Burchill: Elevate Rapid City: A partnership with a purpose
Functioning as a true public/private partnership, Elevate Rapid City represents a new chapter in our community’s history where leading private sector economic development organizations have united under a joint partnership agreement in order to lead strategic economic growth and development according to a collective vision and shared plan vetted by more than 100 community leaders.
Under discussion for nearly two years, Elevate Rapid City is a joint venture of the Rapid City Area Chamber of Commerce Division and the Rapid City Economic Development Division, as well as being aligned closely with support from Ellsworth Development Authority and the Economic Development Foundation’s Ascent Innovation.
Our mission is to achieve the shared economic and community development goals that will elevate the quality of life and employment opportunities for all those who call Rapid City home. Led by proactive business and government leaders, Elevate Rapid City serves to enhance and better leverage the economic development activities of its pro-business partners in order to achieve more pronounced and measurable economic results.
There are many concrete opportunities we look forward to as a community. Elevate will be the organization that makes these things happen and will be at the forefront of the economic future of Rapid City. It is a bold, aggressive plan that will expand our economy, add jobs, increase revenue from sales and property taxes, and result in benefits for our entire community. Read more: Rapid City Journal
10 redevelopment projects recognized at Valparaiso Chamber awards
For most businesses, a face-lift on a building is often just part of a simple rebranding campaign. For the Hilltop Neighborhood House Food Pantry its renovations were a matter of survival.
After half its stock of food was destroyed in a flood, the charity had to relocate to a new building but needed funds to do it.
The pantry received donations from across the county after local media highlighted the damage a flood caused the pantry's operations back in February 2018. It was able to move to a new building on 606 Union St., which was completely overhauled.
The charity's new facility was one of 10 redeveloped spaces recognized recently during the Valparaiso Chamber of Commerce's 52nd annual Community Improvement Awards.
Hilltop's rebirth at its new property was highlighted by Pat McGinley, chair of the chamber's board of directors, during the ceremony at the County Expo Center.
Thousands of dollars poured in from across the county to help get the pantry back on its feet.
“Our pantry started as just a closet,” Jennifer Wright, CEO of Hilltop Neighborhood House said. “Now 25 years later we're feeding 5,000 people.”
Local businesses were also praised for the improvement of their property, including Brick Street Burrito as well as Jordy and Jax Barbecue.
Brick Street took the former hot dog stand on Napoleon Street in the city's downtown and turned it into a modern fast-casual restaurant serving up California-style burritos and other Mexican cuisine. The old hot dog stand's brick exterior was painted bright white and a fence was added outside to provide for additional dining space. The interior was given a more modern look.
Tom Long, president of internet provider NITCO, lives close to Brick Street Burrito. He praised the redeveloped space as an improvement to the neighborhood.
“It's a concept wife and I have been passionate about since our time out in college in San Diego,” the restaurant's owner Evan Costas said. “ We thought we could restore (the building) to be something really cool. It's fun to be part of the downtown.”
The upgrades to publicly owned buildings like the Valparaiso High School and the County's Expo Center were given awards, too.
“There's a lot of history at (the Expo Center). It was recognized back in the '80s, when it was originally built,” Commissioner Jeff Good said. “Here we are doing a sort of shampoo rinse and repeat I guess you could say.”
The remaining developments given awards were St Agnes Day Services Center for its new garden near St. Paul church, upgrades to the McMahon and Associates facility, a new retail building on 1703 Calumet Ave. and the rehabilitated Grand Trunk Train Depot, which was turned into a school. Read more: NWI Times
Brick Street took the former hot dog stand on Napoleon Street in the city's downtown and turned it into a modern fast-casual restaurant serving up California-style burritos and other Mexican cuisine. The old hot dog stand's brick exterior was painted bright white and a fence was added outside to provide for additional dining space. The interior was given a more modern look.
Tom Long, president of internet provider NITCO, lives close to Brick Street Burrito. He praised the redeveloped space as an improvement to the neighborhood.
“It's a concept wife and I have been passionate about since our time out in college in San Diego,” the restaurant's owner Evan Costas said. “ We thought we could restore (the building) to be something really cool. It's fun to be part of the downtown.”
The upgrades to publicly owned buildings like the Valparaiso High School and the County's Expo Center were given awards, too.
“There's a lot of history at (the Expo Center). It was recognized back in the '80s, when it was originally built,” Commissioner Jeff Good said. “Here we are doing a sort of shampoo rinse and repeat I guess you could say.”
