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The Advantage e-News
The signs of spring are already popping up all over town. The grass is green, the trees are budding & flowers are begin‐ning to rise up from a long winter hibernation. There is something energizing about the month May…it’s like a clean slate. For us, we need all the energy we can muster. May kicks off our official ‘tourism season’. I’ve been busy during the spring designing our new magazine & tourism booklet ads. We are in around a dozen of them now. For any‐one who says there is nothing to do in Merrill, they haven’t taken a look at our community calendar lately! June 1, our 37th An‐nual Chamber Golf Classic is just weeks away now. Ahh, the official kick‐off of summer! If you haven’t registered your team yet, there is still a little bit of time & room—but hurry. Rodeo tickets are already on sale too. If you have never taken time to see a show from our very own award‐winning, volunteer, pro‐rodeo, well then you are missing some‐thing special & fun. Why not check them out this year & help support a top‐notch tour‐ism attraction. The fair is gearing up too. As well as the City Band, Gazebo Nights, library summer pro‐grams & the list goes on and on. All of these summer pro‐grams have been in the plan‐ning stages for months! There are so many events & committee meetings coming
out of my ears that some‐times I think I’m losing my balance—which is ironic for me, because sometimes I actually am a little off kilter! But I know that it’s the same for many of you also. Your business may be the busiest during the summer months. And you have to schedule all those employee vacations & make arrangements for summertime child care & activities. Your busiest just when everyone wants time off! Or maybe you serve on one of those great volunteer or‐
ganizations that help to put on great tourism & community events that we all enjoy so much. I know that there are many because the Tour‐
ism Commission just met to award advertising grants to groups that put on these events throughout the event. One of the biggest growth event/fundraisers is on May 2—the United Way Color Fun Run/Walk. There are over 700 registered for this fun event ‐ Wow! And all the money raised stays local. Maybe you are a part of this event as a volunteer or par‐ticipant. And they are using the new section of the River Bend Trail—another volun‐teer made attraction. Many business folks are also helping out this month for mock job interviews at the high school, 8th grade exit interviews, or Law Day at PRMS.
Volume XXXVI Issue V
From The Director’s Doorway
May 2015
Business after Hours
2
Chamber Foundation 2
Ribbon Cuttings 3
Business of the Month 4
Member-to-Member 4
Chamber Chat 5
Taking Notes 5
Inside this issue:
Highlights Membership Counts
Reflections
Member Programs
Ambassador News
Extra Nuts & Bolts
Calendar/Events
Advocacy Visibility
Networking Credibility
Many businesses support hundreds of local events each year through sponsor‐ships, supplying volunteers or raising funds through sim‐ple activities such as Church Mutual’s Jean Day (this is just one example of many). Merrill is such a wonderful place—if only everyone would open their eyes & see everything that is taking place around them. Having spent most of my career in community devel‐opment, I get excited with every new shovel of dirt lifted, every new stretch of pavement laid, every dollar donated to build something new, every dollar reinvested into privately owned prop‐erty, every dollar reinvested into the community by the government, every time a business supports a good cause or event, every time a new business moves to Merrill and every time a cur‐rent business expands, every volunteer that steps for‐ward, every time a plan be‐comes a reality & every step that moves us forward and helps make Merrill the best that it can be. If you are a part of any of these things you are a keeper of the keys to Merrill’s future. And for all you do, thank you. Debbe Chief Executive Officer
Date: May 14
Place: Los Mezcales
Time: 5:00 pm
Sponsor: The Wellness Center at Gress Chiropractic
We will be taking the summer off. Business after Hours will return in September.
