Fairfax Chamber Announces 2015 Greater Washington Innovation Awards Winners; Greater Eureka Springs Chamber board elects new interim executive director; Oxford-Lafayette Chamber Jr. Leadership graduates 30, recognizes Lydia Holland for Leadership Award; West Coast (Michigan) Chamber speaker: Seattle CEO whose $70K salary pledge caused Internet stir has Michigan ties; Indiana Chamber Executives Interest: Stellar Communities; Lincoln Park Chamber interest: Lincoln Avenue Special Service Area (SSA) Advisory Committee meeting; Dehlinger Van Alstine to step down from Portage County Business Council; Anderson County (Kentucky) Chamber --- What the Chamber does for YOU; #FamousChamber of Commerce Quotation: (Attitude)

Good morning Chamber world! Today is going to be a GREAT day!


Fairfax Chamber Announces 2015 Greater Washington Innovation Awards Winners

The Fairfax County Chamber of Commerce (Fairfax Chamber) has announced the winners for the 1^st Annual Greater Washington Innovation Awards, the premier event celebrating the thought leadership, innovation, and creativity of individuals and organizations in select industries in the Greater Washington metro area. The winners were announced live at the April 20^th awards gala at the Hyatt Regency Reston.

In addition to recognizing the most innovative organizations in the region, the awards also honored an Innovator of the Year and a Lifetime Innovator.

“The 2015 Greater Washington Innovation Awards Winners represent companies that are shaping the future of business as we know it,” said Jim Corcoran, Fairfax Chamber president and CEO. “We applaud each of the winners for their contributions to the Greater Washington business community and beyond. They are true leaders.”

This year’s winners are:

Tech Innovator of the Year

Clarabridge

Public Sector Innovator of the Year

Fairfax County Office of Public Private Partnerships

Professional Service Innovator of the Year

cove

Hospitality, Tourism & Entertainment Innovator of the Year

Wolf Trap Foundation for Performing Arts

Health & Life Sciences Innovator of the Year

Inova Fairfax Hospital

Marketing & Advertising Innovator of the Year

AOL

Innovator of the Year

Emanuel F Petricoin, Ph.D

University Professor and Co-Director, Center for Applied Proteomics and Molecular Medicine in the School of Systems Biology, George Mason University

Lifetime Innovator

Joe T. May

Founder, Chairman of the Board and Chief Technology Officer, EIT, LLC

Photos from the awards will be available online in the week following the event. More information about the Innovation Awards can be found at www.fairfaxchamber.org. 

Greater Eureka Springs Chamber board elects new interim executive director

The Greater Eureka Springs Chamber of Commerce board of directors has hired Damon Henke as the chamber's interim executive director.
Henke will lead the chamber's search for a permanent executive director.
"We believe that Damon is a strong asset to this community," chairperson Cathy Handley said in a press release.
Henke is the owner of Ozark Mountain Vacation Rentals located in Eureka Springs, which is a lodging services company.
"Through his own business, the Eureka Springs Downtown Network and the CAPC, he has already been working to develop a better business environment in Eureka Springs and to get more people to experience our great town," Handley said. Read more: Lovely County Citizen

Oxford-Lafayette County Chamber Jr. Leadership graduates 30, recognizes Lydia Holland for Leadership Award

The Oxford-Lafayette County Chamber of Commerce recently graduated 30 students from its Junior Leadership Program and recognized its Leadership Award Recipient at a graduation ceremony held on April 13.  This year's Junior Leadership program was sponsored by Your Extra Closet. 

Graduates from Lafayette High School include: Ty Benson, Anna Bruno, Gabby Dunn, Emma Humphreys, Zach Pugh and Ayo Williams.

Graduates from Oxford High School include: Grace Alford, Sara Caroline Bridgers, Trepp Bruton, AJ Buchanan, Ansley Byars, Battle Crews, Caroline Crews, Anna Dennis, Swayze Elliott, Will Farmer, Shelby Goza, Mary Lauren Green, Quinn Harris, William Hawkins, Madeline Henderson, Jessica Hill, Ellie Hinton, Lydia Holland, Ansley Howell, Eric Maddigan, Miyah Mayes, Eli Moen, Virginia Parkinson and Mia Sinha.

The Junior Leadership Program combines group study sessions with a community project that requires the use and development of leadership skills. Students participated in training sessions geared toward promoting team building, goal setting, community awareness, volunteerism, and communication skills. Source: Oxford-Lafayette County chamber



Michigan West Coast Chamber speaker: Seattle CEO whose $70K salary pledge caused Internet stir has Michigan ties

Seattle businessman Dan Price is gaining international attention for cutting his roughly $1 million salary so his employees can make a minimum salary of $70,000.
Dan Price is the CEO of Gravity Payments, a Seattle-based company that processes credit-card payments. His gesture comes as Washington's biggest city has become ground zero in the debate over what is a fair living wage after Seattle last month approved a $15-an-hour minimum wage that will take effect over time.
Dan Price comes from Michigan stock. He was born in Lansing where his father was raised, according to his uncle, Rodger Price, who now lives in the Holland area. Dan Price, who grew up in Idaho, occasionally visits Michigan to see relatives, including his grandfather in Lansing, and is planning to make a return trip next month. Read more: M LIVE

 
Indiana Chamber Executives Interest: Stellar 

Communities

The Stellar Communities program is a multi-agency partnership designed to fund comprehensive community development projects in Indiana’s smaller communities. The Indiana Housing and Community Development Authority, Indiana Office of Community and Rural Affairs, and Indiana Department of Transportation are participating in this innovative program.
Stellar Communities has been recognized nationally as a premier community development program when it received the 2012 President's Award for Innovation from the Council of State Community Development Agencies (COSCDA).

