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Monday, February 20, 2006

Bowling Green Chamber of Commerce events for this week.

RIBBON CUTTING - Tuesday, February 21 at 11:30 a.m. for Bluegrass Cellular. 555 Veterans Memorial Lane in the Oxford Shopping Center. Join us as we celebrate this Chamber Partner's Grand Opening!!!!

BUSINESS AFTER HOURS - Tuesday, February 21 at 4:30 p.m. at Barry Thompson's Allstate Insurance. 4846 Scottsville Road.

RIBBON CUTTING - Wednesday, February 22 at 11:30 a.m. for Verdi. 410 East Main Street. Join us as we celebrate this Chamber Partner's Grand Opening!!!!

COFFEE HOUR - Friday, February 24 at E.A. Diddle Arena on Western Kentucky University's campus. Sponsored by US Bank. Breakfast 7:00 a.m., Program 7:30 a.m.


Sunday, February 19, 2006

Set-uh-why-oh -- huh?

The Daily News has a new business writer, Ms. Ameerah Cetawayo introduced herself on February 14th and I truly enjoyed her writing, it was positive, witty, uplifting and very focused on the community.

She wrote:

"I'm a new face to Daily News readers. Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Ameerah Cetawayo, certainly not a name most can spell three times fast on the first try - pronounced "Uh-meer-uh Set-uh-why-oh.";

Pleasure to meet you. Don't be a stranger."

Article Bookmark - free for 14 days from date of publication

Having a little experience in the local business community myself, it’s my opinion that her job is not an easy one. I hope that she sees the benefit of getting involved. I would encourage her to attend all local business events, ribbon cuttings and other chamber gatherings. Get out there, get involved and meet people.

Bowling Green is a close nit community and the business climate here is friendly, open and exciting. Please don’t lock yourself in your office, come on out here and get to know us and through this experience you can be an involved member of the local business community. You will better serve yourself, your readers, the Daily News and the community all at the same time if you join us.

Ms. Cetawayo closed her initial public offering with:

So while I have plenty to learn, I look forward to showing Daily News readers all the new and exciting business activities in this area. If I miss something, be sure to let me know.

I'm sure you'll receive plenty of advice, some better than others, just keep that good spirit of enthusiasm and openness and I'm confident the warm people of southern Kentucky will embrace you enthusiastically.

Welcome Ameerah! I look forward to reading your articles, and seeing you out here in the trenches of our local business community… who knows, maybe I can even be of service some time.


Monday, February 13, 2006

Southern Kentucky is growing!

I hate to say I told you so... but I told you so!!! We, (Southern Kentucky SOKY) have a world class economic community. I'm proud to be a member of this community and member (two companies) of the Bowling Green Chamber of Commerce.

From the Park City Daily News

Bowling Green KY Chamber to build ?gateway'
Planned new headquarters billed as opportunity to put region's best foot forward
By RACHEL ADAMS, The Daily News, radams@bgdailynews.com/783-3256
Saturday, February 11, 2006 11:47 PM CST

Submitted The cover of a promotional booklet for the Bowling Green Area Chamber of Commerce’s capital campaign shows an artist’s rendering of the chamber’s planned new headquarters.

The Bowling Green Area Chamber of Commerce is on the fast track to constructing a new building that chamber partners hope will serve as a gateway to the city's historic downtown.

For the past three years, the Chamber of Commerce has been mulling a change, said Doug Gorman, building committee chairman. They finally decided to relocate from their current headquarters at 812 State St. to the corner of College Street and Seventh Avenue, where the Odd Fellows Lodge now stands.

Working with project manager Scott, Murphy and Daniel and Louisville-based architects Stengel-Hill, the campaign cabinet is “finalizing the layout of the building and also the outside look of the building,” Gorman said. “We are in the middle of our capital campaign and that is going very, very well. We have been embraced so far by the business community and our chamber partners.”

The two-story, 15,000 square-foot structure represents “the first major investment into downtown revitalization,” Gorman said. “We're proud of that. There's been a lot of talk about it for years, but the Bowling Green Area Chamber of Commerce is the first one to really buy into that and to move forward.”

It was announced at the chamber's annual dinner last month that $400,000 in donations from some of the 1,200 chamber business partners has already come in, said Tonya Matthews, vice president of chamber operations. The capital campaign goal, according to the chamber's campaign brochure, is $1.5 million - slightly less than half of the project's total price tag of $3.3 million.

The capital campaign was launched a few weeks ago, said campaign co-chairman Charlie Moore.

“We don't look at it as a contribution - it's not like the average charity,” Moore said. “This is an investment for every chamber partner; it's to bring more business to them.”

When potential business people come into Bowling Green, Moore said, “the first place they come is to the Chamber of Commerce. We certainly need to improve our image. The building there is not something that would catch your eye when you come into Bowling Green.”

The project's consultant is Jerry Bartels, former president of the Atlanta Chamber of Commerce, Moore said. Bartels has participated in dozens of capital campaigns, Moore said, and “he's very good. I'm sure it'll be very successful.”

Chamber partner Citizens First Bank recently contributed $100,000 to the campaign, said bank President and CEO Mary Cohron.

See the whole story at BGDailyNews.com


Tuesday, February 07, 2006

Lowest since.... WHEN?

Friday - February 3, 2006

Employers stepped up hiring in January, boosting payrolls by 193,000 and lowering the nation's unemployment rate to 4.7 percent, the lowest since July 2001. The fresh snapshot of the jobs climate, released by the Labor Department on Friday, suggested that the economy started the new year on fairly good footing. [More...]