February 2011
What’s INSIDE
5th Annual Brandon Day at the Legislature Perhaps the most beneficial part of our trip included 3 separate meetings with Joel Jundt, Director of Planning for the Department of Transportation, Steve Harding, Deputy Secretary of Department of Military & Veteran Affairs and a brief visit with the new South Dakota Governor, Dennis Daugaard.
Chamber Check-up Celebrating Companies Close to Home Did You Know? Cutting, Breaking & Mixing it Up! Chamber Spotlight: H&R Block Calendar of Events On Wednesday the 2nd of February, over 30 community members journeyed to Pierre. It was our 5th annual trip to visit our Capitol during the Legislative Session. Once again we braved the cold and boarded our chartered bus for the long ride. By 11:00am Tony and Chad from Tony’s Catering had 2 serving lines of hot lunch set up and ready to go. One each in the House and Senate lobbies. We’ve been told that we are the only community that shows up offering a hot lunch, and when those scrumptious smells waft over the chamber halls and committee hearing rooms, there is an instant lineup of diners. The accolades for Brandon and Tony’s Catering were plentiful, and it was obvious just how much our gesture was appreciated. We served over 300 very thankful lawmakers and their staffs. Brandon indeed made a dramatic impact!
Other highlights of the day included a round of applause from both the Senate and House of Representative Members. A group photo, now a tradition of ‘Brandon Day at the Legislature’ was also taken. If you look closely, you will see an extra special guest (Kristi Noem) in the picture who we were able to speak with for about 10 minutes before jumping back on the bus and heading home. Another standing tradition is a stop for dinner in White Lake, South Dakota compliments of Harry Buck, Town & Country Realtors. Our legislators would like to hear from you! If you would like to contact them and offer support or ideas you can do so by calling our District 10 Legislators: Rep. Gene Abdallah
338-0544
Rep. Roger Hunt
582-3865
Senator Shantel Krebs
351-5916
Thanks to everyone who came along. Because of all of you, Brandon looked great!
Mark your calendar for these upcoming events!
Saturday, February 19th
Thursday, March 24th
Friday, June 17th
Wednesday, July 13th
The Horizon
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February 2011
“Chamber Check-Up” The Brandon Valley Area Chamber of Commerce has made a New Year’s Resolution to shape-up and gain strength in 2011. To accomplish this organizational fitness goal, the work-out regimen includes a monthly meeting with small groups of members to hear what is working for you and any improvements we at the Chamber could make to increase our strength for you and other members. Challenge your Chamber and attend! All base members will be personally invited to 1 of 12 separate “Chamber Check-up” sessions throughout the 2011 calendar year.
Annual Banquet March 24th 5:30 pm Social Hour 6:30 pm Banquet Holiday Inn Express RSVP by March 11 Cost $35/person
Celebrating Companies Close to Home Did you Jeff Eckhoff, Executive Director, and retains area residents who stay in KNOW? By: Minnehaha & Lincoln County Economic Did you know that this issue of the Horizon has gone out to 318 members this month alone? We are reaching all of Brandon and parts of Sioux Falls, Valley Springs, Garretson, Brookings, and even Pierre! Each month you can advertise your business or your business event by putting a flier in the Horizon to get the word out! If you are interested please call the chamber office at 582-7400 and reserve your spot for the month you wish to place your insert. Space is limited so please call in advance. The cost is just $50! Supply us with 325 copies of your 8 1/2 x 11 flier and we’ll make sure they go out in the Horizon. Drop them off to us by the 10th of the month so that we have them ready to be mailed by the 15th.
Development Associations
As we begin the new year, one resolution we should all make is to celebrate the companies already located in our communities. Those businesses might be manufacturers, employing hundreds of area residents, or retail enterprises, with only a few employees but a big impact on our quality of life. No matter what size the business is, we should never make the mistake of taking our existing companies for granted. For one thing, those operations are run by your neighbors, people who have made an investment and a commitment to our area. It is too easy to lose track of how many people work in those businesses or to see them as current statistics, instead of the people who make our towns viable with their shopping dollars, their participation in our churches and schools and their willingness to build our communities. Another vital contribution of local companies is their ability to keep people in place. The job creation of our existing businesses affects commuter patterns
the towns of Lincoln and Minnehaha Counties instead of moving into Sioux Falls or to an even larger metro area seeking opportunity. In this way, job creation by local companies—which accounts for 80% of all our regional economic growth—affects all of our communities and the supporting businesses that arise to serve those growing companies. The problem is that existing jobs and the growing companies that continue to provide those jobs become invisible. They don’t get newspaper headlines when they add three new employees. Local businesses don’t attract a lot of attention when steady growth allows them to remodel their local facilities, adding distribution or warehouse space—that kind of growth isn’t always on the radar of regional business media. And if a local business place isn’t on our daily traffic pattern, but located in the community development park, we don’t often realize the value that those existing companies provide to each community. So as we move through 2011, let’s appreciate and applaud our existing local businesses—they are the key to our future!