Date: TBA Place: Time: 7:30—9:00 am Sponsor: Merrill Sheet Metal Works
Business After Hours
PAGE 2 THE ADVANTAGE VOLUME XXXV I I S SUE V
Our Merrill Vision 20/20 Program is kicking off with a program designed to link our employers with middle school students. Now is the time to educate students about what it takes to work in your business! We will be working with all segments of our employer population linking Merrill employers with Merrill students. If you are interested in more information contact Debbe at 715-536-9474. Women of Distinction is changing a bit in 2015. We will be kicking off a Leadership Series and will end the year with an award dinner in November. Want to be a part of the Leadership Se-ries? Contact Debbe at 715-536-9474. We are investigating starting a Young Professionals Program. If you are 45 years of age or under and interested in being a part of this special network, please contact Debbe at 715-536-9474. We are sending out a Daily News from WMC that will highlight the daily news of interest. Just click on the links that interest you. A simple way to get today’s news highlights! We have started a new social media marketing program, ‘Chamber Moments’ that will include daily pho-tos & thoughts on Face Book, a weekly mini video & a weekly article. Watch for these ‘moments’! Cham-ber’s around the world are taking part & posting the same info simultaneously. We are also starting a weekly e-blast called ‘What’s Up Wednesday’ that will updates on upcoming events/activities & things you need to know. Members may include their text only messages for $15 up to 25 words—no pictures allowed. Call Cheryl for details at 715-536-9474.
Business After Hours
Additional Programs
Bricks make great gifts for any occasion! There are 4 sizes of bricks to choose from & each brick can be engraved with names, dates or special messages. The bricks make wonderful gifts for birthdays, anniversaries, holiday gifts or simply to honor someone in a permanent way.
River District Development Foundation
The Capital Campaign is off & running! The goal is to raise $1 million for the Phase 1 River Bend Trail that will begin downtown and travel west to Council Grounds State Park. www.riverbendtrail.com You can also ‘friend’ us on Face Book now. The Chamber Foundation is the fiscal administrator of the River District Development Foundation & the Friends of the River District.
Merrill Chamber of Commerce Foundation, Inc.
News
Other Foundation Programs
Friends of Normal Park
Other programs that the Chamber Foundation administers include: Discover Downtown Merrill Emergency Relief Fund Courthouse Christmas Tree Lighting Foundation Community Fund For the Love of Merrill 125th Anniversary Fire Dept. Prints Friends of the Merrill City Band Please consider making a tax‐deductible contribution to any of the foundation programs. Send your tax‐deductible donations to:
Merrill Chamber Foundation 705 N. Center Avenue Merrill, WI 54452
So...What’s New?
It’s that time of year again when we start to dream of spring & summer & those beautiful hanging flower baskets that adorn our streets. These baskets are made possible by a dedicated group of volun‐teers & cash donations from residents of Merrill. Please help us beautify the corridors of Merrill this summer by making a contribu‐tion to the Hanging Basket Fund. Send your tax‐deductible donation to: Merrill Chamber Foundation Hanging Basket Fund 705 N. Center Avenue Merrill, WI 54452
Community Enhancement Fund Morning Mixer
Ch[m\_r on Tour We believe that your business is a STAR. Showcase your business by joining the Chamber Tour Program. Contact us to get your business on the tour schedule today! Sign‐up now for 2015 tours….
Morning Mixer Sign‐up now to host/sponsor a quarterly program in 2015. Business before Hours is a great way to showcase your business & have social interaction with your fellow business members—especially if you are unable to attend Business after Hours! Government News This program will email blast government informa‐tion to members such as City of Merrill agendas & other state & fed‐eral government information, pro‐grams & newsletters.
Additional Programs
Ribbon Cuttings
Merrill Historical Society—May 15
Lee’s Piggly Wiggly—TBA
Welcome New Ambassadors
Charise Lewer Walgreens
Amanda Hinner AGRA Industries
PAGE 3 THE ADVANTAGE VOLUME XXXV I I S SUE V
Ambassador of the Month Leah Nelson
Red Carpet Pak Did you know that only mem-bers can advertise & make special offers in our Red Car-pet Pak’s that given to new Merrill residents to welcome them & intro-duce them the Merrill area? Webvertising Advertise on our website! Cost for this great new webvertising is only $25 per month! Great way to grab attention to your business Our website & links receive 7000+ hits per month so it’s an economical way to advertise!
