Chamber. the. Executive Director. April Calendar

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1 the Chamber Volume XXXII No. 4 Bell Tower Building Cumberland, MD April 2014 Executive Director The 90 th day of the Maryland General Assembly 2014 Session and the Adjournment Sine Die date is April 7 th. As of April 1 st 2,670 bills had been introduced in the House and Senate. Of those 2,670 bills 217 had passed both Chambers as of the same date. Historically, an average of approximately one-third of the bills introduced, or roughly 800, become law. While there were only 12 bills that had passed both Chambers at this time last year, the General Assembly will be busy once again these final days of the session. An area of concern to businesses and organizations that has yet to pass in both Chambers is the minimum wage legislation. The House has passed their version and the Senate is working on theirs. This is one subject that may be a bargaining point right up to Sine Die. The Chamber s Legislative Wrap-Up Breakfast is scheduled for 7:30 am April 22 nd at the Ali Ghan Shrine Club. This is an excellent opportunity to review and discuss the session with your Western Maryland Delegation. I would like to commend the Mayor and City Council of Cumberland for engaging a third party consultant to prepare an economic development strategic plan for the City as recommended by the Economic Development Commission. I would also like to thank the Maryland Department of Business & Economic Development and the Appalachian Regional Commission for providing the majority of the funding for this critical endeavor. The plan will provide specific recommendations to capitalize on our strengths and improve our weaknesses while taking into consideration local, national and global economic forces and trends. With input from community stakeholders, the plan will have a common vision and goals for all to work toward. The plan will be measurable with accountability assigned and have tremendous impact on the entire region. The Chamber looks forward to working with all stakeholders in the community to make this plan, and its implementation, a reality. Thank you to Mike Marchini and the entire staff at CBIZ for hosting the March Chamber After Hours. The nearly 230 in attendance were treated to a great evening. Potomac Valley Home Medical, Inc. was drawn in the Network & Win cash drawing. Since no one from Potomac Valley Home Medical was present at the time of the drawing, the cash prize grows to $2,000 for the April Chamber After Hours hosted by Rehab 1 st and Care Ventures on Wednesday, April 16 th. Be sure to pre-register by April 10 th. Getting the word out about your business is more important now than ever. In addition to networking opportunities and other benefits, the Chamber offers affordable advertising to its members in the weekly enews and monthly Newsletters. Please note the Did You Know? section of this newsletter for additional options. Let us help you market your business or organization and maximize your Chamber membership. Planning has started on another great networking and marketing opportunity, the Chamber s Annual Expo, to be held at the Allegany College of Maryland Gymnasium on October 21 st. The theme this year is Chamber s Spooktacular Expo 2014 and should prove to be another excellent way to showcase your business or organization. Stay tuned for additional details coming soon. Stu Czapski Executive Director April Calendar April 3 8:00 am Membership Committee Mtg. April 8 8:00 am Expo Committee Meeting April 10 7:30 am Education Committee Meeting April 14 12:30 pm Leadership Allegany! Planning Session Allegany College of Maryland April 16 8:00 am Economic Dev. Committee Mtg. Noon Legislative Committee Mtg. 5:30 7:30 pm Chamber After Hours Rehab 1st/Care Ventures April 21 8:00 am Leadership Allegany! Alumni Committee Meeting April 22 7:30 am Legislative Wrap Up Breakfast Ali Ghan Shrine Club April 24 Noon Board of Directors Meeting April 29 Noon Outstanding Business Student Awards Cumberland Country Club

2 Chamber After Hours Wednesday April 16, :30 to 7:30 pm Hosted by Rehab1st/ Care Ventures Legislative Wrap Up Breakfast Tuesday April 22, :30 am Ali Ghan Shrine Club Outstanding Business Student Awards Tuesday April 29, 2014 Noon Cumberland Country Club SAVE THE DATE Chamber s Spooktacular Expo 2014 Stay tuned for more details! Tuesday, October 21, :30 am to 5:00 pm Allegany College of Maryland Gymnasium Member Profile: Comcast Spotlight is the advertising sales division of Comcast. They put the power of television to use for local, regional or national businesses by placing a message either On Air on over 50+ TV networks or online on popular websites like XFINITY.com or FoxNews.com. What s more, they give their advertisers the ability to reach the entire Washington market of over 1.8 million households or to target specific parts of the market like Western Maryland to fit their needs. No other form of advertising is more effective at reaching, engaging or connecting with potential customers. They serve customers in the Western Maryland area with dedicated account executives and local support based out of their office in Cumberland located at 28 Washington Street. You can find out more about how they can help your business at or by giving them a call today at Comcast Spotlight 28 Washington Street 2nd Floor Cumberland, Maryland Fax: Team Members are left to right: Mike DiGilarmo, Kathy Cornwell, Diana Simpson, Becky Krause, Joe Harman. Member Profile: The Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) of Allegany County s mission is to recruit, train and support volunteers to be court appointed advocates for abused and neglected children in the court system, and to collaborate with other local agencies in an effort to ensure that all children are in a safe and nurturing home. CASA of Allegany County was incorporated on July 24, 2012 in an effort to provide advocacy services to Allegany County s children that are in the custody of the Child Protective Services (CPS) due to CASA of Allegany County 31 Baltimore Street, Suite 108 Cumberland, Maryland abuse and/or neglect. CASA of Allegany County staff and volunteers work with the Court, CPS, and other local agencies to ensure that these children receive the best possible care and services during a very stressful time in their lives. CASA of Allegany County is dedicated to the premise that all children are entitled to grow up in a safe and loving home. The CASA program is committed to reunification of children with their biological family, when that home can be made safe for the children. In cases where reunification is not appropriate or possible, the goal will be a permanent home through adoption, kinship care or long-term foster placement. In all cases, the CASA volunteer s role is to do everything in their power to ensure that all decisions regarding the child are in the best interest of the child.

