South Dakota Chamber President talks about business with state legislators in Rapid City; #BestChamber practices: Plainfield Area Chamber of Commerce: Giving Back; Virginia Peninsula Chamber of Commerce 2016 Business Directory and Resource Guide; #BestChamber Practices: Kenosha County Chamber: Spotlight on Kenosha County Business; Fredericksburg Regional Chamber: Next Gen to honor young professionals; Jeff Rea, St. Joseph County Chamber: Celebrate gift of entrepreneurs; LSJ Editorial: There’s plenty to be thankful for in Greater Lansing; Madison begins tree-lighting tradition; Receptions set to welcome new Kyndle executive; Town Square Publications Chamber Membership Directories and Community Profiles: The best in the U.S.

Good morning #Chamber World! It's going to be a GREAT day!

South Dakota Chamber President talks about business with state legislators in Rapid City

On Tuesday South Dakota's Chamber of Commerce President was in Rapid City talking about business with state legislators.

They reviewed state election results and looked at issues important to businesses across South Dakota.

They also talked about I-M Measure 22, which was passed a few weeks ago during general elections.

Measure 22 limits the amount of gifts lobbyists can give to politicians. State Chamber President David Owen believes this law can be confusing to citizens.

David Owen says, "It's having the effect of driving some of the citizen participation out of the capital because of overly restrictive definitions, ambiguous terms. It's a bad law. It needs to be adjusted, but we need to respect the fact that the people were expressing some interest and concern about the process."

State lawmakers also talked about how they think the economy will affect businesses and employment here in South Dakota.

District 32 Senator Alan Solano says, "I think the biggest issue right now is the economy and the jobs and job growth. We're dealing with a soft revenue cycle right now in the state and how that could impact things." Read more: KEVN - Black Hills FOX

#BestChamber practices: Plainfield Area Chamber of Commerce: Giving Back

Over 16 years, the Plainfield Harvest 5K Run/Walk & Kidz Miler has evolved from a small gathering of 250 runners and walkers to an event that is averaging 1,250 PARTICIPANTS a year. The Plainfield Harvest 5K Run/Walk & Kidz Miler is “THE ORIGINAL PLAINFIELD 5K” It is one of the largest races, if not the largest, in Will County and has brought thousands of participants and spectators to Plainfield. Each year, the Plainfield Area Chamber of Commerce donates race proceeds to Plainfield area charities and community organizations, including:

Plainfield Fire Protection District
CW Avery Family YMCA
Edward Foundation
Plainfield Interfaith Food Pantry
Green Harvest Food Pantry
Plainfield Riverfront Foundation
Plainfield Emergency Management Agency (PEMA)
Friends of the Plainfield Park District

In 2015, we were able to donate $25,000 to the community organizations once again. For over 16 years we have been able to donate just over $320,000 back into our Plainfield community. We could not achieve the success we have had year after year without the support of our many sponsors, runners and walkers, volunteers, numerous city and community organizations and a race committee working hard behind the scenes. Read more: 2016 Healthy Driven Plainfield Harvest 5k Run/Walk & Kidz Miler

Virginia Peninsula Chamber of Commerce 2016 Business Directory and Resource Guide

The Virginia Peninsula Chamber of Commerce 2016 Business Directory and Resource Guide  is available at the Virginia Peninsula Chamber today! Thanks to Mike Kuhns, Suzy Johnson and the chamber team for their help and direction putting this together!

Virginia Peninsula Chamber 

Town SquarePublications  (www.townsquarepublications.com) can help you accomplish your chamber's gloss map, directory, community profile or publication needs at no expense to the chamber. Please email John Dussman at jdussman@tspubs.com or call (847)-427-4633.

#BestChamber Practices: Kenosha County Chamber: Spotlight on Kenosha County Business

Looking for a different way to promote your business?

On the second and fourth Friday of each month, Chamber President Lou Molitor and Bill Lawrence host “Spotlight on Kenosha County Business” on Bill’s “The Wake-up Call Show” from 6:30-7am.

For $200, you receive a 16 minutes of live interview time on the show (you provide the questions), and 24 30-second on-air promotions during the week. The interview can be either studio in-person live or phone-in live. It’s a great and unique way to market yourself and your business, live on the radio during the morning commute!

Don’t miss out on this exciting opportunity! For more information or to sign up, contact the Chamber.