2015 Ambassadors
Anna Winningham—Waid Funeral Home Chad Olson—Clabough Insurance
Jane Zipper—Walgreens Cheryl Hanson—Ballyhoos
CJ Robinson—Edward Jones Investments Debbie Schleif—Ministry Good Samaritan Dena Lueck—Lincoln Community Bank Dennis Grefe—Ye Olde Sweet Shoppe
Dona Beyer—Foto News Dr. Carri Kennedy—The Wellness Center Elizabeth Messner—River Valley Bank Heidi Borchardt—River Valley Bank
Jennifer Porath—WIPFLI Julie Weber—Our Way
Dr. Kathy Gress—Gress Chiropractic Kelly Zagrzebski—WPS Krissy Emmerich—WJJQ
Leah Nelson—Associated Bank Lori Wendt—Merrill Sheet Metal Works
Mark Bares—Les & Jim’s Nancy Stadler—BMO Harris Bank
Nicole Johnson—Park City Credit Union Becky Roberts—River Valley Bank Sue Kunkel—Park City Credit Union
Ambassador News & Ribbon Cuttings
We are looking to grow our Ambassadors Club in 2015 and we need YOU! Our Ambassadors are the ’welcome wagon’ of the Chamber. They celebrate new businesses, business ex‐pansions & membership!
Want to meet new businesses? Then become an Ambassador! Contact us for all the details. It’s a great way to grow your business & cele‐brate what makes Merrill so great—our local business members!
24-Hour Information Center Did you know that only Chamber members & other Chamber/visitor centers can advertise in the Information Center? Place your bro-chures, flyers and/or business cards for FREE. The Information Center is a very busy place & is restocked daily. Newsletter Inserts Did you know that only members can adver-tise in the Chamber e-news/newsletter? Cost is only $25 & your message will reach over 500 people. It’s also on our website that receives over 6000 hits per month. Member to Member Did you know that you can offer other mem-bers discounts on purchases and services as a way of advertising & marketing your business? If you are willing to offer a discount to other Chamber members, please contact us so that we can get the word out to other mem-bers! Office Assistance Did you know that only members can make copies free of charge at the Chamber? Or use our fax machine? Or bulk mail stamp for large bulk mailings? Contact us for details.
Our membership depends on volunteers! Here are some ways that you can help:
Golf Outing ■ Crazy Daze ■ Pork in the Park Promotions Committee ■ Ambassador Club
Women of Distinction Contact Debbe for more information. Email [email protected]
At the Chamber, it’s all about You! We are bringing the Best to the Best!
Do you know someone opening a new business that would like to have a ribbon cutting? Have you recently remodeled your business or façade & would like a ribbon cutting? Contact us & let us know!
Member Programs
Building Business One Ribbon at a Time
The Ambassador of the Month for May is Leah Nel‐son. Leah is the Branch Manager for Associated Bank in Merrill. Leah has lived in Merrill in for 11 years. She has been married to Troy for 30 years come August and they have two daughters, Amber and BreAnn and two grandsons, Brayden and Na‐than. In her spare time Leah enjoys spending time with her family, working in her yard, reading & fishing.
Leah has worked her way up at Associated Bank having started as a part‐time Teller to a full time Teller, then to Teller Supervisor, then to a Universal Banker, to a Relationship Banker and now to her current position as Branch Manager.
Leah loves being an Ambassador at the Merrill Chamber of Commerce because it allows her to get to know more people in the community. It is a great opportunity to network with other people and businesses in the community. Leah says that being an Ambassador has allowed her to find out more about Merrill; what the community likes, is inter‐ested in and what it cares about. She able to take this information to the marketing department of Associated Bank and help shape what the bank offers the Merrill community and surrounding area.
Leah is an Ambassador “go‐getter” and represents the Merrill Chamber of Commerce and our mem‐bers very well.
Thank you Leah for all you do to make Merrill a better place live and work!
