Jyotan have certainly earned the positive word-of-mouth that has helped them grow their business to the size that it is today,” said Assemblymember Arambula. “The Gills demonstrate that being a great small business owner means serving one’s community in many different ways.”

Harry and Jyotan Gill were married in 1988 and came to the San Joaquin Valley in 1989 from Montreal, Canada. They are the proud parents of two children — daughter Preeti, who attends the Sunnyside High School and is in that school’s Doctors Academy, and son Maheep, who will attend Emmanuel Junior High School in the fall.