Knightdale — Charlie Silver, whose ancestors settled the land that became Knightdale, was tapped as the Knightdale Citizen of the Year Thursday.

Silver looked to the town’s rich heritage as he issued a challenge for the future at the Knightdale Chamber of Commerce banquet with record-breaking attendance.

“How many of you remember when Highway 64 was two lanes and you could bicycle all the way to Davis’ store?” recalled Silver. “You can’t do that anymore. That was before all the rest of you discovered what a great place this is”.

Silver said the Knightdale of today is a lot less spacious than it used to be. He challenged attendees to do their best to help retain the town’s character, which make Knightdale a good place for children to grow up. He said residents need to work to make today’s “children’s lives a little better every day.”

In announcing the selection, Mayor Russell Killen said Silver was known for his value of history. Silver restored his family’s home place, Midway Plantation, and moved it away to rural Knightdale from the land that is now home to the shopping center that bears its name.

While Killen noted the growth and development Knightdale has seen, he also talked about how the town continues to value its railroad roots and small town character.

“We have lots of new places where we can live, work, eat and play,” he said. “But Knightdale remembers where it came from… The things that made Knightdale special.”

2008 Knightdale Chamber President Gloria Lopez noted the growth of the chamber.

“A lot of that is due to the hard work, determination and incredible vision of (Knightdale Chamber of Commerce executive director) Jennifer Bryan,” said Lopez.

Rex Healthcare was named the large Business of the Year, while the The Sports Page was recognized as the Small Business of the Year. The Ambassador of the Year was Beverly Stellitano of Moore and Johnson Agency.

Before the awards presentation, the crowd was entertained by WRAL anchor Bill Leslie, who is also a musician. Leslie, introduced by Lopez as a lover of North Carolina, sang songs from his new CD inspired by his dad’s favorite mountain scenes. Leslie said his father painted, and the North Carolina mountains were a source of inspiration for his work.

“My dad died went I was 16 years old,” he said. “And I wondered how to reconnect with someone I haven’t seen in years and years.”

So Leslie headed off to those mountain spots to “meditate on the landscape and try to let it do to me musically what it did for him visually.”

The results are the CD and a book with Leslie’s father’s work.