September News from Franklin County CDC

The Western Mass Food Processing Center also supports many local food businesses which sell their products at Whole Foods Market. The CDC will have a display table at Whole Foods on September 20th to highlight locally-made products like Real Pickles, Hedgie's Hot Stuff, The Beancake Company and more. Whole Foods Market will also be offering samples of many of these products in the weeks leading up to September 20th.

Spread the word! Tell your friends to shop at Whole Foods Market in Hadley on September 20th too!

Entrepreneurship, the early years

The Franklin Hampshire Regional Employment Board is looking for local employers
to participate in youth employment. Choices include being part of a career fair, guest speaking at a local school, providing tours of your business, hosting a student for a job
shadow day, mentoring an intern through a work experience, or supporting a current youth employee through a work based learning plan. If you would like to learn more,
please contact Donna DuSell, Youth Pathways Coordinator at 413-774-4361 ext. 363
or ypcoordinator@fhreb.org.

Read more here.

Sustainable Franklin County Workshops

How should Franklin county grow? What will the region look like in twenty years? How can it be more sustainable? To answer these questions, the Franklin Regional Council of Governments (FRCOG) and its partner organizations, including the FCCDC, will be holding a series of public workshops in the Fall to help identify a Regional Vision for the county. The public is encouraged to attend these workshops to provide input. The workshops will feature a mapping exercise for participants that will identify future goals for growth and potential growth areas. The workshops will also generate a list of community needs and barriers to sustainability that may exist in the region.

The workshops will take place on:

September 22, 2011 from 5:00 - 8:30 p.m. at Greenfield High School - Greenfield
September 27, 2011 from 10:00 a.m. - 1:30 p.m. at Mahar High School Library - Orange
October 5, 2011 from 5:00 - 8:30 p.m. at Shelburne Buckland Community Center - Shelbure Falls

For more information please contact Transportation and Land Use Planner Megan Rhodes at 413-774-1194 ext. 110 or at mrhodes@frcog.org. You can also check out FRCOG's Land Use and Planning Page for more details.

Co-op Power's 7 Annual Sustainability Summit

Co-sponsored in part by the Franklin County CDC.

Co-op Power's Sustainability Summit will celebrate the work communities are doing to work for justice and sustainability. Communities are reducing their energy use and costs, building community owned sustainable energy, and bringing jobs and benefits to limited resource communities and communities of color, because they believe in a better way. For more information about this event, and for registration details, please click here.

Upcoming Workshops and Classes

at the FCCDC

Plan for Success!

Begins Tomorrow -Tuesday Sept 20.

Business Planning Class

for New and Established

Entrepreneurs

This 12 week class is for people serious about their business to complete a business plan for starting and sustaining a business. Participants say this experience provided an opportunity to evaluate a business idea in a supportive way. Individual assistance is provided. Guest speakers complement the material. Topics include:

Developing a mission statement
Understanding legal structures
Finding market research tools & resources
Creating income & expense projections
Financing alternatives and supporting documents

Tuesdays, September 20th through December 6th, 6:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m., at the FCCDC

The class is a $500 value; thanks to grants and donations, we are able to offer it for $250 (payment plans available).

Click here to register online for the class. You can also email Amy Shapiro or call her at 413-774-7204 x107.

Buzz on Biz: October

Start your day with other business owners for an invigorating discussion on timely topics and network with fellow professionals. Light refreshments and hot drinks provided. Afterward there will be time to network with other business professionals.

First Friday of Each Month, 8-9:30 am, FCCDC

Buzz on Biz Seeking Guest Speakers

Do you have a business-related topic that will benefit other small business owners? Here is an opportunity to share your expertise, network with existing business owners, and gain experience presenting. This year's topics have included Strategic planning, Photography, Organizing, Managing Debt, and Computer Maintenance.

Click here to fill out an application online.

Be sure to include: at least three points you plan to cover; its benefit to small business owners; describe what makes you an expert in this topic; and list your presentation experience. You can also contact Amy Shapiro at 413-774-7204 ext. 107 or by email at amys@fccdc.org.

Explore Going Into Business

and Business Resources

Start your business the right way! This free 1 1/2 hour session is offered on the first Wednesday of the month for people interested in going into business, or taking a hobby to the next level. If you are also interested in using the Food Processing Center, this is your first step! Topics include:

Business resources available
The importance of developing a business plan
Tour of the Food Processing Center
Is business ownership right for you?
Information about starting a food business

Upcoming Dates:

Wednesday, September 7, 3:30-5 pm, FCCDC

Wednesday, October 5, 3:30-5 pm, FCCDC

Upcoming Local Events

First Time Homebuyer Program

Sponsored by the Valley CDC. This is a certified class and participants are eligible to apply for special loan programs. Participants get access to grants for downpayments and closing costs. Participants hear presentations from attorneys, loan officers, realtors, home inspectors, insurance agents, credit experts, and more. Informed consumers are most likely to make smart choices!

Free pizza, beverages, and snacks included. $40 per household for a class that can save you thousands.

September's classes are almost over, but classes begin again in October and will be held for four consecutive Thursdays, October 6, 13, 20 & 27 from 6-8:30 pm at PeoplesBank, 56 Amity Street, Amherst, MA. To register contact Fern Selesnick at fs@valleycdc.com or 413-586-5855 x16.

Red Fire Farm's 11th Annual Tomato Festival

Every year Red Fire Farm has an unbelievable selection of amazing tomatoes for you to taste. It'll be a great day at the farm, with everything from a 5K Tomato Trot field race to hay rides to cooking demonstrations to live music to crafters and a smorgasbord of local fare from area producers! Be sure to visit, rain or shine, on September 27th.

