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Greater Belleville Chamber of Commerce
Weekly Email Update |
August 28, 2012 | |
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 Chamber Calendar August 28-September 4
Tuesday August 28
Junior Idol Auditions, 4:00-8:00pm
Chamber Boardroom
CLICK HERE for flyer
Thursday, August 30
Ribbon Cutting, 4:00pm
Kaskaskia Engineering Group
208 East Main Street, Suite 100
Belleville, IL 62220
Monday, September 3
Chamber Office Closed for Labor Day
Tuesday, September 4
Education Committee Meeting, 8:00am
Chamber Boardroom
Committee meeting open to any Chamber member representative interested in promoting education in Belleville.
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Chili Cook-off Sponsorship Deadline is This Friday
The 29th Annual Chili Cook-off will be held October 5th and 6th. This event has become a favorite for local residents, in addition to drawing great crowds from out-of-town. Music, entertainment, refreshments and lots of chili are sure to draw thousands once again to the downtown Belleville area! The Chili Cook-off is also a huge charitable event raising more than $75,000 each year for local charities. Corporate sponsorship plays a key role in making this event possible, while providing you with a great opportunity to promote your business to thousands of new and existing customers.
Thank you to our main event sponsors of this year's festival.
Premier Event Sponsor:
Friday Daytime Entertainment Sponsor: Children's Area Sponsor:
 
Chili Judging Sponsor: Junior Idol Sponsor:
 
Friday Night Band Sponsor: Saturday Night Band Sponsor:
 
Following are the sponsorship levels currently available:
Gold Event Sponsor $1,000
- Logo on side banner of Main Stage which is displayed throughout the 2-day festival
- Logo on Chili Cook-off posters (over 200 distributed)
- Logo in Chamber Connection Newsletter and Weekly Email Update for at least 2 months prior to the festival
- Logo on Chili Cook-off website (www.bellevillechili.com) with a link to your website
- Logo in Chili Cook-off Event Guide distributed by the Belleville News-Democrat (inserted in more than 58,000 newspapers on Sunday, September 30th)
- Four 29th Annual Chili Cook-off t-shirts with your company logo on back
Thank you to our current Gold Event Sponsors:
          
Silver Event Sponsor $600
- Company name on all marketing materials...Chili Cook-off posters, Chamber Connection Newsletter, Weekly Email Update, and Event Guide.
- Company name on Chili Cook-off website with a link to your website
- Two 29th Annual Chili Cook-off t-shirts with your company name on back
Thank you to our current Silver Sponsors...Art on the Square, Belleville Main Street, Chick Fritz Distributing, Commerce Bank, First National Bank of Waterloo, Gonzalez Companies, LLC, Greensfelder, Hemker & Gale, P.C., Mueller Furniture, Scott Credit Union and Wine, Dine & Jazz.
If you are interested in sponsoring this year's event, please CLICK HERE for the sponsorship flyer. Deadline is Friday, August 31st. Thank you for your support! |
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Still Accepting Volunteers for the 29th Annual Chili Cook-off
For the ultimate team building experience, sign up your office to work a shift at the beer stands, token booths and/or the souvenir stand at this year's Chili Cook-Off to be held on October 5th & 6th.
Beer Stands: All volunteers must be 21 years old. It is strongly encouraged that all volunteers on each shift be an employee of a Belleville Chamber member business, however, if family or friends are volunteering on a shift at least one person MUST be a chamber member. Only shift workers will be allowed in the beer stands.
Token Booths: All volunteers must be 21 years old and an employee of a Belleville Chamber member business. Only shift workers will be allowed in the token booth and in the restricted area around the token booth...no exceptions. It is highly recommended that the volunteers for the last two shifts each day (4:30-7:30pm and 7:30-9:30pm) have experience in handling money transactions as these are very high traffic times.
Souvenir Stand: At least one volunteer per shift must be over the age of 21 for money transactions and an employee of a Belleville Chamber member business.
Volunteer Sheets (as of 9:00am, August 27th)
Token Booths #1 and #2
Souvenir Stand
Beer Stands
For the most updated lists, visit www.bellevillechili.com and click on the "Volunteer Info" tab. To sign-up, please email Beth at btucker@bellevillechamber.org or call the Chamber at (618) 233-2015. Thank you! |
Education is the Topic at Next Issues & Eggs Breakfast
The Greater Belleville Chamber of Commerce Education Committee invites you to attend an...
