ROBERTSON COUNTY CHAMBER OF COMMERCE ANNUAL REPORT

Transcription

1 ROBERTSON COUNTY CHAMBER OF COMMERCE ANNUAL REPORT 2018

2 Our Mission To provide an environment where business and residents grow in economic prosperity, enjoy a vibrant community and value the sense of place which makes Robertson County unique. Our Priorities Provide RESOURCES for business growth. PROMOTE our members and our community.. Make CONNECTIONS which encourage a Robertson County first environment. ADVOCATE for resources and opportunities which increase the prosperity of our community.

3 Message from Our Board Chair Dear Friends, What a wonderful time to be part of the Robertson County and to be a member of the Robertson County Chamber of Commerce! As we prepare for the new year, I'd like to take a moment to revisit our successes and accomplishments of our community and our chamber in the past year. Robertson County continues to grow. The momentum that carried us into the last year continues to build as our communities reap the rewards of new residents and businesses. Our unemployment rate is three percent, as new businesses and new employment opportunities expand in our county. As a Chamber, our membership is at an all-time high. We've sponsored several successful events, including Predators Watch Parties and Total Eclipse on the Square, to promote our community and continue to nurture and grow our sense of community spirit. In addition, we give many thanks to Frank Callis, our Board Chair and our Board of Directors for their dedication and leadership to the Robertson County Chamber of Commerce. We'd also like to thank our partners, The Robertson County Economic Development Board and The City of Springfield, for their continued support. We also express our gratitude to Margot Fosnes, for her many years of dedication and hard work, which has been instrumental in our Chamber growing into what it has become today. Finally, we are overwhelmed by the support of our members. We are fortunate to have such a remarkable membership who is willing to work with our staff and our Board. The year will bring many great things to our community, our county, and our chamber. We look forward to working with each of you as we continue to be "Minutes from Nashville, Miles for Ordinary". Christina M. Bartee, Batson Nolan Board Chair

4 CHAMBER EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE Christina Bartee Batson, Nolan Chair of Board of Directors Donnie Eden Prosperity Mortgage Vice Chair Jason Venczel Venczel Insurance Secretary Randy Davis NorthCrest Medical Center Treasurer Frank Callis Electrolux Past Chair Jordan Osborne Robertson County Chamber of Commerce Interim President WE RECOGNIZE THE FOLLOWING BOARD MEMBERS WHOSE TERMS ENDED IN 2018: Mark Borns, Springfield Glass Daniel Gupton, Gupton Motors Board of Directors Christina Bartee, Batson Nolan Frank Callis, Electrolux Albert Cartner, Community Bank & Trust Randy Davis, NorthCrest Medical Center Donnie Eden, Prosperity Mortgage Kris Fisher, Volunteer State Bank Dave Gould, Main Street Media Freda Herndon, Workforce Essentials Phil Houston, Dometic Jason Otts, Bath Fitter Springfield Laurie Riley, Hey Belle Boutique Dustin Thomas, Robertson County Funeral Home Michael Van Dyke, Robertson County Sheriff s Office Jason Venczel, Venczel Insurance James Wade, Airtech International Ex-Officio: C. Roger Blackwood, Chair, Robertson County Economic Development Board Mayor Howard Bradley, Robertson County Mayor Gina Holt City Manager, City of Springfield

5 I am excited to begin a new chapter serving as the interim President of the Robertson County Chamber of Commerce. I am grateful for the example and mentorship I have experienced over the past eight years working with Margot Fosnes. She has empowered and trained me for this role and has instilled in me her great love for this community. I am thankful to the board for this vote of confidence in me, to continue to lead the Chamber forward on a path of success. With the amazing staff that we have, I know that as a team we will move smoothly into the new year and we look forward to serving our members and our community. Jordan Osborne Interim President Carly Rager Events Director Denise Routzahn Office Manager