Subscribe on iTunes Stream on Podbay

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Fredericksburg Regional Chamber: Next Gen to honor young professionals

Group to be honored as ‘Top 10 of the Next Gen’ 

FREDERICKSBURG - Ten Fredericksburg area 40 and under young professionals will be honored on December 5 at the annual ‘Top 10 of the Next Gen’  hosted by the Next Generation of Business Leaders, a program of the Fredericksburg Regional Chamber of Commerce.

The event is held at Foode Restaurant located at 900 Princess Anne Street in downtown Fredericksburg. The event starts at 6 p.m. and costs $25 for Next Gen members and guests.  People can register online at www.fredericksburgchamber.org.

The Next Gen’s board selected the 10 winners following a nomination period. The award recipients are chosen for both their professional accomplishments and community contributions.

Here are the 2016 “Top 10 of the Next Gen” award recipients: 

·         Landon C. Davis III; Attorney with Parrish Snead Franklin-Simpson 

·         Taylor Gehring;  Financial Manager with Capital One

·         Matt Giese; Director of Recruiting with Dependable Global Solutions

·         Johnna Hetrick; Owner of Twila & Co 

·         Bryan Hofmann; Programs Manager with Friends of the Rappahannock 

·         Amy Horne; Secondary Autism Coordinator with Stafford County Public Schools

·         Kim McClellan; Public Policy Director for Fredericksburg Area Association of Realtors

·         Brooke Miller; Associate Broker with Long & Foster Realtors

·         Casey Silversmith; Director of Sales with Ballantine Mgmt Group at Fredericksburg Expo Center

·         Catherine Sullivan; Owner of Monkees of Fredericksburg  

Contact: Dawn Haun, Communications Director, Fredericksburg Regional Chamber of Commerce

540-373-9537 www.fredericksburgchamber.org

Jeff Rea, St. Joseph County Chamber: Celebrate gift of entrepreneurs

On Tuesday, we celebrated one of those “holidays” that doesn’t get a lot of attention, Entrepreneurship Day. The day went along without much fanfare. Most of us didn’t even know about the special day. But none of us went through the day without interacting with a good, service or product that was dreamed up or launched by an entrepreneur.

The word entrepreneur originates from the French word, entreprendre, which means “to undertake.” In a business context, it means to start a business.

Think about it. From the time we wake up each morning, we encounter new products or services that were dreamed up or improved on by an entrepreneur.

Those new products have changed each of our lives, in many cases made life easier. Think about where we might be had Henry Ford not found a way to build cars or had the Wright Brothers not figured out how we could fly. Even a Sam Walton, of often-maligned big box fame, was an entrepreneur seeking a better way and turned that into a successful business model.

Locally, entrepreneurs like the Studebakers, Olivers, Beigers and Eberharts built our economy and a culture that saw hundreds of businesses launch across the region. But over the years as we became more of a company town, fewer people launched new ideas and more went to work at one of our larger employers.

But times are changing, and new businesses are the fastest-growing sector of our economy, with about 23 percent of workers in the South Bend-Mishawaka Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) working for firms that have between one and 10 employees. Some businesses are starting in their basements or garages, others in that vacant storefront that we’ve long hoped would be filled.

Great risk is involved in launching a product or venture and as many fail as succeed. But our community is working to build an entrepreneurial ecosystem to support those brave entrepreneurs aiming to take off. The Small Business Development Center, Elevate Ventures, SCORE and the SPARK Program at Saint Mary’s College offer great local resources and support services for budding entrepreneurs.

Our local universities also have become an important incubator for entrepreneurs in our region. In fact experts predict that real economic development and business growth will be centered around universities in the future. Efforts like Innovation Park at Notre Dame have served as a real catalyst to students, faculty, researchers and community members to launch business opportunities. A second building will be added in 2017 to further aid this effort. Read more: South Bend Tribune

LSJ Editorial: There’s plenty to be thankful for in Greater Lansing

Let's set aside the divisiveness that has marked much of 2016 and reflect on the things for which Greater Lansing has to be thankful. It’s a lengthy list; here are a few to celebrate the Thanksgiving spirit:

•Passion and commitment of people who respect one another and our community:Greater Lansing benefits from those who speak up and share their beliefs of inclusivity. LansingTakesAction.com, a grassroots group that formed as post-election as rhetoric reached new heights, is promoting a “You are welcome here” campaign.

“Whoever you are. Wherever you came from, whoever you love, there is a place for you here. No matter your skin tone, or your language, or your gender, or your choice of religion, there is a place for you here.”

