Hampton Roads Sports Commission Recognizes Local Sports Industry at Sports Awards Banquet; Front Royal Warren County Community Profile & Membership Directory 2017: Chamber issue: The Future of Springfield, What it Could Look Like; Awards given at Winchester-Clark County chamber banquet Thursday; Women Empowering Women To Celebrate Inclusion At June Event; Grand Rapids Area Chamber: Grow Your Business with Great Customer Service; Regional Workforce 'Talent Summit' This Week; Chamber partnership: Sounds of Summer returns for 10th year;

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


Hampton Roads Sports Commission Recognizes Local Sports Industry at Sports Awards Banquet

NORFOLK, Va. --- The Hampton Roads Sports Commission, an affiliate of the Hampton Roads Chamber, recently hosted the 2017 Hampton Roads Sports Awards at the Sheraton Norfolk Waterside Hotel.  This event was a celebration of the local sports industry and gave recognition to the people, organizations and facilities that help make our local athletes succeed.  Old Dominion University Football Head Coach Bobby Wilder gave the keynote speech about the importance of teamwork and how people of all ages should be a positive influence to others, especially the youth.  There were 11 categories of awards at Wednesday’s event.

Winners of each category included:

Best Tourism Partner – The Adventure Park at Virginia Aquarium
Best Sports Organization – Girls on the Run Hampton Roads
Best High School Team – Oscar Smith High School Football Team
Best Local Sportswriter – Larry Rubama, The Virginian Pilot
Best Local Sportscaster – Adam Winkler, Newschannel 3
Best Locally Created Event – J&A Racing Yuengling Shamrock Marathon
Best Sports Affiliate – CHKD Sports Medicine
Best Sports Facility – Ted Constant Convocation Center
Hometown Hero – Dr. Lawrence Hultgren, Virginia Wesleyan College
Organization MVP – Kim Kranz, CHKD Sports Medicine

Sports Tourism plays a vital role in our local economy.  All the categories that were acknowledged during Wednesday’s event help make an impact on the Hampton Roads economy.  From the facilities that host the event, to the media coverage, to the people who run and volunteer their time, to the local organizations that participate and host these events, to the medical staff on site and the attractions around the area, all these main ingredients help attract new sporting events and sustain the events the region and cities currently host.

Lauren Bland, Executive Director of the Hampton Roads Sports Commission, stated, “We are lucky to live and represent a region with so much passion for the sports industry. Our athletes and teams are successful because of the incredibly hardworking folks behind the scenes who ensure we have excellent venues, services, staff and volunteers. It was truly our pleasure to honor and celebrate our local sports industry!  Congratulations to all of the finalists and winners!” Read more: Contact:

Shannon Curtin - office (757) 664-2501 SCurtin@hrchamber.com 




Front Royal Warren County Community Profile & Membership Directory 2017 

The Front Royal Warren County Community Profile & Membership Directory 2017 is available at the Front Royal Warren County Chamber of Commerce today! Thank you to Niki Foster and Pam Riffle and the Chamber team for their help and direction putting this together! 

Front Royal Warren County Community Profile & Membership Directory 2017

Town Square Publications  (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.


Chamber issue: The Future of Springfield, What it Could Look Like 

Springfield is a town of rich history.

It's a regional hub of historic landmarks, retail and opportunity.

A study by the Springfield-Sangamon County Regional Planning Commission shows a decline in population growth in the capitol city by .12%.“We need more people we need more young people to stay here and live here,” said Springfield-Sangamon County Regional Planning Commission Executive Director Norms Simms.

It's not the only downward trend.

Big box stores have either closed their doors or planning to do so.

According to the Greater Springfield Chamber of Commerce, they expect job growth to be .1% annually over the next 10 years.

“People who are buying on retail and engaging in commerce online for example, is changing the marketplace,” said Simms.

I sat down with city leaders and asked what they're doing to fix the problem.

“Creation of the enterprise zone, downtown TIF is crucial, we did renew that, but the real key is making sure the utility, which we have put on better financial footing, is to use that as an economic driver, “said Langfelder. “So if there is a new company that wants to relocate to here or business expansion, we would be able to use that as an economic driver, by lowering the utility rate possibility.”