Wanted: Ambassadors
Ambassadors Club: Beautification & Facade Recognitions & Ribbon Cuttings
VOLUNTEER
Chamber Education: 2015 Workshops
PAGE 4 VOLUME XXXV I I S SUE V
bring him along and let him dine with you!
Skippers Restaurant has convenient parking on the street and in the parking lot behind the restaurant. It is also conveniently located along the transit route. Skipper’s Restaurant is casual attire dining. They accept Visa, MasterCard and Discover cards. And they take reservations and walk‐in diners, it’s a great place for groups and they have a kids menu too. Or try take‐out or their catering services.
Skippers Restaurant is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner. It is a local business that is part of Merrill’s history and still serves up good food in a small town dining atmosphere.
Skippers Restaurant it’s just one more home‐town business that Merrill can be proud of!
Member-to-Member Club Join Today & Save
The Chamber’s Member to Member Club, is a product discount program for Chamber members only. If your business is willing to offer a discount to other Chamber members contact us now! Gain marketing exposure & potential new business customers. Be a part of the Club! As a Chamber member you will receive a dis-count at the following businesses:
Put Your Business Name Here!
*Ye Old Sweet Shoppe—10%
*Blooming Wishes —10%
*Super Lube—15%
*Creative Card Acceptance—1/2 priced USB reader or $25 off USB signature pad
The Business of the Month for May is Skippers Restaurant It is located at 812 East First Street in Merrill.
Skippers Restaurant is owed by Rick Scott . They are open Monday thru
Thursday from 6:00 am to 3:00 pm; Friday from 6:00 am to 8:00 pm; Saturday 6:00 am to 3:00 pm; and Sunday from 7:30 am to 2:00 pm. Their telephone is 715‐536‐9914. And their website is [email protected]
Skippers Restaurant is a home grown Merrill business that has been serving up food to Merrill residents and visitors since 1937. The restaurant has been voted #1 breakfast in Merrill by their customers and has been fea‐tured in the first and second editions of Café Wisconsin.
Skippers Restaurant serves up home‐made food year round. Some of their customer’s favorites include slow roasted, thick sliced ham; corn beef hash made from scratch; but‐termilk pancakes; waffles and crepes.
Skippers Restaurant added an outside patio a few years that has proven to be very popular by their customers. And there’s no need to keep Fido in the car when dining on the patio,
*VIP On-line Member Discounts— to join email them at [email protected] for complete details on discounts.
*Northwood's Evergreen & Wire Co. —20%
*Ziesemer Photography - 15% on business portraits
*Off the Grid Technologies—they build your website & receive 1/yr Free web- hosting
*Lincoln & Timeline Windows—factory di-rect—10%
Just mention the Member-to-Member Club & start saving today!
Business of the Month Skippers Restaurant
What’s Up Wednesday?
Watch for your mini weekly newslet‐ter of upcoming events every Wednesday via email and on our Face Book page at Merrill Chamber.
THE ADVANTAGE
Coming in 2015
Social Media Series Peer to Peer Series Government Contracts Theft: How to Protect your Business 20/20 Vision Program If there are other educational programs that you would like the Chamber to bring to you, please contact us with your ideas. Send us your suggestions via email at [email protected] In the subject line type: Education Topic
S h o p
m _ r r I l l
Reminders
Mark Your Calendars The Chamber Golf Classic is right around the corner. The Golf Committee has already started meeting! Mark your calendar now for June 1. Registration forms will be out in early May. It’s coming up sooner than you think!
Merrill Music Fest a Cause A new event is coming to town on Aug. 15 at the MARC. There will be a 100 mile ride for antique cars 7 motorcycles, a car show & music from 1PM to 11PM, vendors, & games for the kids. A portion of the proceeds will go to this year’s cause—Diabetes Association. The Cause will change each year. Sponsored by the Merrill Chamber, WJJQ & Fabiano Brothers.
Congratulations to Church Mutual If you haven’t heard by now, Church Mutual is moving one of their departments to old Wal-mart building. They need the space & we need the strip mall full again. It will also be great for the area businesses to have a couple hundred extra people in the area!