State of Illinois Education Update
with guest speaker:
Susie Morrison
Illinois State Deputy Superintendent and Chief Academic Officer
Wednesday, September 5
7:30am-9:00am
(check-in begins at 7:00am)
National Shrine of Our Lady of the Snows Conference Center
442 South DeMazenod Drive, Belleville, IL 62223
$25.00 Chamber Members
$30.00 Non-Members
Price includes a Full Breakfast Buffet
Reservations required. Please RSVP no later than August 31st to the Chamber at (618) 233-2015 or online at www.bellevillechamber.org. |
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Join us for the Next Business After Hours
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Community Calendar
Aug 28-Sept 4
Tuesday, August 28
American Red Cross Blood Drive, 2-7pm
Knights of Columbus, Cahokia
Beer+Wine Tasting to Benefit Big Brothers Big Sisters of SWIL
Township Grocer
102 N. Main St., Edwardsville
(618) 398-3162
Wednesday, August 29
Living Well, 8am-3pm
Fischer's Restaurant
2100 West Main St., Belleville
(618) 222-5476
Mini Job Fair, 9am-12pm
SWIC Main Complex 1st Floor Lounge
2500 Carlyle Ave., Belleville
(618) 235-2700, ext 5562
Mississippi Valley Regional Blood Center Blood Drive, 1-4pm Coldwell Banker Brown 1928 Lebanon Ave., Belleville Mike Williamson Musical Concert Lincoln Theatre 103 East Main St., Belleville (618) 233-0018 Thursday, August 30 Doing Business by the Good Book, 11:30am-12:30pm A Living Angel Home Care 37 Granvue, Belleville (618) 398-8440 Eckert's Adult Cooking Class-Make-Ahead Meals, 6-7:30pm Eckert's Country Store 951 S. Green Mount Rd., Belleville (618) 233-0513 Saturday, September 1 Old Town Market, 7:30am-12pm 1st and West Main Streets, Belleville www.bellevillemainstreet.net American Red Cross Blood Drive, 9am-2pm Holy Childhood School, Mascoutah Mississippi Valley Regional Blood Center Blood Drive, 12-4pm Family Video 1838 Central Plaza, Belleville Sat-Sun, September 1-2 St. Louis Antique Festival Belle Clair Expo Center 200 S. Belt East, Belleville (618) 233-0052 www.bcfairgrounds.net Sat-Mon, September 1-3 Barnyard Olympics, 10am-5pm Eckert's Country Farm 951 S. Green Mount Rd., Belleville (618) 233-0513 www.eckerts.com Monday, September 3 Labor Day Parade & Picnic, 10am-3pm Downtown Belleville (618) 233-6769 Tuesday, September 4 Mississippi Valley Regional Blood Center Blood Drive, 10am-4pm Memorial Hospital Auditorium 4500 Memorial Dr., Belleville Mississippi Valley Regional Blood Center Blood Drive, 2-7pm Lindenwood University 2600 West Main St., Belleville Mississippi Valley Regional Blood Center Blood Drive, 3-6pm Severns Family Chiropractic 635 West U.S. Hwy 50, O'Fallon |
Maurice's Purse Drive
Maurice's will host a purse drive for gently used purses. Purses are to be donated to Lindenwood University-Belleville to raise money for their Purses for Lucky Ladies event. Drive begins Sept. 2 and ends Sept. 15.
Please drop off donations to the Belleville Crossings Maurice's, 5711 Belleville Crossing St. Belleville, IL 62220. |
11th Annual TOCO Family Festival
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'Harvest Challenge' 5K and Half-Marathon on September 8 in Lebanon
Choose your distance, a 5K run-walk or a half-marathon run, in McKendree University's annual "Harvest Challenge" road race on Saturday, Sept. 8 in Lebanon, Ill.
Start time is 8 a.m., after a pre-race course and safety briefing at 7:40 a.m. The 5 kilometer (3.1 miles) and 13.1 mile courses begin on campus and travel through historic downtown Lebanon and the surrounding area. The 5K route then goes north to Horner Park and returns to the finish line on campus. The half-marathon winds through the scenic farmland of rural northern St. Clair and southern Madison Counties before returning to campus.
Walkers and strollers are welcome to participate in the 5K only. Medals will be awarded in five age categories to the top male and female competitors in both races, with trophies to the overall winners.
"There aren't many half-marathons on this side of the river so our race is a training opportunity for runners who will compete in the Chicago Marathon in October," said Kim Smallheer, assistant director of athletics at McKendree, who organizes the Harvest Challenge. Last year's event drew more than 200 participants.
The fee is $14 for the 5K and $30 for the half-marathon, with an additional $5 charged to those who sign up on race day. Register in person on campus at the intramural gym inside the Melvin Price Convocation Center on Alton St.; or download and mail in the form on the website mckendree.edu/raceday. Online registration is also available (for a small fee) at active.com. Mailed entries must be postmarked by Sept. 6.