Chris Hembrough, CEO and President of the Greater Springfield Chamber of Commerce, says numerous groups have come forward with development ideas, but he says not having a state budget is holding back investment.

“So the folks know what to expect even if is not what they want,” said Chris Hembrough, President & CEO, the Greater Springfield Chamber of Commerce. “To know what they are going to get and what the environment is going to be like that they have to operate in, will be a huge thing.” Read more: Fox Illinois

Awards given at Winchester-Clark County chamber banquet Thursday

About 250 people from Winchester’s business and civic communities came together Thursday for the annual Winchester-Clark County Chamber of Commerce Banquet at Emmanual Episcopal Church.

The evening was filled with festivities celebrating successes in the community from the previous year, including recognizing those who took part in Leadership Winchester,  commending businesses that have made community contributions and awarding volunteers and volunteer organizations for the time and effort they put into improving their community.

Award recipients were:

Downtown Business Of The Year:  Leeds

Partner Of The Year: Leggett & Platt

Director Of The Year: Cora Heffner

Community Service Award: Joyce Morton

Nonprofit Of The Year: Kiwanis

Community Partner Of The Year: BCTC And Freedom Realty

Citizen Of The Year: Harry Enoch

Business Of The Year: WKYN 107.7 FM 

Read more: Winchester Sun

Women Empowering Women To Celebrate Inclusion At June Event

The Dubois County women’s leadership organization, Women Empowering Women (WEW), will gather on Wednesday, June 7, at the St. Joseph Church Parish Center, 1029 Kundek Street in Jasper.  Doors will open at 11:30am for networking before the meeting begins at 11:45am.  This event is open to all prospective and current WEW members.

WEW welcomes Danyelle E. Granger, Vice President, Diversity & Inclusion Director for Old National Bancorp, to highlight the importance of self-awareness and recognizing individual biases and blind spots.  Individuals have a tendency to gravitate towards people who are similar to them, which many times, causes exclusion of those who are different.  Danyelle will challenge participants to step outside of comfort zones, enable them to break bias, start to build bridges across differences, and practice inclusive behaviors.  In this session, participants will build a basic understanding of diversity and related concepts including inclusion, cultural competence, and unconscious biases while learning practical strategies to become more self-aware and demonstrate inclusive behaviors.  Additionally, representatives from Dubois County CASA will be available at the session to provide networking opportunities about their services and education about their impact on the community.

Advanced reservations are required for members and guests.  Reservations should be made by calling the Jasper Chamber of Commerce at 812-482-6866 or by emailing chamber@jasperin.org by Friday, June 2. The cost for lunch is $5.00 per person and is payable at the door.

The mission of Women Empowering Women is to inspire women in business to reach their highest potential by instilling confidence, building networks, and promoting community in Dubois County. Membership is open to any woman in business who lives or works in Dubois County.

Danyelle E. Granger is Vice President, Diversity & Inclusion Director for Old National Bancorp.  In her current role, Danyelle is responsible for developing and executing the corporate-wide diversity and inclusion strategy; leading the development, implementation, management, monitoring, and evaluation of Old National’s corporate policies and programs as they relate to diversity and inclusion in the company’s workforce, workplace, marketplace, and community. 

For more information about WEW and to access a membership application, visit the organizations’ Facebook page or contact the Jasper Chamber of Commerce. Contact:  Nancy Eckerle – 812/482-6866


Grand Rapids Area Chamber: Grow Your Business with Great Customer Service

When Ari Weinzweig and Paul Saginaw started a corner delicatessen in Ann Arbor some 35 years ago, little did they know that the two-man operation would blossom into a $55 million business involved in everything from publishing to worldwide food tours.

Yet if you ask what the “secret sauce” of Zingerman’s success is in such far flung operations employing 700 people, the answer all boils down to one thing: great customer service.

If Zingerman’s can do it, so can you, the company’s officials say. Best of all, Grand Rapids businesses will soon get an opportunity to hear from Zingerman’s managers how they serve up happy customers.

