January 2022 THE VOICE Huntsville Walker County Chamber of Commerce

Walker County among the fastest-growing counties in Texas Walker County among the fastest-growing counties in Texas | News | itemonline.com

Your Huntsville Walker County Chamber of Commerce Diversity Council is proud to partner with the Small Business Development Center at SHSU and the Historically Underutilized Business (HUB) Program at Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts in providing this HUB Certification training on January 12th. The Historically Underutilized Business (HUB) Program is a state of Texas initiative to increase the opportunities available to business owned by minorities, women, and service-disabled veterans in the area of state procurement and contracting.

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Thanks to The Huntsville Item for sponsoring the December Small Business Breakfast.

The Huntsville Item is a three-day morning newspaper that publishes in Huntsville, Texas, as well as a daily digital newspaper. The Item covers all of Walker County, which is located in the piney woods of East Texas. Founded in 1850, The Item reportedly is the second oldest newspaper published in Texas. However, unlike the The Daily News in Galveston, Texas, The Item published continuously throughout the Civil War from 1861-1865. Originally owned by the Woodall family, the paper has been sold multiple times. The current owner, Community Newspaper Holdings, Inc. (CNHI), bought the paper in 1999. Why should you advertise with The Huntsville Item? They publish a newspaper three days a week. Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. The Item is the local community source of news and advertising information. Their readers are more affluent and have more disposable income. They publish their print edition online every day at itemonline.com. Itemonline.com is currently averaging 76,565 unique visitors each month. And over 50% of those are coming in from a mobile device. Every Wednesday they deliver 20,000 copies of The Item Marketplace to non-subscribers throughout Walker County. Once a month they publish the TDCJ Roundup that is distributed to 5,500 employees of Region 1, the local prison system. A reputation of trust remains one of their unique value propositions. Whoever your target market is, The Huntsville Item can deliver your message through print, digital, magazines, special sections, direct mail and email marketing. What other media can give you the potential to reach 237,665 readers in a one month period? Their Audiences . . . Your Customers! Give them a call at (936) 295-5407 and one of their media consultants will help you plan your next advertising campaign. Since 1850, The Huntsville Item has been an integral part of the Huntsville community. 

Thank you to Sam Houston State University President Dr. Alisa White for hosting the December BASH515 at the Historic Peabody Memorial Library in December.

Sam Houston State University strives to meet the needs of contemporary students, both traditional and online. With over 90 bachelor degree programs, 55 master degree programs, and 10 doctoral programs, including the nation’s first PhD in Forensic Science, SHSU offers an exceptional college experience. For more than 140 years, SHSU has been preparing students for meaningful lives of achievement. Dr. Alisa White is the 14th president of Sam Houston State University. She began her tenure with the university on August 10, 2020. Prior to coming to Sam Houston State, Dr. White, a native Texan, served as president of Austin Peay State University in Clarksville, Tennessee, from 2014 to 2020. She previously served as vice president for academic affairs at the University of Texas at Tyler and Midwestern State University. Dr. White and her husband, Elliott Herzlich, a jeweler, have three married children and five grandchildren. The Peabody Memorial Library is the first college campus building in Texas to be constructed exclusively for use as a library. Built in 1902, the Peabody Library is SHSU’s oldest building. In 1929, the library formally moved to the new Estill Library. The Peabody building was then used as a space for classrooms, band rehearsals, storage facilities, dance studio, and a radio and television studio. In 1990, the Peabody Memorial Library was officially recognized and dedicated as a Texas Historic Landmark and served as a social hall for meetings and events for several years. Today, the Peabody Memorial Library is used for special events hosted by the SHSU President or Cabinet members.