“Positive Possibilities”
Thanks to our members, sponsors & nu-merous partnerships, the Chamber sup-ports dozens of community programs & is actively involved in many initiatives that you may not be aware of.
Look for this symbol to learn more about our history & our future & the community pro-grams we are involved in.
Requests for Merrill information only during the month of April:
Phone calls: 247
Emails: 152
Walk-ins: 158
Info mailed out: 215
Website Visits: 2415
Restock Center: 185
Taking Notes…..
Extra Nuts & Bolts
we are saving that for a dinner presentation in November. Table Talk will be “Being your Best” & will feature three speakers & Q&A. Our featured speakers are Tricia Lazare, win-ner of our Rising Star Community Services Excellence Award; Brenda Wendt, co-owner Blooming Wishes & winner of our 2014 Home Town Business of the Year Award; and Debbe Kinsey, CEO of the Chamber of Commerce. Three women, three different experiences, & three success stories. Mark your calendars now!
PAGE 5 THE ADVANTAGE VOLUME XXXV I I S SUE V
Chamber Chat….did you know?
High School Interviews are Back We will doing practice job inter-views with students at the high school on May 4. If you can give us an hour or two that would be great! It’s an wonderful experi-ence for both the students & YOU! Support our students & give them a real life experience.
Women of Distinction Is back with a twist! Join us on May 6 for our leadership luncheon—Table Talk. No awards,
Chamber
Discover Wisconsin We are doing another Discover Wisconsin episode on the Wis-consin River! Taping will begin this summer. They doing an entire series on the river throughout the state. What a wonderful & color history!
Law Day Program We are proud to be taking part in the Law Day program at PRMS in May. We have been invited to be their media mem-bers for the day.
City-wide Rummage Sale It’s that time of year for our spring rummage sale. It’s hard to believe that this is our 7th year already. So clean out your closets, attics, base-ments & garages & put up your Rummage Sale Sign on May 16. Get your address/sale listed in the Foto News, just contact them. The sale maps & listing come out the Wednesday prior to the sale.
Rotaract Club comes to Merrill No its not spelled wrong. Rotaract is a Ro-tary Club for young professionals ages 18-30. They are hosting a Young Profes-sionals’ Meet & Greet on May 19 at the Eagles Club at 6pm. RSVP to Nicole Johnson at [email protected] or 715-216-7500.
Promote your upcoming events
Do you have news that you would like to share with our
membership? Con-tact the Chamber at 715-536-9474 for information!
United Way Color Run/Walk As of this posting there are more than 700 participants signed up! The color run is a family fun event where the participants get ’colored’ at different stations with a corn starch type colored powder as they pass by. By the end of the event there should be some pretty rainbow participants! Awesome United Way!
705 North Center Avenue Merrill, Wisconsin 54452 TOLL FREE Phone: 877-907-2757
MERRILL AREA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE THE ADVANTAGE
prior to the sale.
May 16 Trail Blazing Walk & Bonfire Come walk the River Bend Trail and help with clean-up from 12-6pm. There will be a bonfire at the end of the day. Watch for more information.
May 25 –MEMORIAL DAY Chamber will be closed in observance of Memorial Day
May 25—Merrill City Band Memorial Day service at 11am with band playing at 10:30am at St. Francis Cemetery.
Check the Chamber Calendar 1st
For a complete listing of area events & activities check out the Chamber of Commerce website www.merrillchamber.org or the digital sign at the Chamber office for event info. Listen to us every Wednesday on WJJQ 92.5FM or the 2nd & 4th Friday on WJMT 730 AM.
May 2—United Way Color Run 10am starts at Riverside Athletic Club. Register on line at www.riversideathletic.com
May 6—Women of Distinction “Our Stories” The stories of three women will be told at this great lunch-eon at Les & Jim’s. Tricia Lazare, Brenda Wendt and Debbe Kinsey will share their life’s journeys at this inspira-tional event. Tickets are on sale at the Chamber and Blooming Wishes. For more info the Chamber at 715-536-9474.