Just like you would expect from a company launched as a deli, Zingerman’s has developed a hearty sandwich of business principles that add up to a sure fire recipe for returning customers.

There’s three main entrees to the sandwich:

• Find out what the customer wants
• Get it for them accurately, politely, and enthusiastically, and
• Go the extra mile.
• 
  

ZingTrain: Building a Culture of Great Customer Service May 23, 2017 7:30 a.m.-noon Goei Center, 818 Butterworth St. SW, Grand Rapids Attendees receive hands-on learning tools including workbooks, class materials and role playing. Sponsored by the Grand Rapids Area Chamber of Commerce Summit Up! Series Small Business Price: $200

Sounds so simple that everyone should be doing it, but just
ask the top executives of some of our nation’s largest airlines whether it’s always easy to provide top notch customer service. Here’s where Zingerman’s managers lay on their 5-step series of condiments and toppings in handling customer complaints to deal with difficult customers.

The recipe is:

• Acknowledge
• Apologize
• Make it Right
• Thank them, and
• Document it.

By using these straightforward principles, Zingerman’s has grown from a local deli to a corporation — or Community of Businesses as the company likes to say — of more than 15 units that includes a bakery, candy manufacturing, Cornman Farms event venue, worldwide food tours and publishing. While the businesses are varied, the customer service principles work the same way, company officials say.



Regional Workforce 'Talent Summit' This Week

There's a regional workforce 'Talent Summit' being held in central Wisconsin later this week to help business leaders brainstorm about the recruitment, retention, and cultivation of the area's workforce.  

According to Scott Larson, Director of Marshfield's Chamber of Commerce and Industry, "Probably the most significant economic development issue we have here in central Wisconsin is workforce."  

The two-day event kicks-off Wednesday evening in Stevens Point at a reception designed to glean input from business 'decision-makers' in our area, and that's followed by a series of presentations on Thursday for people who are responsible for the day-to-day hiring and recruitment of staff.   

The Thursday session includes some comments from Governor Scott Walker, and presentations by workforce experts.  "We have Edward Gordon, who is a nationally-renowned workforce consultant, dealing with retention and recruitment of workforce," Larson said.  "So he's done work nationally recognized throughout the United States."  

The event is being put on by the regional Chamber of Commerce group 'Centergy,' in concert with the North Central Wisconsin Workforce Development Board.  For more information on the event, contact your local Chamber of Commerce. Read more: WSAU FM

Chamber partnership: Sounds of Summer returns for 10th year

Lazy, hazy summertime in the Golden Triangle heralds the return of Sounds of Summer in Columbus. Now in its 10th year, the free concert series at the Columbus Riverwalk launches with music by the Stormy Monday blues band Thursday, June 1 from 7-9 p.m. Additional concerts will feature Swingshift June 15, Deacon Jones and the Late Night June 29 and Style the Band July 13. 

The family-friendly Sounds of Summer is a joint presentation of the Columbus Lowndes Chamber of Commerce and Main Street Columbus.  

"There is something for everyone at Sounds of Summer," said Barbara Bigelow, Main Street Columbus executive director. "We are so grateful for the opportunity to showcase our community and local talent with an event the public enjoys every summer." 

The concert series has been designated a Top 20 Event for June and July by the Southeast Tourism Society for the past six years. Admission is free. Food and drink vendors will be on site. Lawn chairs and blankets to sit on are encouraged. (No coolers or pets, please.)  

Columbus Lowndes Chamber of Commerce president Lisa James said, "We are so appreciative of our business sponsors and volunteers who make this even possible. We love partnering with Main Street Columbus, our sponsors and volunteers to help deliver quality, family-friendly events to our area year after year." 

Sounds of Summer is made possible through volunteers and sponsors such as Annunciation Catholic School, BankFirst, C Spire, Children's Health Center of Columbus, Clark Beverage Group, Golden Triangle Radiology, Lowndes County Chancery Clerk Lisa Younger-Neese, Mitchell Distributing Company, PACCAR, Penny Bowen Designs Inc., Phillips Contracting and Rex's Rentals.  Read more: The Dispatch

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 Chamber Proposal