ECONOMIC INDICATORS For Labor Force: texaslmi.com Sales Tax information: comptroller.texas.gov/taxinfo/allocsum/compsum.html For Building Permits: https://huntsvilletx.gov/160/Permits-Forms-Applications

NEW CHAMBER MEMBERS

The following businesses recently joined the Chamber and we extend A WARM CHAMBER WELCOME.  Bricks and Heroes- Hobby Shop that carries Legos, comic books, Funko, and board games. Offering $5.00 a day for all you can play board games. For more information contact Lynn Richards at 936-439-4648 or stop by their location at 1018 11th St. https://www.chamber.huntsville.tx.us/members/member/bricks-and-heroes-9263   12th Street Bar- Proudly offering the great atmosphere, rustic fixtures and charming architecture that helps lend a familiar feel to the karaoke and cocktails. Also, features billiards, live entertainment and “Specials” every single day. For more information contact Lauren Wilkinson at 936-755-8089 or stop by their location at 1024 12th St. https://www.chamber.huntsville.tx.us/members/member/12th-street-bar-9265   CAM Specialized LLC-Hotshot transportation service specializing in equipment, oilfield, and over dimensional loads. For more information contact Chris Murphy at 346-222-0886, or stop by their location at 643 FM 247, Unit 24. https://www.chamber.huntsville.tx.us/members/member/cam-specialized-llc-9266 The information printed was gained from membership applications. For any additions and/or corrections, contact the Chamber as complete membership information is vital to your records with us.

Thank You to our Recent Renewals My Town Marketing Lake Hills Business Park Cowboy Contractors First Financial Bank CASA of Walker County Carr, Riggs & Ingram LLC BG Residential Services B&B Properties Huntsville Church of Christ Sierra Classic Homes Education Service Center-Region VI

MEMBER SPOTLIGHT

Our Member Spotlight for December is Joe Smith Agency-Joe L. Smith, MBA, CLU. Joe shared some with us, “I am a real estate broker and life insurance agent and have operated in this area for many years. If you are interested in buying or selling real estate, please give me a call and I will be happy to help you get the best deal. In 1918 life insurance death payouts increased 41% due to the flu. In 2020 death claims surged 15.4% to $90.43 billion due to the pandemic. If you need additional life insurance coverage and have tested positive to covid, you can still apply for coverage a few weeks after you test negative and don’t have any lasting serious symptoms. The rate you pay for your life insurance is basically based on your age, health, and occupation, along with tobacco use and a few other characteristics. If you are in good health, moral character and do not use tobacco, your rates will probably be the best they will ever be. If you have a 401 (K) retirement account and are aware that it could turn into a 201 (K) account (could lose significant value overnight), then you should call me. We can set up a retirement plan for you that lets you participate in the gains of the market, without risking the losses. You can play with the numbers and decide on a figure that works best for you. My pledge to you is to always give you the very best service and help you arrive at the optimum solution you are seeking. Being a member of the Chamber is very important for almost any business. I have been a member for many years and have many great friends there. In fact, Jack Olsta went to Houston with me to pick up live lobsters at the Airport for the first “Steak and Lobster Fiesta and Golf Tournament” at Elkins Lake and that was a few years ago. If you are not a member, please give me a call and we will investigate all the benefits for you. As with anything, your benefits of membership will be in direct proportion to your participation.” Joe is an Ambassador for the chamber but also supports the Huntsville community as well. He serves as: *President of the Retired Faculty and Staff group at SHSU. *A member of Sam Houston Post 95 of the American Legion and past Post Commander, Boys State Program Chairman, and other offices for many years. *A member and Past President of the Kiwanis Club. *A Charter member, Past President, and other offices of the local Optimist Club. *Past Governor 2 times of the South Texas District of Optimist International. *A member of Walker County Master Gardeners *A member of the Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) *A life member of the SHSU Alumni Association *Huntsville Leadership Institute Alum – Class 32 Joe also has won several awards from the chamber including the ED Sandhop, Jr. Spirit of Huntsville Award in 2018. For more information contact Joe and joesmithagency@gmail.com or by phone at 936-293- 0400.

AMBASSADOR VISITS-DECEMBER 2021 Ambassadors visited: Postcards Magazine AdVantage Specialties Climatec Secure Storage WCFCU Huntsville City Hall Farmhouse Cafe 

During the holidays the Preferred Partners Group presented a donation to Fellowship of Christian Athletes and MRC Activities to allow them to carry on their worthwhile causes.