Now with 6 pilot communities the Stellar Communities program is leading the way. Since 2010 over 60 Hoosier communities have expressed interest in the program and 21 strategic investment plans have been created. Questions about the program may also be emailed to the Stellar Team: StellarCommunities@ocra.in.gov

Lincoln Park Chamber interest: Lincoln Avenue Special Service Area (SSA) Advisory Committee meeting

The Lincoln Avenue Special Service Area (SSA) Advisory Committee and the Lincoln Park Chamber of Commerce (LPCC) invite you to attend an important meeting about the future of Lincoln Avenue and the Lincoln Park community.

As you know, the SSA funds vital services that keep the corridor clean and vibrant. On Lincoln Avenue, the SSA provides sidewalk snowplowing, sidewalk cleaning, litter abatement, trash removal, holiday decorations and landscaping. With these services, the Lincoln Avenue SSA helps foster an environment that is welcoming for residents, local businesses, and visitors to this wonderful corridor.

Reconstitution (renewal) of the Lincoln Avenue SSA will allow for services like sidewalk cleaning, snow shoveling, garbage removal and holiday decorations to continue for another 15 years. It also provides the SSA Commission with the tools it needs to potentially expand the services offered.

If you would like to see these services continue, have questions about the SSA, or if you're interested in supporting the vibrancy of Lincoln Avenue, the Lincoln Avenue SSA Advisory Committee and the LPCC urge you to attend one of the Community Meetings about the reconstitution of the SSA.

Lincoln Avenue SSA Reconstitution Meetings:

Tuesday, April 28, 6:30 p.m.
Apollo Theater's Studio Theater
2540 N. Lincoln

Dehlinger Van Alstine to step down from Portage County Business Council

Lori Dehlinger Van Alstine has announced she will resign as executive director of the Portage County Business Council and Foundation as of May 15.
Dehlinger Van Alstine has served as executive director since August 2007, and previously served as director of member relations for the organization for two years. The PCBC is a county-wide economic development corporation and chamber of commerce with around 500 members.
"I appreciated the opportunity to advance to the executive director position and have enjoyed working with the board of directors, staff, membership, businesses, municipalities and other partners for the past eight years to grow Portage County," Dehlinger Van Alstine said. "It has been an honor and a great experience." Read more: stevenspointjournal.com


Anderson County (Kentucky) Chamber --- What the Chamber does for YOU:

The Chamber of Commerce is the business community working together. It is the central agency that corrals the forces of the community for its improvement and development: in business, in industry, and in the professions. Together, the chamber does what no person can do by him or herself.

A New Business Partner
The Chamber is your most valuable, yet lowest paid employee, taking as much interest as a partner but leaving you the boss. Entire committees of top-flight business and professional executives voluntarily work to improve your business opportunities and living enjoyment.

Another Pair of Eyes
The Chamber is Anderson County’s only business organization working full-time, looking at and attending to many details of making our area an even better place to live and earn a living. Yes, it provides eyes of specialized observers who maintain a watch on those matters that affect every citizen in the community.

Another Pair of Hands
The Chamber staff answers hundreds of inquiries a year relative to every imaginable question concerning the city and area. These inquiries would go unanswered if there were no Chamber of Commerce. The goodwill and accurate information furnished has an incalculable value to the Lawrenceburg area.

A Tireless Salesperson
The Chamber provides a clearinghouse of information needed by prospective industrialists, visitors, potential residents, and local businesses who are interested in learning more about the area.

An Expeditor
In serving the businesses of the community, the Chamber is devoted to activities designed to create more community wealth. As payrolls are expanded and more jobs created, everyone stands to benefit from the growth. More people, more sales opportunities, more money, more tax revenue and the resulting increased services all add to making Anderson County an even better place to live and make a living.

Another Front Office
The Chamber is the place where visitors gain their first impression of the hospitality and soundness of our community. This office reflects the energetic outlook of our civic leaders and business community. It is a rallying point for community development.

A Necessary Business Investment
In the same relationship to your business as rent, lighting, advertising, and payroll, your membership investment should never be considered a contribution.

A Business Advocate
One voice raised in defense of a right, or one person or business taking on a project, is often weak and ineffectual. But when many voices are raised and many people work together in community affairs, much is achieved!!


#FamousChamber of Commerce Quotation: (Attitude)

“If you want to learn to swim, you have to throw yourself in the water.”

~Bruce Lee