The remaining developments given awards were St Agnes Day Services Center for its new garden near St. Paul church, upgrades to the McMahon and Associates facility, a new retail building on 1703 Calumet Ave. and the rehabilitated Grand Trunk Train Depot, which was turned into a school. Read more: NWI Times
Virginia Peninsula Chamber of Commerce 2018-2019 Business Directory and Resource Guide
The Virginia Peninsula Chamber of Commerce 2018-2019 Business Directory and Resource Guide is available at the Virginia Peninsula Chamber today! Thanks to Bob McKenna, Suzy Johnson and the chamber team for their help and direction putting this together!
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.
The first Rural Broadband Round Table takes place at the Bowling Green Area Chamber of Commerce
For the first time, the Bowling Green Area Chamber of Commerce held a round table talk to discuss the issue of rural broadband internet in Bowling Green and Warren County.
Bowling Green is the fastest growing city in Kentucky and according to realtors that attended the meeting, many people are turning down homes due to lack of high-speed internet. Service providers, as well as local and state officials, are trying to solve the growing problem.
Warren County Judge Mike Buchanon said " I simply asked at the end does anyone here have a business plan that has a shortfall that the Warren Fiscal Court or the State or Federal government can fill"
Buchanan also mentioned that if there is a shortfall that they can solve they will work towards solving the issue.
Rep. Brett Guthrie said that he is walking out with more questions than answers, "Now I really think I know what questions to ask when I back to Washington and I think that is the take away I have. I know who to ask and what to ask and hopefully, we can see results"
Rep. Guthrie also mentioned that there is a bill that just passed in the house, that is moving to the Senate that would create an Office of Internet Connectivity. The new office would coordinate all the programs and funding into one place. Read more: WKBO.com
We hear it every day: There is a current workforce shortage that will only grow larger as baby boomers exit the workplace. We know from our research that 36% of the healthcare workforce, 29% of the education workforce and 35% of the construction workforce in our region will need to be replaced in the next 10 years. That’s more than 65,000 people in just the top three demand industry groups. And that doesn’t take into consideration the increased demand from a growing economy.
This is great news for the students of today but a challenge for our region. If you’re a student, identify jobs that will be in demand and focus on the skills, education and certifications that it will take to succeed in those jobs; gain those skills and you’re pretty well guaranteed success in life. We have a good idea which jobs will be in demand. What we struggle with is identifying the knowledge and skills required for those careers. We also need to do a better job of helping parents and students understand what it costs to acquire those skills and what those jobs will pay. It shouldn’t be that hard to figure out what you want to do when you grow up.
The challenge to our region is the competition for workers. If you’re a business owner who can’t find the people you need with the right skills, you have to go where you can find them. We have two choices for building our future workforce: We can educate the students in our community or we can attract the talent from other communities. While we are becoming an attractive place for millennials, we do our community a disservice if we don’t prepare our young people growing up here for a successful future.
As a society, we’ve taken a broad-brush approach to education over the years. Parents want their children to be more successful than they were. In the past, as a general rule, more education equated to more opportunity for success — some degrees generated greater success, but the general rule held true.
However, as the demand for higher education has increased, so has the cost. The need for more specific skills has grown to the point that the general rule doesn’t necessarily apply anymore. Parents and students alike face the dilemma we hear about quite often. Some students today are graduating with more debt and less opportunity than they expected.
We are fortunate in the commonwealth that leaders in our education system are working on adapting to this changing world. They understand that we need to do a better job of aligning education with real-world opportunities. Rather than just education, the focus is becoming education toward what end. That means helping students and their parents understand what the jobs of the future look like and how to go about becoming qualified for them. It also means focusing our efforts on the jobs that will be in high demand and encouraging more investment in education that aligns with those jobs.
Businesses are doing their part as well by participating in events like Mission Tomorrow, which exposes all the public school eighth graders in our region to a variety of job opportunities. Junior Achievement is working with students, teachers and parents to help them understand the cost of education versus the salary you can expect for a multitude of jobs in our region. Many businesses work with the Career Technical Education programs in our school systems to provide internship opportunities for students to gain practical knowledge and decide if they really like the work or not.
On Thursday, ChamberRVA in partnership with the Virginia Chamber of Commerce is hosting an education summit to explore some of the opportunities, challenges and great work that is taking place in our region on this issue. We’ve invited legislators, educators and employers to share their perspectives on what we can do and are doing to create more opportunities for our young people to succeed. It’s open to the public but space is limited. Go to chamberrva.com to sign up.
We are excited about the opportunities that the future holds for our youth, but we want to do all we can to make sure that every student in our region has a chance to succeed in life and find meaningful and rewarding employment. It’s going to take additional work by all of us, but it’s the most important thing any of us can do.
