February will prove to be a big year for the Chamber and its partner agencies. We are happy to announce that we received the most Spark Plug nominations than any previous year, with a whopping 105 nominations! Thank you all for taking the time to nominate these amazing businesses and community leaders. Board members from the Keweenaw Chamber of Commerce, KEDA, MTEC SmartZone, and Keweenaw Young Professionals, will be voting on winners this month and are planning a Gala event on March 3 at the MTU Memorial Ballroom. We hope that you all will attend and see who will take home these awesome business and community awards. We have quite an exciting evening planned. Tickets are available at the Chamber website: www.keweenaw.org.

I was raised in the Boston area, but my entire adult life, after college, has been spent elsewhere, from S. Carolina to California, Arizona, and finally here in the U.P. The last 13 years was a “fish out of water” experience in the low desert of Phoenix, Arizona, which ended in a health crisis, divorce, and the loss of my home. A former customer turned friend offered me a place to stay that was at first intended to be temporary. It turned into a permanent move to his summer home here in the Keweenaw (sight unseen).

But this turned into my opportunity to begin fresh, both personally and professionally. With a new focus, and possibilities, I set my sights on my own business and store. I have patterned my store after that of my previous employer back in Phoenix: a mobility dealer scratching his way from nothing, but as a pioneer in the western U.P.

My experience in healthcare is going on 30 years specifically in the homecare division: first providing oxygen and related equipment services in Northern California, as well as, Arizona; then transitioning finally to mobility related equipment and service for the last 13, going on 14 years. Here in the U.P. I see a unique opportunity to provide these services to an aging population where mobility-specific disability is a growing need that needs to be filled.

I started my store with a couple of basic insights and objectives: the first being a needs-oriented approach to an industry dominated by high costs and insurance driven providers. Many have, in recent years, been forced to shift their focus away from a Medicare-centric business model to concentrate on private insurances, self-pay, and in some cases, diminished services to control costs. This is NOT my idea of best meeting the needs of the elderly and disability community.

The second is a dedication to “Superior Customer Service”. While this began as my personal motto for my work ethic and attention to the needs of each and every customer with whom I come into contact, it soon became my reason for being in this line of work at all.

This in itself is a 2-pronged strategy in an increasingly challenging healthcare landscape. That is seen first in my store, and also in my mobile service, bringing the same quality of care to those who come to me, and those to whom I personally bring my in-home service; but this is not just about equipment and service; it is as much about my needs-based approach with every person I meet. I see my job as beginning and ending with assessing the person, then the need (the difficulty they have with their daily activities), and then seeing that through to a solution that truly meets their need. This includes a lifetime of service and maintenance for everything I sell.

While my store is less than a year old, these 8 months have helped me to shape a purpose in this community that is exploring a high level of collaboration with medical facilities, assisted living facilities, and other community organizations, such as Friends of the Elderly, 1 Million Cups, and, of course, The Keweenaw Chamber. My ultimate goal is to make my services a central core of the healthcare of this community, and its underserved, disabled members.

We encourage you to reach out and take advantage of these great benefits, or let us know if you have any questions, call 482-5240 or email [email protected]

Houghton Downtown Business Owners

MEDC has announced another round of Match on Main funding. They can supply up to $25,000 to help you build or better your business. Houghton is eligible to apply. As it was in the last round in 2021, we can submit up to two applications, but IF we are funded; they’ll only fund one of them.

What are eligible expenses which may be reimbursed with grant funding from Match on Main? A business interested in working with their local community to apply for a Match on Main grant must have a project and scope identified. Grant funds will be awarded up to $25,000 to reimburse project activities occurring at a permanent commercial space, that fit within the following eligible expenses, which must be paid by the business to an independent third party:

·   Expenses for technical assistance items for design and layout of interior or exterior space, such as conceptual renderings of the interior or exterior floor plan, merchandise layout, other interior or exterior space activation.

·   Expenses for interior building renovation items, including rehabilitation of floors, walls, ceiling, rooms, electrical improvements, lighting and lighting fixtures, furniture and display renovations, installation of permanent kitchen or other equipment, and/or fire suppression or other code compliance items.

·   Expenses for permanent or semi-permanent activation of an outdoor space, including a dining area, beer garden, or other place-based outdoor activation deemed acceptable by the MEDC. Exterior signage, doors and windows may be permitted as an eligible expense if part of a larger outdoor space activation project.

·   Expenses for permanent or semi-permanent business infrastructure related to COVID-19 recovery efforts such as items that promote the health and safety of employees and customers (examples include plexiglass barriers, curbside service windows, etc.).

·   Expenses for general marketing, technology to assist in connecting with customers (example: website upgrades or e-commerce integration), operational changes (example: shifting from dine in to carry out), the purchase of a point-of-sale system, or inventory expenses for retail goods.

What YOU need to do now:

·   Get hold of us so we can sit down and discuss your project. Email is best to start. [email protected]

·   Determine what project(s) you’d like to do that will take your business to the next level.

·   Write up some short paragraphs about what it is you want to do and how it will help your business further succeed. This doesn’t have to be perfect, there will be time to expand it later if we are going to apply. This is going to take some thought on your part.

·   Commit some of your own funds toward making it happen. They expect you to have some match.

·   Get a good plan and an estimate from a contractor or a vendor for the project. You’ll have to do a little legwork.

If you are interested in applying for the grant you need to let us know by February 8, 2022. We are going to need that list of information (What YOU need to do now list above) by February 22, 2022. We can talk about it in between those dates.

If you want to read more about it, the link is: https://www.miplace.org/small-business/match-on-main/

Presentation: Generating Economic Development: An Introduction to Scotia Wind, with Presenter Chris Moore, Vice President at Circle Power Renewables.  

Come One, Come All to Our 100^th Carnival

The Keweenaw Chamber of Commerce is pleased to offer Keweenaw Cash: a gift certificate program that can be used at more than 300 Chamber member businesses. Since its launch, the Keweenaw Chamber of Commerce has issued over $341,000 worth of Keweenaw Cash. That money goes right back into local businesses!

If you are a business and would be interested in being able to redeem Keweenaw Cash, please look into becoming a member of the Keweenaw Chamber of Commerce.

For additional information about Keweenaw Cash, to purchase certificates, or how you can accept Keweenaw Cash, call 906-482-5240 or email [email protected]

EMT

Mercy EMS

Brad Barnett, CVB Representative

Gretchen Whitmer: https://www.michigan.gov/whitmer

Debbie Stabenow: https://www.stabenow.senate.gov/

Gary Peters: https://www.peters.senate.gov/

Jack Bergman: https://bergman.house.gov/

Ed McBroom: https://www.senatoredmcbroom.com

Greg Markkanen: http://gophouse.org/representatives/up/markkanen/

From the Edison bulb to high-tech electronics of today, you might say UPPCO has been providing “U.P. Power” for more than 130 years. 

(800-562-7680)

•Safe & Reliable Service

•Renewable Hydroelectric Generation

•Proud Community Supporter

906.482.5240 | [email protected] | www.keweenaw.org