Long-sleeve T-shirts for the 5K participants and short-sleeve "performance" T-shirts for half-marathoners will be provided, as well as post-race refreshments, while supplies last.
For more information, call 618-537-6420 or 618-537-6941 or visit the website www.mckendree.edu/raceday. |
17th Annual Belleville Gear Jammers Car Show & Cruise
The 17th Annual Belleville Gear Jammers Car Show & Cruise will be held Sunday, September 9, 2012. The event starts at 9am at CREHAN'S Irish Pub & Banquet Center, 5500 North Belt West, Belleville, IL. next to the Skyview Drive-In.
Admission is FREE. Food and beverages are available for purchase. There will be games, such as Pig Races, Cake Walks and Valve Cover Races. They are also holding a Rock-a-Billy Contest for Ladies with Cash Prizes to the Top 3 Winners. Valve Cover Races at 1PM, Rock-a-Billy contest at 3PM and Cruise the Longest Main Street at 4PM.
Last year, there were over 200 cars on display.
FLYER |
SWIC to Offer More Recycling Opportunities
Go green and recycle with Southwestern Illinois College! SWIC is helping community members recycle old clothing items and shoes, as well as unwanted electronics.
The newest opportunity to recycle at SWIC will help people clean out those closets. The three SWIC campuses are now home to USAgain drop boxes, which provide opportunities to drop off clothing, shoes, gloves, hats, linens, blankets or towels for donation. Items dropped in these bins are diverted from landfills to be reworn, reused or recycled.
The drop boxes are located the Belleville Campus, 2500 Carlyle Ave, parking lot M5; the Sam Wolf Granite City Campus, 4950 Maryville Road, north parking lot; and the Red Bud Campus, 500 W. South Fourth St., main parking lot.
Electronics such as computers, VCRs, televisions, washers, dryers and more will all be accepted at the recycling drop off. For a complete list of what can all be recycled, visit WITSinc.org/stlouis. To help cover recycling costs, WITS, a nonprofit organization, welcomes donations. The opportunity to recycle your electronics will continue throughout the year on the second Sunday of each month: Sept. 9, Oct. 14, Nov. 11 and Dec. 9.
For more information, visit www.SWIC.edu/gogreen.
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Is Starting a Business Right for You?
The SCORE Simple Steps Series Workshops can help you make a smart start. Hayner Library at 200 Alton Square Mall will host the 5-part series starting September 18.
SCORE Simple Steps Series Workshops will help you define and evaluate your ideas.
Also, develop a marketing strategy. You will identify the best ways to fund your startup.
Then turn your idea into action with tools and templates. You get useful and helpful mentoring sessions. Let us connect you with other entrepreneurs.
Jump-start your business idea with the SCORE Simple Steps Series Workshops. Successful and experienced executives will help you reach a "go or no-go" decision for starting a business. Over 1,000 businesses have started with this workshop. Five sessions total $125.
Attend the SCORE Simple Steps Series Workshops and begin your journey for small business success. Veterans are free. The first session is free for everyone!
Sign-up
Get started today. Reserve your spot now!
The SCORE Simple Steps Series
FOUR Workshops are available for $31.25 each. The first workshop is free.
You get the whole series for $125.00.
Not sure if the SCORE Simple Steps Series is for you? Call 618-830-9069 or visit http://swillinois.score.org for more information or to sign-up.
Hayner Library, 200 Alton Square Mall, Alton IL. 9/18 Tuesday 6:00 pm - 8:30 pm.