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4 The Allegany County Chamber of Commerce Legislative Committee presents a LEGISLATIVE WRAP-UP Legislative Panel: Senator George Edwards, Delegate Wendell Beitzel, Delegate Kevin Kelly and Delegate LeRoy Myers Join your legislators for a recap of business legislation and the issues of the 2014 Legislative Session in Annapolis. Tuesday, April 22, :30 am $20.00 Ali Ghan Shrine Club Please RSVP by April 15th - Phone , Fax amy@alleganycountychamber.com Allegany County Chamber of Commerce Bell Tower Building 24 Frederick Street Cumberland, MD Please make reservation(s) for the Legislative Wrap-Up Breakfast. Make checks payable to the Allegany County Chamber of Commerce. Name: Company:

5 Allegany County Chamber of Commerce and the Rotary Club of Cumberland proudly sponsor 2014 Outstanding Business Student AWARDS Come and share in a salute to the outstanding business students in Allegany County Allegany High School Bishop Walsh School Calvary Christian Academy Center for Career and Technical Education Fort Hill High School Mountain Ridge High School Allegany College of Maryland Frostburg State University Tuesday, April 29, 2014 Cumberland Country Club Noon $12.00 per person Please RSVP by April 22, 2014 Phone: Fax: E mail: peg@alleganycountychamber.com Organization Name: Member Name: Guests: Return to the Allegany County Chamber of Commerce Bell Tower Building, 24 Frederick Street, Cumberland, MD 21502

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9 Chamber to Host Legislative Wrap-Up The Allegany County Chamber of Commerce will present a Legislative Wrap-Up Breakfast on Tuesday, April 22, 2014 at the Ali Ghan Shrine Club, Cumberland, Maryland beginning at 7:30 am. The Western Maryland Delegation will provide a recap of business legislation and the issues of the 2014 Legislative Session in Annapolis. The session review will consist of comments by Senator George Edwards, Delegate Wendell Beitzel, Delegate Kevin Kelly, and Delegate LeRoy Myers, followed by a question and answer period. The cost is $20.00 for Chamber members. To make reservations, contact the Chamber at , fax or amy@alleganycountychamber.com. New Members Patronize these members and welcome them to the Chamber. Allegany Mineral County Crime Solvers P. O. Box 3512, LaVale, Maryland Website: Contact: Martin Walsh, First Vice President sdrlm2713@gmail.com Category: Non-Profit, Community Service Description: Solicit information from the public concerning unsolved crimes and pay rewards for information leading to an arrest. Herker Design Group 12 South Mechanic Street, Cumberland, Maryland Website: Contact: Steve Herker, Owner sales@herkerdg.com Category: Advertising, Art, Design,Web Site Design & Development Description: website design, online advertising, graphic design, printing, print advertising DID YOU KNOW? Marketing/Promoting Your Business Membership with the Chamber provides you with a multitude of marketing and promotion options for your business. 1. Brochure and Business Cards. Place your brochures and business cards in the display case located in the Chamber office. Free to members. 2. Full Page Flier in our monthly newsletter. Have a new product or service to introduce? Have you moved and want to get the word out about your new location? Advertise your company s latest news and innovations with a flier in our monthly newsletter. The flier provides your business with a cost effective way of targeting Chamber members for the nominal fee of $ per month. 3. Grand Openings/Ribbon Cutting Ceremonies. If you have moved to a new location or have added on to an existing location the Chamber can assist you in the celebration. At no cost to you we will provide the ribbon, invite local dignitaries and be on hand to take a photograph which we will submit to local media. 4. Member Profile. Each month the Chamber highlights a Chamber member. Provide us with a write up about your business, a logo, and/or photo and we will publish in our monthly newsletter. No cost for members. Take advantage of this popular opportunity to describe your services, free of charge, to other Chamber members. 5. Business labels. Promote your business or service to the heart of the business community through mailing labels (name, company and address) provided on a CD. Cost: $ Member News. Share your good news stories to celebrate significant years of business or introduce a new employee to the Chamber membership. Send us an with the details and we will include for free in our weekly e-news. 7. Advertising. Advertising opportunities in both our weekly e-news and our monthly newsletter are available for a nominal fee. Just provide the Chamber with a jpg image. Pricing for the weekly enews starts at $75.00 per month (four issues) and pricing for the monthly newsletter starts as low as $30.00 per month depending on the size of your ad. These are just a few examples of how the Allegany County Chamber of Commerce is dedicated to helping our members. the Chamber The Chamber News is published monthly by the Allegany County Chamber of Commerce Bell Tower Building 24 Frederick Street, Cumberland, Maryland Fax info@alleganycountychamber.com Stuart C. Czapski, Executive Director Allegany County Chamber of Commerce 2014 Officers Chairman: James J. Snake Robertson First Vice Chairman: Maureen T. Brewer Second Vice Chairman: Jeremy G. Irons Immediate Past Chairman: Stacey L. Bingaman