From Kathy's Desk
I enjoyed my first Extravaganza Tuesday night at Harvest Hall; thank you everyone. It was a fun evening; we squeezed a lot in and adjourned by 8:00 p.m.! A special thank you to Shane Baack for serving as our emcee and for keeping us on schedule, to Senator Mark Kolterman for his remarks, to Red Path Gallery & Tasting Room for the cash bar, to Marble Music for the great background music - cellist Justin Lepard, to Chartwell's for an excellent dinner and food service, and to the planning committee and staff - Renee Coufal, Jennifer Marr, Angie Fuller, Susan Singleton, Jill Perdue, Vicky Hanseling, Resa Lavicky and Denise Christensen. Thank you also to Vicky Hanseling for the beautiful decorations and to Fred Redmond for helping with all of the set-up details.
Congratulations to those who were recognized: our outgoing President of the Board of Directors - Renee Coufal, the Ambassador of the Year -Rick Gray, the Spirit of Seward Award - Greg and Dixie Zabka, and the Allen Barghahn Customer Service Award - Karel Schoepf. Thank you for all you do in, around and for the Seward area. Your award was well-deserved.
The 2015 annual report was distributed and highlighted Tuesday evening; it has been posted on our website. Please take a look by CLICKING HERE; printed copies are available at the Chamber office.
We held a short business meeting to share the highlights of the annual report and to present the recommendation of the Board of Directors on a ballot distributed to full dues-paying, voting members of the Chamber regarding the future Chamber organization. As we move forward with the formation of a combined Chamber and Economic Development organization, there are some legal and formal actions necessary by the Board of Directors. Ballots were returned and unanimously voted "yes" to move ahead with the formation of the new organization which will likely be known as the Seward County Chamber & Development Partnership. As I shared at the membership luncheon on January 12th, this will be a seamless process from your perspective - memberships will transfer to the new organization, many of the events and activities will continue, some will not; we shared those on the sponsorship opportunities sheet in last week's Update and at the membership luncheon. Here it is again - 2016 SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES. We will finalize groups, committees, task forces, project teams and all areas for volunteer opportunities for the new organization in the next few months; we expect to have a president/CEO on board to introduce to you in March. If any questions, I am always available by phone or email and happy to meet you in person.
We have confirmed a new community event and Chamber fundraiser for 2016 - the Salt Dogs Exhibition Game - has been set for Thursday, May 12th. We are seeking volunteers to assist in planning a day of baseball for the whole family in Seward and will have additional sponsorship and promotional opportunities for area businesses. Many more details to come; MARK THE DATE - MAY 12th - ON YOUR CALENDAR. Contact me if you are interested in helping plan this event.
Have a great week; one more week closer to Spring!
Kathy Evert
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ATTENTION!
Women Business Owners
of Seward County
The Seward Area Chamber has partnered with REAP Women's Business Center and local director, Monica Braun, to bring together all women business owners in Seward County for a roundtable discussion/networking session and to learn some tips about digital marketing from Diane Siefkes. There is no cost to attend and we encourage as many women business owners as possible to join us - Tuesday, February 16th, 8:00 a.m. - 9:30 a.m. at the Seward Civic Center. You can RSVP/register online by CLICKING HERE.
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This week's spotlight is on St. Andrew's Episcopal Church.
Construction on the church began in 1947 as this congregation began worshiping in what was then the Woods Mortuary. They then moved over to the basement of their new church as it was finished, then into the new church on Easter Sunday of 1952. Now after more than 50 years, the little parish is growing again, is active in the community, and built a new parish hall with classrooms and office space. St. Andrew's has been known from its earliest days as a parish that welcomes visitors and strives to integrate new members in the life of the church.
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Dan's Custom Works Apparel & Signs
