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Thank you, to those who have called me or pulled me aside to comment on the volunteerism/philanthropy column! My wife reads these comments, because she has to, as my personal editor. It's always a pleasure to note that someone reads these comments by choice. There is a purpose in blending editorial type comments with the calendar/activity items; to personalize the Chamber.
Often, a prospective or new member will express some misgivings about jumping on a train that is already moving. The concerns? Fitting in. Voicing an opinion. Intimidation. Calendar conflicts. Whatever these concerns, I truly believe that our directors and staff and committees and members ultimately do a great job of making folks feel welcome and appreciated. Which brings us to a list of "welcoming" activities, past and future: Spring has [finally] sprung. We had a great and sold out Spring Fling on April 11 at the Ali Ghan Shrine Club. That Chamber function has been designed, top-to-bottom, as strictly a FUN activity for fellowship, dining, and dancing. Although there are many others to thank, we give kudos to the committee members Mark Widmyer (Advantage Computers), Stu Czapski (M&T Bank), Greg Hare (Document Solutions), Karen Johnson (WMHS Foundation), and Chamber staff President Barb Buehl, Exec Ass't Peg McKenzie, Admin Ass't Amy Jacobs and Director of Tourism Programs Kim Shirer for handling all of the logistics. We truly appreciate the ticket selling and volunteerism of Directors and members. April 16 saw the "Chamber After Hours" being hosted by Friends Aware. We had a great host facility, great food/refreshments, and a tour of the facility. Mark your calendar and RSVP now for the next one, Wed, May 21, hosted by Tri-State Hand & Occupational Therapy. Our next Chamber Member Orientation will be held Thursday, May 15, 5:00pm in the Chamber's Board Room. RSVP early, since the last orientation had over 30 in attendance and the location had to be changed at the last minute! It is great to share an Orientation with that many inquisitive Chamber members. I strongly encourage each Director to attend at least one of these Member Orientations, no matter how much they know about the inner workings of our Chamber. Newer members are motivated by rubbing elbows with existing Directors and officers, and "older" Directors are stimulated by the newer members. I'd like to refer to it as cross-pollination, but my colleagues took it from my lexicon. Please attend (but let us know ahead of time!). Another annual harbinger of a full-blown Spring has been our Post-Legislative Update and Breakfast. We were blessed to be able to hear and question our Western Maryland Delegation, up close and personal, on April 22. That's an opportunity the folks down-state do not have with their State Delegates and Senators. Thank you, Senator George Edwards, Delegates Kevin Kelly, LeRoy Myers, and Wendell Beitzel, for representing us and informing us. The month of April saw several Education Committee initiatives come to fruition. The first: April 22 & April 24, the Focus on the Future was held at the Allegany County Fairgrounds. I'll have more space next month to let you know exactly what happened and what the feedback was. Suffice it to say at this point that there were 72 exhibitors on each day. Great job Janet Wilson (Allegany County Board of Education). Education Chair, Jim "Snake" Robertson (Western Maryland JATC), also reported a packed house for the April 29 Outstanding Business Student Awards program held jointly with the Rotary Club of Cumberland. The students represented FSU, ACM, and the following high schools: Allegany, Bishop Walsh, Calvary Christian, CCTE, Fort Hill, Mountain Ridge. Kudos to the students, their teachers, and their families...and the folks who make the selections! Nature abhors a vacuum, so mark your calendar now: Sunday, August 24, 6:05 pm is Chamber night at the Altoona Curve Baseball Stadium. Another evening of fun and fellowship, even if you're not a baseball nut. Details are forthcoming. See you soon! Esse quam videri
Daryl |