Champaign County Chamber of Commerce: Nominate an outstanding small business today
Each year, the Champaign County Chamber of Commerce awards a local business with the Small Business of the Year Award. The Champaign County Small Business of the Year Award honors an outstanding small business that has made a significant long-term contribution to the local community and economy. It is intended to recognize a successful and growing business that has achieved its status through ingenuity and hard work. The Chamber has been honoring local businesses with this award for 28 years.
The recipient will be named at the 2019 Champaign County Chamber of Commerce Annual Meeting on Friday, October 25th, 2019. Self-nominations are welcome. Previously nominated businesses are eligible for consideration without being renominated; however, previous recipients cannot be nominated. Completed nomination forms must be submitted by 5:00 p.m. on Friday, September 20. Late nominations will not be considered.
#FamousChamber Of Commerce Quotations: (Be happy!)
"To succeed in life, you need three things: a wishbone, a backbone and a funny bone." Reba McEntire
Chamber issue: Preparing today's students for tomorrow's workforce
By Kim Scheeler and Pat Gottschalk
It was cause for celebration when Amazon announced Virginia as the site for its highly sought-after HQ2. Not only was it a huge announcement for our state, but it also signified a shift in the economic development world. One of the main reasons the Virginia Economic Development Partnership was successful in its bid was because it tied its proposal in with the workforce pipeline.We hear it every day: There is a current workforce shortage that will only grow larger as baby boomers exit the workplace. We know from our research that 36% of the healthcare workforce, 29% of the education workforce and 35% of the construction workforce in our region will need to be replaced in the next 10 years. That’s more than 65,000 people in just the top three demand industry groups. And that doesn’t take into consideration the increased demand from a growing economy.
This is great news for the students of today but a challenge for our region. If you’re a student, identify jobs that will be in demand and focus on the skills, education and certifications that it will take to succeed in those jobs; gain those skills and you’re pretty well guaranteed success in life. We have a good idea which jobs will be in demand. What we struggle with is identifying the knowledge and skills required for those careers. We also need to do a better job of helping parents and students understand what it costs to acquire those skills and what those jobs will pay. It shouldn’t be that hard to figure out what you want to do when you grow up.
The challenge to our region is the competition for workers. If you’re a business owner who can’t find the people you need with the right skills, you have to go where you can find them. We have two choices for building our future workforce: We can educate the students in our community or we can attract the talent from other communities. While we are becoming an attractive place for millennials, we do our community a disservice if we don’t prepare our young people growing up here for a successful future.
As a society, we’ve taken a broad-brush approach to education over the years. Parents want their children to be more successful than they were. In the past, as a general rule, more education equated to more opportunity for success — some degrees generated greater success, but the general rule held true.
However, as the demand for higher education has increased, so has the cost. The need for more specific skills has grown to the point that the general rule doesn’t necessarily apply anymore. Parents and students alike face the dilemma we hear about quite often. Some students today are graduating with more debt and less opportunity than they expected.
We are fortunate in the commonwealth that leaders in our education system are working on adapting to this changing world. They understand that we need to do a better job of aligning education with real-world opportunities. Rather than just education, the focus is becoming education toward what end. That means helping students and their parents understand what the jobs of the future look like and how to go about becoming qualified for them. It also means focusing our efforts on the jobs that will be in high demand and encouraging more investment in education that aligns with those jobs.
Businesses are doing their part as well by participating in events like Mission Tomorrow, which exposes all the public school eighth graders in our region to a variety of job opportunities. Junior Achievement is working with students, teachers and parents to help them understand the cost of education versus the salary you can expect for a multitude of jobs in our region. Many businesses work with the Career Technical Education programs in our school systems to provide internship opportunities for students to gain practical knowledge and decide if they really like the work or not.
On Thursday, ChamberRVA in partnership with the Virginia Chamber of Commerce is hosting an education summit to explore some of the opportunities, challenges and great work that is taking place in our region on this issue. We’ve invited legislators, educators and employers to share their perspectives on what we can do and are doing to create more opportunities for our young people to succeed. It’s open to the public but space is limited. Go to chamberrva.com to sign up.
We are excited about the opportunities that the future holds for our youth, but we want to do all we can to make sure that every student in our region has a chance to succeed in life and find meaningful and rewarding employment. It’s going to take additional work by all of us, but it’s the most important thing any of us can do.
Kim Scheeler is president and CEO of ChamberRVA. Contact him at kim.scheeler@chamberrva.com.
Pat Gottschalk is a partner at Williams Mullen, served as state secretary of commerce and trade under Gov. Tim Kaine, and is chairman of ChamberRVA. Contact him at pgottschalk@williamsmullen.com.