Greening Greenfield Logo Creating Greenfield's Future: Our Food, Economy and Community

At Greening Greenfield's community forum on Saturday, November 5th, entitled Creating Greenfield's Future; Our Food, Economy, and Community, residents and town leaders, will explore creative approaches to a future where the price of fossil fuels will not dictate our economic and social decisions or and the ways we live our lives. We will be concentrating on three areas: Economic Development, Food Security and our Health and Welfare.

In 2012, Greenfield will be creating a 10-year master plan. We see this forum as an opportunity to start the discussion about the hopes and challenges of our future, the principles of resiliency and sustainability, and strategies to meet the challenges. Our intention is to ensure that the concepts of sustainability are integrated into our Master Plan.

PVGrows Fall Forum: Putting our Money where our Mouths are

Farm & Food Entrepreneurship in the Pioneer Valley

Where are the business opportunities in the new local food economy? What role do entrepreneurs play in a healthy food system? Who provides the financing and investment?
How can non-entrepreneurs help improve the business environment? Join PVGrows on Thursday, October 27th from 9:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. for an interactive session about the future of our Pioneer Valley food system.

13th Annual North Quabbin Garlic and Arts Festival

A scent-sational destination for fabulous family fun, amazing art and agriculture, and serious skills for local living. Enjoy garlic-growing and gardening workshops then choose from a unique selection to plant or eat. Seeds of Solidarity Handworks rustic furniture for sale. Saturday & Sunday, October 1-2, 10 am-5 pm Forster's Farm, Orange.

Massachusetts Conference for Women Small Business Boot Camp: Live Fearlessly!

Imagine your path to purpose and boldly transform. The Massachusetts Conference for Women, the state's largest event of its kind with more than 7,000 attendees, offers community and connection, information and inspiration, motivation and momentum. Branding, marketing, funding, public relations, social media, and sales will all be discussed. December 7-8, Boston Convention and Exhibition Center, Boston. For more information see www.maconferenceforwomen.org/

The Mediation & Training Collaborative is offering its 34-hour Basic Mediation Training

This hands-on experiential training is for anyone who wants to increase skill in dealing with the conflicts of others - whether through formal mediation or in other professional settings. Early registration postmarked by September 9th is $595; after that date registration costs $625. Fee included coached practice sessions, 74-page manual, certificate of completion, refreshments, parking and social work CECs or attorney CLEs.

Dates for this session are October 1, 4, 11, 18, 25 & 29. (Two Saturdays 9 - 5 and four Tuesdays 3 - 9). For more information or a brochure, click here, or contact Susan J. Hackney, Community Training Coordinator at 413-475-1505. .

Be ready for the Mass. Department of Agricultural Resources Agricultural Business Training Program (ABTP)

ABTP courses for 2012 will begin in January-March, with registration open in September. Those who provide their email addresses and course choices before then will be given priority in early contact. If you are interested, please send an email to rick.chandler@state.ma.us with your contact information (including address, phone and email), and tell us which course interests you most. We will give you priority notification as soon as the next round of courses is scheduled.

Each course is limited to 12 farms/potential agricultural businesses, with an option to bring a key partner for no extra cost. Full attendance is required to get expected results. Fees are kept low through MDAR support. You can visit the ABTP website here.

Law and Business Center for Advancing Entrepreneurship Events for Fall 2011 - Spring 2012

The Center's Annual Academic Conference on "The Entrepreneurial University" - current issues in entrepreneurship education and technology transfer will be held on Friday, October 14, 2011.

Their continuing Speaker Series, which is free and open to the public, will take place at Western New England College Blake Law Center, from noon - 1:30 p.m. on the follow dates:

Thursday, September 29, 2011: Michael Malloy, McGeorge School of Law, University of the Pacific "Anatomy of a Meltdown: The Continuing Small Business Impact"
Thursday, November 17, 2011: Prof. Marc Meyer, Northeastern University School of Business: "Entrepreneurship in the 21st Century"
Thursday, January 24, 2012: Prof. David Weber, Creighton University School of Law: "Undocumented Entrepreneurs: Business Structure and Immigration Compliance"
Thursday, April 5, 2012: Prof. Barry Barnes, Nova Southeastern University, School of Business: "Management Secrets of the Grateful Dead"

Additionally, the Center will hold a Financial Literacy for Small Business Workshop, also at Western New England College Blake Law Center from 1 - 3 p.m. on the following dates. The cost is $20 per session or $100 for the entire series:

October 7, 2011: Accounting Basics - understanding financial statements
November 4, 2011: Cost effective marketing
December 2, 2011: Pricing your products and services and break-even analysis
February 3, 2012: Managing credit and banking relationships
March 2, 2012: Introduction to tax issues for small businesses
April 6, 2012: Insurance risk management techniques for small businesses

Other Local Business Classes

Valley CDC offers classes for business owners, artists, and first-time homebuyers.

Hilltown CDC has computer classes and classes for business owners.

Franklin Hampshire Career Center offers computer classes and job skills classes.

You are receiving this e-newsletter because you are in our contacts database. Please feel free to to others who you think might be interested. If you'd rather not receive emails from us, please use the link at the bottom to remove yourself from our list. Our e-newsletters are now archived on our website. Check out our website at www.fccdc.org to learn more about the CDC and our work, including an updated calendar of classes and workshops. The Franklin County Community Development Corporation is an equal opportunity provider, lender and employer.