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October 2016 - In This Issue:
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"To improve and enhance the economic vitality and the quality of life for the total community and area."
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EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
Board Chair
Kurt Haecker
Past Chair
Gloria Thesenvitz
Tracy Babcock
Doug Fargo
Dr. Rob Winter
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BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Bill Baasch
Brandi Bosselman
Roger Bullington
Ryan Dexter
Jason Hornady
Brian Mustion
Dr. Scott Rief
Heath Reinders
Greg Rerucha
Lisa Webb
Tim Wojcik
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CHAMBER STAFF
Cindy Johnson, President
Elise Edgar
Casey Haberman
Freida Jemison
Kristin Johnson
Braden Manolidis
Michala Soundy
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LEGACY PARTNERS
Thank you to our Legacy Partners for their continued support of the Grand Island business community and the Grand Island Chamber of Commerce.
25 Years
Boys Town of Grand Island
20 Years
Auto Trim Design & Signs
Central District Health Department #178
10 Years
Awards Plus
5 Years
Grand Island Physical Therapy
HELIX Financial, Inc.
Pump & Pantry
Whitey's
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| OCTOBER IS NATIONAL MANUFACTURING MONTH |
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Celebrating Grand Island's Manufacturing Community
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The Grand Island Chamber of Commerce is proud to support manufacturers during National Manufacturing Month. During the month of October, we invited local business leaders and dignitaries to take tours of area manufacturers. Business tours included Standard Iron, Global Industries, and Chief Buildings.
Standard Iron, 4160 Gold Core Circle
Global Industries, MFS-West Campus, 1924 East Fourth Street
Chief Buildings, 2391 South North Road
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| BATTLE OF THE BUSINESSES WINNERS |
Twelve organizations participated in the "Battle of the Businesses: Nebraska State Fair Volunteer Challenge" this year, providing the fair with over 100 volunteers, many of them first time volunteers.
The winners were awarded based on their number of volunteers, the amount of hours of volunteering, the time of the volunteering and their overall number of employees.
Three entities were awarded based on their company sizes. The winner for the small business was American Family Insurance - Dana Hart Agency. Five Points Bank was awarded at the mid-size level, and Principal was awarded at the large business level.
A HUGE thank you to all the businesses that participated! We look forward to seeing everyone at the 2017 Nebraska State Fair.
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Chamber of Commerce's Director of Workforce and Community Development
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As the Director of Workforce and Community Development, Michala will be responsible for numerous efforts in the recruitment and retention of the existing workforce and coordinating with educational institutions to ensure the future workforce is familiar with opportunities in Grand Island and have the skills and talents desired by Grand Island businesses. Michala will also assist with the coordination and implementation of public policy activities.
Michala has a Bachelor of Science in Psychology from the University of Nebraska at Kearney. She has worked with the Grand Island area business community for over 11 years. During this time, she has had the opportunity to hear from area business leaders and the challenges they are facing. She currently serves on the Grow Grand Island (GGI) Business Retention and Expansion committee, GGI Engineering the Next Generation of Grand Island and the UNL Extension board.
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| NOVEMBER LEARNING SEMINAR |
Wednesday, November 2 | 8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
Chamber Presidents Room
309 West Second Street
One challenge remains consistent regardless of the economic conditions; how to best develop, engage and retain talent. The largest investment for any business is their employees. This day-long session will focus on how to grow talent internally for a long-term approach to assure the right talent is in place for the future.
Our discussion will:
* Explore the qualities of good leaders
* Identify key steps for delegating
* Discover what an empowered workplace is and what
motivates individual behavior
* Unleash employees' desire for personal and professional
growth by creating a hard-to-leave workplace.
This seminar will be presented by Central Community College for $20 for Chamber partners or $40 for future partners (includes tax). Please RSVP by October 28 to Michala at 308.382.9210 or msoundy@gichamber.com.
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| Small Business Saturday is November 26! |
You are invited to team up with other local businesses here in the Grand Island area to encourage our community to shop locally this Holiday Season and drive more traffic to your store. Small Business Saturday is the equivalent to "Black Friday"
for the local businesses in and around Grand Island.