The Horizon
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CUTTING, BREAKING &
February 2011
Mixing it up!
Chamber Mixer Subway January 20
Spend in Brandon Benefit Brandon
Brandon Bucks Gift Cards Legislative Coffee January 29
Purchase yours at the Brandon Chamber Office today!
Chamber Spotlight: H & R Block Let’s face it, with a tax code that is seven times larger than the Bible, getting your taxes figured out can be incredibly stressful and frustrating. Luckily, the professionals at H&R Block Brandon make it their business to stay on top of all of the tax laws for you. We make sure you get all of the exemptions you qualify for and even have a “Peace of Mind” guarantee that ensures you are covered – no matter what. H&R Block, Inc. was founded by accountants Henry and Richard Bloch (they changed the "h" to a "k" hence H&R Block – mystery solved!) in 1955 on Main Street in Kansas City, MO. Within a year, they began establishing franchise offices and H&R Block doors were open to customers on Main Streets across the country. In 1962, the company went public, and by 1978 H&R Block offices prepared more than one out of every nine tax returns filed in the United States. H&R Block pioneered electronic filing with its trademarked “Rapid Refund” service in 1986, and the company
now files nearly half of the total number of returns filed electronically with the IRS. Today there are more than 12,500 offices around the U.S. In short, H&R Block has been doing this for a long time. Our tax professionals know their stuff and are ready to put that expertise to work for you. H&R Block Brandon is owned by tax professionals Tim Gust, Sherri Thompson, and Glen Oeltjenbruns. Franchise owners in Luverne, MN, since 2005, they have consistently gone against the industry norm, taking a personal approach with their clients and working hard to understand each client’s tax situation. As a testament to their efforts, H&R Block Luverne was named #1 in the Nation for New Client Retention – one of H&R Block’s most significant awards. It also continues to be one of only a handful of offices nationally to achieve the “100% Club” – an award based on a variety of customer satisfaction measures. Joining Tim, Sherri, and Glen in Brandon are tax preparers Jason Veld and David Vortherms.
With close to 5,000 tax returns under our collective belts – and cutting edge technology at our finger tips – we are ready to help you keep the IRS happy by getting your taxes done right. Call us today (605-582-8781) or stop in (238 E. Holly Blvd) to set up an appointment to file your taxes with H&R Block. Your refund is waiting! Article Provided by H&R Block
The Horizon
February 2011
CALENDARof events……………………………………………………… March 2011
April 2011
1—Executive Committee—8:30am at the Chamber
5—Executive Committee—8:30am at the Chamber
2—Marketing Committee—8:30am at the Chamber
6—Marketing Committee—8:30am at the Chamber
3—Public Relations Committee—8:00am at the Chamber
7—Public Relations Committee—8:00am at the Chamber
8—Chamber Board—8:00am at the Chamber
12—Chamber Board—8:00am at the Chamber
16–Fundraising Committee—8:30am at the Chamber
14—Chamber Mixer—5:00-6:30 pm at Comfort Inn 1105 N. Splitrock Blvd.
24—Issues Management Committee—8:00am at the Chamber
20–Fundraising Committee—8:30am at the Chamber
24—Annual Banquet—5:30 pm Social Hour; 6:30 pm Banquet at Holiday Inn Express
28—Issues Management Committee—8:00am at the Chamber
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[email protected]
Kim Cerwick, Executive Director Lindsey Barwald, Administrative Assistant
BVACC Staff President, Paul VanDeBerg, Alliance Communications Vice President, Anthony Siemonsma, Edward Jones Secretary, John Small, Sunny Radio Past President, Kevin Thelen, First National Bank Jeff Bowar, Sanford Health Harry Buck, Town & Country Realtors Sandy DeZeeuw, Home Federal Bank Laura Kuehl, Bethany Meadows Steve Tripp, McKinneyOlson Insurance Beth Wooten, Holiday Inn Express Hotel & Suites
BVACC Board of Directors Horizon is an official publication of the Brandon Valley Area Chamber of Commerce www.brandonvalleychamber.com (605)582-7400 ~
[email protected]