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7 2018 VOLUNTEER OF THE YEAR Dustin Thomas Robertson County Funeral Home 2018 BUSINESS OF THE YEAR Hey Belle Boutique

8 The Great American Eclipse 2017 brought a once in a lifetime opportunity for our Chamber to reach out across the world and invite visitors to experience Robertson County, the Great American Eclipse. The Court House Square in Springfield offered one of the longest periods of totality available and scientists, tourists and other eclipse enthusiasts were drawn to our community to the Total Eclipse on the Square. Over one hundred lunches were catered by local restaurants Burdett s Tea Shop, Historic Perk, Copper Vault and The Depot and walk in business at our restaurants and retailers was brisk! What began as a way to identify our staff and volunteers with event t- shirts turned into quite a fundraiser as our clock tower themed eclipse logo with the date and time of totality became the must have fashion item of the summer! Thousands of eclipse glasses were provided to our guests and sold around the county thanks to our sponsors, Airtech International, Bluegrass Realty, The Flooring Center of Springfield and Kiwanis of Springfield. All in all, it was a fantastic event that allowed our Chamber to shine in its role as the public relations department for Robertson County. When can we do it again? Despite being short staffed through the summer, our team jumped in and planned a great day of activities designed to provide a great viewing experience, promote our downtown businesses and restaurants and invite local residents and businesses to join in the festivities. In the week leading up to the event the Chamber office fielded over 2,000 calls from folks looking for information about visiting Robertson County and purchasing eclipse glasses. On August 21, we met people on our Square from Russia,Venezuela, Australia and all across the United States.

9 Job Shadowing 2018 As our education initiative, REdI grew into its own as a separate non-profit, our staff and board considered what role the Chamber should continue to play in the work-force development arena. Our relationships with our members and industries led us to commit to continuing to facilitate the Carol Sletto Job Shadowing Program, matching high school juniors with opportunities to shadow in a career that was of interest to them post-graduation. With unemployment rates in Robertson County hovering under 3%, a qualified workforce is a challenge for all of our businesses. We believe that providing programs which enhance the development of skilled and educated employees is an important role that the Chamber should play. Job shadowing benefits both our employers and our students. Employers get a golden opportunity to spend some time with a high school student in their formative period and potentially develop a future employee. Students have a chance to see first-hand what a day in their prospective career looks like and find out just what post-secondary education or training is required. Some of the students end the day with their plans reinforced, while others find that what they thought was a great career might not be what suits their talents and skills. On February 2, 2018, Ground Hog Day, 226 Robertson County high school juniors spent the better part of the day shadowing in a business in Robertson County or the region. More than 50 businesses participated in the day. Thanks to the perseverance and long hours of Jordan Osborne, every student was placed in the first choice for a shadowing opportunity.no small feat. The day could not have been possible without the partnership and cooperation of our Robertson County Schools administration and staff, our high school guidance counselors and principals, and the generosity of our business community in taking the time out their day to host these students. The feedback we received was overwhlemingly positive and lots of great ideas were shared to make next year s program even more successful.

10 Thank you to our Premium Membership Partners

11 STATEMENT OF CASH FLOW CHAMBER OPERATIONS April 1, 2017 March 31, 2018 Membership Income $110, Special Event Income 79, Program Income 4, Partnership Income (City of Springfield RCEDB- Grants) Premium Membership Benefits/ Digital Sign Income 90, , Other Income 7, Membership Expenses $15, Community Development Expenses 8, Special Event Expenses 58, Staff Expenses 116, Office/Operating Expenses 79, Digital Sign Expenses 38, PARTNERSHIPS/CONTRACTS April 1, 2017 March 31, 2018 RCEDB Contract $121, Realizing Robertson s Future Funding 19, Economic Development Contract Expenses $119, REDI Expenses (ended 6/30/17) 9, SEE Expenses (ended 6/30/17) 10, TOTAL INCOME TOTAL EXPENDITURES $474, $454,902.10

12 Connect With Us! @RobCoChamberTN