Participation is FREE for all businesses. Click here to see if you qualify. You will receive all of the promotional materials needed to make Shop Small a success. To participate, your business will need to offer a special or discount for the customers who shop that day. Not open on Saturdays? Simply leave the sign up and run your promotion on another day.
As a small business, it's tough to compete with Black Friday deals. Be creative when selecting your promotion. Whether it is a discount, BOGO, or free gift, customers will appreciate the offer and return the appreciation by shopping with you.
E-mail this application along with your "business selfie" to Freida, and we will send you everything you need to make Small Business Saturday a success for your business.
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The Education Committee, made up of teachers, counselors and administrators, met at Dramco Tool & Die. While there, they heard from one of the owners, Justin Pfenning. He took them on a tour of their 37,000 square foot facility. Justin spoke on how they like to hire employees beginning at 16 years of age to do entry level work. They have had great success in developing those individuals into full time employees. Their willingness to train and develop their employees has resulted in a lower percentage of employee turnover. It also helps to ensure employee satisfaction and fulfillment in the workplace. Thank you Dramco Tool & Die for hosting us!
The Chamber's Education Committee connects area educators with business leaders. The goal of this committee is to raise awareness of the career opportunities for students in Grand Island. Each month the committee will meet at a business to learn about the history of the business, what exactly the business does, and the types of jobs within the business. The Committee meets the third Tuesday of every month at 4:30 p.m., and they usually last one hour.
If you are interested in hosting this committee at your business, please contact Michala at msoundy@gichamber.com or 308.382.9210.
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| YP 10 Year Anniversary Event |
The Young Professionals program is celebrating ten years this year, and past, current and future YP members are invited to attend their Casino Night Event. Come dressed as your favorite decade. There will be hors d'oeuvres, live music, and prizes. Click
here to view event flyer.
November 4, 7:30 p.m.
Hotel Grand Conference Center, 2503 South Locust Street
$20 for past and current members
$30 for future members (tax and gratuity included)
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Matt Seidel
Hornady Manufacturing
Grand Island Chamber Connect |
Hope Harbor is a non-profit organization that helps current or potentially homeless people. They have 8 full-time employees, 4 part-time, and numerous volunteers. They provide services to single women, single parent families, and 2-parent families who are homeless, transitioning, or require emergency assistance to prevent homelessness.
They just moved into their new Service Center on 615 West First Street. The old address is the location of their shelter and is still valid, but all official business will now be directed through their new office.
The majority of their clients are originally from central Nebraska, though they also see people from Lincoln and Omaha and occasionally people who are/were travelling through Nebraska. The biggest benefits of doing business in Grand Island is the generosity from local donors, which includes individuals as well as local businesses that provide surplus supplies and services at little or no cost. In addition, Central Community College has been a resource for providing connections to people and opportunities. The disadvantages are that Grand Island has a very competitive job market which makes it hard to find affordable housing, and that there is no public transportation system that allows people who can't afford a vehicle to travel to work easily.
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Guarantee Group LLC
Sean O'Connor
PO Box 5916
Grand Island, NE 68802
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Tradesmen International
Kurt Rathman
5900 South 58th Street, Suite T
Lincoln, NE 68512
402.875.6961
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J-Tech Construction
Don Olberding
3308 West Capital Avenue
Grand Island, NE 68803
308.382.6000
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Premier Bookkeeping
Nikki Hooker
2222 West Second Street, Suite B
Grand Island, NE 68803
308.379.4166 |
First National Bank - South
John Hoggatt
2023 South Locust Street
Grand Island, NE 68803
308.385.4150 |
Holdrege Irrigation
Steve Koralewski
3868 South 60th Road
Alda, NE 68810
308.384.7224 |
Ruhter Auction and Realty, Inc.
Ryan Samuelsom
2837 West Highway 6
Hastings, NE 68901
402.463.8565 |
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Ribbon Cuttings and Business After Hours
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Central Community College
Business After Hours |
Exact Bookkeeping/Premier Bookkeeping Ribbon Cutting
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75th Annual Harvest of Harmony
Pageant, Parade & Field Competition |
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University of Nebraska at Kearney
Business After Hours |
Hope Harbor
Ribbon Cutting |
Chief Buildings
Business After Hours |
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Snoberger Leadership
Ribbon Cutting |
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