Pat Gottschalk is a partner at Williams Mullen, served as state secretary of commerce and trade under Gov. Tim Kaine, and is chairman of ChamberRVA. Contact him at pgottschalk@williamsmullen.com.
Chamber salute: USCG Cutter Mackinaw honored for 75 years in Cheboygan
The United States Coast Guard Cutter Mackinaw and its crew were honored at the end of the Michigan Waterways Festival for their last 75 years spent with Cheboygan as their home port.
A tribute ceremony was held dockside, attended by many dignitaries, including Michigan State Representative and Speaker of the House Lee Chatfield, Michigan State Senator Wayne Schmidt, Cheboygan City Mayor Mark Bronson and several others.
“For 75 years, a Coast Guard Cutter named Mackinaw has called Cheboygan home,” said Cheboygan Area Chamber of Commerce and Visitors Bureau Executive Director Scott Herceg. “From the old Mackinaw, which saw the end of World War II to the current Mackinaw, which the Admiral of the Ninth District described as driving a star fighter, the crew and families have lived their lives here in Cheboygan and kept the Great Lakes safe.”
The ceremony was held to recognize the cutter, its crew and to say thank you for the service to the community. Several different organizations around Cheboygan had prepared special tributes to honor that service, expressing their thanks in their own way.
“I would like to thank all of our Coast Guard personnel, for those who call Cheboygan home and for some of you who do not,” said Chatfield. “It’s great to be joined up here by Captain John Stone and to put together this tribute with Senator Wayne Schmidt, recognizing the importance and significance of the Mackinaw Cutter calling Cheboygan its home for the last 75 years.”
Chatfield said it is a great treat for the community to be at the ceremony and to celebrate the anniversary. He and Schmidt presented the United States Coast Guard Cutter Captain John Stone and the City of Cheboygan with a tribute from the State of Michigan, thanking them for their service.
“May they always know our heartfelt gratitude for the work they do each and every day, to insure this historic vessel will always have a home in Northern Michigan,” said the document.
Schmidt agreed with Chatfield, saying the area is very fortunate to have so many great men and women who have dedicated themselves to the armed forces and protect our freedoms on a daily basis.
The City of Cheboygan and its City Council members had also put together a resolution to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the vessel being in Cheboygan. This resolution was presented by Bronson.
“It is a great honor and pleasure to be here today, to celebrate 75 years of the Coast Guard Cutter Mackinaw in Cheboygan. This relationship has been a benefit for both of us,” said Bronson. “Cheboygan, a great place to live, the Coast Guard personnel and families, a great addition to our community. We hope they cherish their time here and we certainly cherish having them here.”
The Cheboygan County Community Foundation had been established to be a charitable receiver of funds to help with economic development and a few other things.
“Economic development has a lot of little pieces to it,” said Dave Butts of the Cheboygan County Community Foundation. “Without the Coast Guard being in Cheboygan, economic development in this community would be very difficult. So, the Community Foundation is very honored to be able to present an award today. We’re very honored to be a part of a community that has all these young Coast Guard people here for 75 years. It is sort of amazing when you think about all the other communities that would like to have a Coast Guard Cutter parked in their back yard.”
Cheboygan is one of the very few that have been able to get a cutter and to keep it.
Stone was presented with a pencil sketch from an artist downstate who loves the Straits of Mackinac area and the cutter. The sketch is a one of a kind piece of artwork and was presented along with a small plaque that denotes the appreciation of the greater Cheboygan area for all that the USCG does for the area.
The Captain was also presented with a plaque of appreciation by Diane Raab of the Cheboygan Yacht Club, a group that cherishes the cutter being in Cheboygan and all they do around the area and welcomes the Coast Guard and their families into the community.
The Chamber of Commerce also presented Stone with an award on a slice of pudding stone, which also symbolizes the crew of the Mackinaw, all the different members with different backgrounds melded together to make one, similar to the pudding stone. It was a “slice of their home port,” to carry with them wherever they go.
“Thank you, on behalf of both Coast Guard Cutters Mackinaw,” said Stone. “From the Coast Guard Ninth District, as well as the entire Coast Guard, thank you so much for these kind words, these wonderful gifts. But most importantly, thank you to the City of Cheboygan for being home port for the Queen of Great Lakes fleet for 75 years.”
When the cutter first came to Mackinaw, it was being used as an ice cutter to keep the shipping lanes open, to keep supplies running through the area during the war, allowing ships to be built. Now, 75 years later, they’re still keeping the steel trade in business and keeping the shipping lanes open.