•Passage of the Lansing Pathway Promise millage: In May, voters sent a clear mandate that an investment in the Lansing School District is an investment in our region’s future. The momentum of that referendum should not be overlooked. This fall, the Lansing School District saw a leveling off in its 20-year decline of students – with 342 more enrolled than what was projected – including 200 new families who intentionally chose the Lansing District.

In addition to stable increased student enrollment, Lansing Pathway Promise’s Executive Director Justin Sheehan, executive director of the Lansing Promise – a foundation that provides two years of college to qualifying Lansing high school graduates – reports more than 200 new scholars joined the program this spring. The Lansing Promise, founded in 2012 and funded by private donations, is another example of Greater Lansing’s people coming together to support each other.

•Continued growth and economic development in the region: The Lansing Economic Area Partnership confirmed $220 million in new private investment on LEAP projects – like the Gestamp manufacturing plant in Mason and SkyVue Apartments on Michigan Avenue – creating 400 new private sector jobs and working with 23 startup companies this year. LEAP President and CEO Bob Trezise said LEAP projects from 2012-2016 will soon tip past the $1 billion investment mark with 4,000 new private jobs created.

Sparrow Health System, MSUFCU, Lansing Community College and Block Imaging – winners of the 2016 regional growth awards from the Lansing Regional Chamber of Commerce – also continue to demonstrate economic vitality of the region through business investment and community engagement. Read more: Lansing State Journal

Madison begins tree-lighting tradition

The city of Madison will be aglow this holiday season with twinkle lights on more than 50 trees.

The inaugural Festival of Trees, which kicks off this week, will be located on the grounds of the Madison Square Center for the Arts with 53 trees decorated in lights and ribbon around the famed caboose, said Elizabeth Fulcher with Madison the City Chamber of Commerce.

"We have such a great city and chamber," Fulcher said. "Everyone loves Christmas and looking at lights. We hope this will bring people to Madison to see our trees and shop in our wonderful stores and eat in our fabulous restaurants."

The trees will be lit up for the first time Tuesday during Madison's Night Out Gala. Located in the Cultural Arts Building, the gala will feature hors d'oeuvres and a silent auction. Tickets are $40.

The Festival of Trees itself is free and open to the public. It's organized by the chamber, but Fulcher said local businesses and community members sponsored the trees in "tremendous response." Read more: The Clarion-Ledger

Receptions set to welcome new Kyndle executive

There are several events coming up to welcome new Kyndle CEO Tony Iriti, who was recently hired as the new CEO of the Kyndle regional development agency.

In Henderson, there will be a policy board meeting at 1 p.m. Friday, Dec. 2, in the Stagg Room of the Henderson Fine Arts Center, 2660 S. Green St. This will be followed by a commerce council meeting at 2 p.m. and the reception for Iriti at 3 p.m.

In Union County, at 5:30 p.m. Dec. 8 at White Buck Winery there will be a CEO reception in conjunction with the Union County First Holiday Reception. The winery is located at 1800 U.S. 60 in Morganfield.

In Webster County, there will be a brief large investor meeting at 11:45 a.m. Dec. 13 at the Providence Municipal Golf and Recreation Center, 2300 Westerfield, Providence. A reception will follow at noon.

For McLean County, a reception will be held at 2 p.m. Dec. 15 in the McLean County Public Library, 116 Second St. in Livermore. The reception will follow a brief economic development council meeting that begins at 1:45 p.m. Read more: The Gleaner

Town Square Publications Chamber Membership Directories and Community Profiles: The best in the U.S.

Town Square Publications, a division of the Daily Herald Media Group, is a national chamber custom publishing group that specializes in developing partnerships by producing high-quality print and digitally integrated publications along with other added value programs dedicated to creating relevancy for local chambers of commerce and other membership focused organizations interested in raising non-dues revenues.

Town Square Publications parent company, Paddock Publications, has over 100 years’ experience of print product development and dedicated customer service in communities throughout the Midwest. Our experience allows Town Square Publications to offer you attractive royalty and non-dues revenue share streams, provide direct distribution of your custom designed printed publications, including digital and mobile integration, and all with the quickest turn-around times available in the industry. Town Square also offers multi-media maps in both print and online formats, both with our No-Cost guarantee. More information: Town Square Publications

Chambers of Commerce and member focused organizations serve as a valuable resource in the local marketplace. The networking opportunities and representation with a wide variety of diverse businesses in your community is the catalyst of a successful organization. For further information about Town Square's publishing partnership with chambers of commerce and our No-Cost guarantee and Earned Revenue Share Program, To request your chamber publication or map proposal, Contact Town Square Here