Flyer |
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9/11 Memorial Walk and Moment of Remembrance Ceremony
There will also be a Memorial Walk held September 9th. Please CLICK HERE for more information. |
Extreme Innovations Expo 2012
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25th Annual Althoff Catholic Golf Classic
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Day of Renewal for Those Who Work with the Poor
The National Shrine of Our Lady of the Snows in Belleville is offering a Day of Renewal for Those Who Work with the Poor on Wednesday, September 19, 2012, at 9 a.m. Too often, people who care for others don't take care of themselves. This is a day to refresh, renew, meet others and to learn ways that will make your work (whether it's as a volunteer or a paid staff member) more rewarding. The morning session focuses on getting "inside" information on well-known local nonprofit organizations. Learn about services they have to offer that you may not know about and great ways to avoid burnout. There will be opportunities to get to know others and share your experiences during small group discussions. Jane Sodam and Laurie Brown from Beacon Ecumenical Ministries and Pat Hogrebe from Society of St. Vincent de Paul will lead this session. The afternoon session focuses on people coming to you for assistance who may be dealing with mental health issues. Beth Orr, from Chestnut Health Systems, will help you understand the symptoms the person may be dealing with and what you can do to help them. She will give individuals and organizations tools and resources to better serve this population. Cost: $10 a person. Attendees may attend one or both sessions. Lunch is not covered in the cost of the program. Pre-registration is required. Register online at snows.org/renewal or contact the Shrine at 618-397-6700 ext. 6440 or 314-241-3400 ext. 6440. Presented in cooperation with Beacon Ecumenical Ministries & Society of St. Vincent de Paul. |
Dr. Willard C. Scrivner Public Health Foundation Benefit Golf Tournament
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Masterworks Offers Choral Workshop for the Community
The Masterworks Chorale is hosting a Choral Workshop for interested choral singers and choral directors on Saturday, September 22, 2012 from 9:00 a.m. until 12:00 noon in the theater at Southwestern Illinois College, 2500 Carlyle Avenue in Belleville. Registration begins at 8:30 a.m. Admission is $10 per person or $7 for students and each singer in groups of 8 or more. For more information or to pre-register, contact Christa Jenkins at 618-628-9989 or christa@singmasterworks.org.
The workshop is sponsored in part by a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts. The goal is to promote healthy vocal habits, correct breathing and posture and increased confidence in choral singers. Participants will leave with tools and experiences that will help them expand their knowledge of musical genres and increase their love of singing. Repertoire will include music from Handel's Messiah as well as selections by John Rutter,
Felix Mendelssohn, and Rollo Dilworth. Complimentary choral music packets will be provided.
Guest clinicians for the workshop will be Mark Doerries and Dr. Stephen Mager. Mr. Doerries is the Director of Choral Music at Olney Central College in Olney, Illinois. As founder of the Luminescence Project in 2004, dedicated to the composition and performance of multi-sensory music, he holds degrees from Temple University, Philadelphia, PA and The College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, VA. He will complete a doctorate in conducting from Indiana University in December 2012.
Dr. Stephen Mager is the Music Director and Conductor of Masterworks Chorale and Children's Choruses. He holds a Doctor of Music degree from the Jacobs School of Music, Indiana University, where he also completed his master's studies. In addition to his extensive conducting credits, he is an active composer for both chorus and orchestra. His choral symphony, Sinfonia Pastorale, received its Saint Louis premiere in 1997 with the Bach Society of Saint Louis. His opera, Dream of the Pacific, was commissioned by Opera Theatre of Saint Louis for the bicentennial of the Lewis and Clark expedition in 2004.
One of the area's most esteemed choral ensembles, the Masterworks Chorale pursues its mission to "celebrate the transcendent and transforming power of choral music by presenting artistic performances for the education, entertainment, and enrichment of its singers, its patrons, and the greater Metro-East community." For more information, visit www.singmasterworks.org.
FLYER |
 Cruise Russia's Rivers with SWIC Travel Study Trip
Visit Moscow's Kremlin, feast your eyes on the treasures of the Hermitage Museum and stroll through the Catherine Palace while on a cruise through the rivers and lakes of Russia with the Southwestern Illinois College 2013 Travel Study Trip.
The 11-day Russian River Cruise, July 7-17, 2013, will feature the beauty of the Russian waterways as well as Imperial architecture and local culture.
"This is an amazing opportunity to see the natural and architectural wonders of Russia," said SWIC Instructor Catherine Kreher. "Travel is the ultimate educational experience."
For details, attend an information session Monday, Sept. 24, at 5 p.m. in the Marsh Conference Room, SWIC Belleville Campus, 2500 Carlyle Ave.
The cruise begins in Moscow, heads up the Volga River to White Lake and Lake Onega, continues down the Svir River to Lake Ladoga, and then follows the Neva River to the final destination of St. Petersburg. Ports of call along the way include the cities of Uglich, Goritsy, Kizhi Island, Mandroghi and Svirstroy.
Red Square, the Armory Museum, the Church of Prince Dimitry on the Blood and Kirill Belosersk Monastery are some trip highlights. The three meals per day include a Piroshki tea party, the captain's dinner, a Shashlik barbecue and a sampling of various vodkas.
The Travel Study Trip is a three-semester-credit for $4,599, plus tuition.
For more information, visit www.SWIC.edu/TravelStudy or contact Catherine Kreher at 618-233-7569 or catherine.kreher@swic.edu. |
20th Annual SWIC Athletics Golf Classic
CLICK HERE for more information on the Money Ball Drop |
Fundraiser for the Lewis & Clark Council, Boy Scouts of America
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