Cheboygan was chosen as home for the cutter because the city is off the Straits of Mackinac, in close proximity to the St. Marys River.
“But I would argue that what makes Cheboygan a great home port has nothing to do with the strategic location. It has everything to do with the people and the community that we’re home porting in,” said Stone.
Also at the ceremony, Sarah Campbell, whose husband serves on the cutter, was also presented with the first every spouse Cutterman pin. She was also presented with a special award from the Cheboygan Area Chamber of Commerce Ambassadors for all of her work as an ombudsman and liaison between the community and the Coast Guard Cutter personnel.
“She works very closely with us for all the wonderful things that the Coast Guard does with the Chamber and the community,” said Chamber of Commerce Event Coordinator and Office Manager Polly Schneider. Read more: Cheboygan News
“Business must learn the lesson long ago learned by labor and other self-interest groups. This lesson is that political power is necessary; that such power must be assiduously cultivated and that, when necessary, it must be used aggressively and with determination – without the reluctance which has been so characteristic of American business.”
-- Justice Lewis F. Powell, 1971, in a memo to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, prior to his appointment to the U.S. Supreme Court
#FamousChamber of Commerce Quotation on Political Action (Justice Powell):
“Business must learn the lesson long ago learned by labor and other self-interest groups. This lesson is that political power is necessary; that such power must be assiduously cultivated and that, when necessary, it must be used aggressively and with determination – without the reluctance which has been so characteristic of American business.”
-- Justice Lewis F. Powell, 1971, in a memo to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, prior to his appointment to the U.S. Supreme Court
Kenosha Area Chamber has annual meeting, announces honorees
The Kenosha Area Chamber of Commerce will honor individuals and businesses at its annual meeting Tuesday.
Kurt R. Bauer, the president and CEO of Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce, will be the keynote speaker at the event, set for 11:30 a.m. at The Stella Hotel & Ballroom, 5706 Eighth Ave.
Chamber membership will vote on the installation of new directors for the board, honor those who have served on the board and present the following awards and scholarships:
Chairman’s Award: George Follensbee of Otto Nelson Moving and Storage.
Ambassador of the Year: Cathy Savaglio of Security National Mortgage Co.
Community Partner Award: Kenosha YMCA
Best Place to Work in Kenosha County: David Insurance
Beautification awards
The Stella Hotel & Ballroom, 5706 Eighth Ave.
Associated Bank, 6419 Green Bay Road
JDR Painting, 4715 Green Bay Road
Foundation scholarships
Lauren Birschbach, whose parent is employed by Snap-on Inc.
Haley Esposito, whose parents are employed by Genesis Chiropractic and Kenosha County
Grace Haugstad, whose parent is employed by Library Park Dental
Anika Katt, whose parent is employed by Kenosha County
Savannah Kroeger, whose parent is employed by Gateway Technical College
Herzing University scholarships
Samantha McGehee of Leeward Business Advisors
Gean Swiatko-Klee of Kenosha County Division of Health
Emily Stipan of Kenosha Area Chamber of Commerce
Tempo Kenosha scholarship
Gean Swiatko-Klee of Kenosha County Division of Health
Read more: Kenosha News
Columbus & Lowndes County Chamber awarded Pete Taylor Partnership of Excellence Award
The military and school partnership of Columbus & Lowndes County is the Second Place winner of the 2019 Pete Taylor Partnership of Excellence earning an Exemplary Partnership designation in the category of Total Community Partnership. The award was presented on July 23, 2019 at the Military Child Education Coalition’s Annual National Training Seminar in Washington D.C. Among the 5 total Military Instillation/Community partnerships recognized on July 23rd, Columbus Air Force Base/Columbus Lowndes Chamber of Commerce was awarded second place.
Programs and initiatives the Chamber produces that impact the military children of Columbus Air Force Base attending school in Columbus and Lowndes County include Education Awards Program, Educators Are Essential, Pilot for A Day, Lowndes Young Leaders, Lemonade Day, Education Town Hall and 2019 Senior Send-off. These programs, among other community programs, were included in the submission by Columbus Air Force Base that was awarded the 2019 Pete Taylor Partnership of Excellence Award.
The Chamber produces quality and impactful programming year after year. In the Education Committee and youth leadership program, Lowndes Young Leaders, military students stationed at Columbus Air Force Base are often awarded scholarships, selected to participate, and more.
The partnership was judged by the Military Child Education Coalition for the depth, magnitude, and positive outcomes of the partnership as well as evidence of sustainability and origination of ideas. Read more: Mississippi Business Journal
Town Square Publications Chamber Membership Directories, Maps and Community Profiles: The best in the U.S.
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