May 10—HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY
May 9-10– Dorinda’s Dance Show An annual tradition on Mother’s Day weekend! Dorinda’s dance students always put on a fabulous dance show. Get your tickets now at Dorinda’s Studio or call 715-4411.
May 9 —Psychic Fair Stop at Rivers Edge for their spring psychic fair from 10am to 5pm. For more info call 715-536-2270.
May 11-Genevieve Davis Speaker Will share the story of her madam grandmother whose life intertwined with Chicagoland gangsters as recounted in her book “Secret Life, Secret Death” at the TB Scott Library from 6:30-8pm. For more info call 715-536-7191 or visit their website at www.tbscottlibrary.org
May 14—Business after Hours Join us for the last BaH before the summer break at Los Mezcales sponsored by The Wellness Center at Gress Chiropractic.
May 16—Community Wide Rummage Sale Time to clean out your attic, basement, closets and garage and take part in Merrill’s biggest sale of the season. To have your address listed in the Foto News and map contact them at 715-539-3720. Map comes out the Wednesday
Mark Your Calendar
Phone: 715-536-9474 Fax: 715-539-2043 Website: www.merrillchamber.org
Merrill Area Chamber of Commerce Mission Statement The Merrill Area Chamber of Commerce is directed by its membership to support the area’s businesses to grow, succeed and thrive Vision Statement To promote Merrill as a community to live, work and play for today Mailing Label
Executive Board Board Members Marty Heyne– Chairman Dan Frick Tonia Speener—Chair Elect Pat Hinner Randy Wixson—Vice Chair Nancy Kwiesielewicz Noel Bushor – Financial Officer Jim Medley Kurt Rust – Past Chairman Val Mindak Shelly Mondeik Craig Rezin Brian Richards Kurt Wendt Mayor Bill Bialecki Ex-Officio Dave Johnson—Ex-Officio
Staff Debbe Kinsey – Chief Executive Officer Cheryl Skoug – Programs Manager Autumn Doyle – Office Assistant
Comments, Questions & Concerns
PRESORTED STANDARD
US POSTAGE PAID
MERRILL WI PERMIT NO. 11
CHAMBER MEETINGS
Return Service Requested
Legislative – 5/11
Foundation— No Meeting
Ambassador Club – 5/19
Board of Directors— 5/20
Retail Promotions—TBA
Pork in the Park—5/8
The Merrill Area Chamber of Com-merce wants you to read about area businesses and other information that we feel is important to our members. If there are any topics you think we should cover, please let us know. Call the office (715-536-9474), fax us (715-539-2043) or stop in at our office (705 N. Center Ave).
Our individual emails are:
Debbe Kinsey—Chief Executive Officer
Cheryl Skoug—Program Manager
Autumn Doyle—Office Assistant
Website -
www.merrillchamber.org
Members…..working together since 1911
Come Enjoy Business after Hours and your Merrill Area Chamber of Commerce friends!!
May 14th at Los Mezcales Thank you to this month’s sponsor The Wellness Center at Gress Chiropractic for inviting us. This is a great chance to network with other Chamber business members, which you might not otherwise have the opportunity to see. Relax, unwind, and socialize with both old and new acquaintances. Members are invited to bring a friend, spouse or business associates. This is a Chamber mixer. At 6:00pm get ready for the raffles, and meeting The Wellness Center at Cress Chiropractic. Mark this date on your calendar!! No RSVP required -- just show up as soon as you are able after work.
IMPORTANT DETAILS!!
WHEN: Thursday, May 14th 5:00pm to 7:00pm (???) WHERE: Los Mezcales 3340 E. Main St. COST: $2.00 per person WHAT: Hors D’oeuvres Cash Bar
OPTIONAL: Bring your business cards to give to new acquaintances. Put a card & $1.00 into the 50/50 drawing. One lucky winner will go home with half the pot.
Special THANKS to
The Wellness Center at Gress Chiropractic For sponsoring this Business after Hours!! Questions?? 715-536-9474
Business after Hours Sponsored By:
