chamber connection - Pekin Area Chamber of Commerce

CHAMBER connection
We promote the growth of the Pekin area through the collective efforts of our members.
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Established in 1893
October 2011
402 Court Street
Pekin IL 61554
Phone: (309) 346-2106
Fax: (309) 346- 2104
14th Annual Business
Website
www.pekinchamber.com
Email
info@pekinchamber.com
and Community
Recognition Luncheon
P.1
Ribbon Cuttings P.2
Upcoming Events
P.3, 4
Ribbon Cuttings Cont.,
Biz Barometer,
Business After Hours
P.5
14th Annual Business and Community
Recognition Luncheon
Chamber Members are cordially invited to the 14th Annual
Business and Community Recognition Luncheon on Thursday,
October 20th from 11:30 am to 1:00 pm at the Pekin Country Club.
The cost of the luncheon is $20 per person. Tables of 8 are $160.00.
Savant Capital Management is the Event Sponsor, Pekin Trophy
House and Engraved Gifts is the Awards Sponsor, Pekin
Hospital is the Dessert Sponsor, and the Greenhouse Flower
Shoppe is the Decoration Sponsor.
Chamber Challenge
Trivia Night P.6
Lunch and Learn P.7
Multi-Chamber Speed
Networking Exchange
Our keynote speaker will be Dr. Sara L. Rusch, the Regional Dean of the University
of Illinois College of Medicine at Peoria. As part of the nation’s largest public medical
school, the College of Medicine at Peoria offers a unique balance of classroom
education and clinical experience. Since their founding in 1970, their mission has
been to improve healthcare in the community by serving as a leader in education,
research and patient care. UICOMP, through their research and faculty recruitment,
is also a major part of our region’s economic engine.
P.8
Member
Announcements P.9
Membership
Renewals, Chamber
Board and
Chamber business and organizations with significant achievements in the past year
will be recognized at the luncheon. Categories of accomplishment include expansion
or remodeling, “green” projects or improvements, new business or building, additional
employees, major retraining effort, new technology or major equipment investment,
other business improvements and community involvement. If you have not yet
nominated your business or organization- there still is time. The due date is October
3rd. Contact the Chamber right away or download the nomination form at:
www.pekinchamber.com/2011/BACRL.pdf
Ambassadors P.10
To make your reservations, please call the Chamber at 346-2106 or email
info@pekinchamber.com. We had a near sell-out crowd the last two years, so please
reserve your seats by Friday, October 7th.
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Ribbon Cuttings!
Big R Ribbon Cutting
Visit our website @
www.pekinchamber.com
Use the drop down box for
Chamber Resources
Click the Calendar
Representatives from the Pekin Area Chamber of
Commerce and the City of Pekin officially welcomed
the Big R Store to Pekin with a ribbon cutting on
Friday, August 26th. The event marked the start of
Big R's Grand Opening celebration that lasted all
weekend. Representing Big R at the ribbon cutting
were Ed Ensminger, Jerry Gibbs, Jerald Sherman,
and store manager Mike Noren. The Big R is located
at 3315 Court Street. They are open Monday through
Saturday from 8:00am to 9:00pm and Sunday from
9:00am to 7:00pm.
Glass Specialty Ribbon Cutting
Glass Specialty was officially welcomed into
the Pekin Area Chamber of Commerce on
September 2nd with a ribbon cutting
ceremony. Chamber Ambassador Brittany
Dorf, Glass Specialty Technician Justin
Johnson, Chamber President Skip
Schermerhorn, and Chamber Treasurer
Aindrea Balagna watched as Mike Arnold,
Sales Manager for Glass Specialty cut the
ribbon. Glass Specialty is an auto glass
replacement and repair shop. Their services
also include rhino bed linings and ignition
interlocks. They can be reached at 800500-0500.
New Life Fellowship Ribbon Cutting
New Life Fellowship, 246 Derby Street, was welcomed
into the Pekin Area Chamber of Commerce with a ribbon
cutting ceremony on September 8th. Pastor Mark Utech
cut the ribbon and was assisted by family, friends, and
Chamber Board Member John Dennison. New Life
Fellowship is a church that promotes New Life to the
entire Pekin area. The ribbon cutting ceremony was in
front of their Tara Beeney Blessing Room at 252 Derby.
You can see more pictures from this and other
chamber events at
http://picasaweb.google.com/PekinChamber
Ribbon Cuttings continued on pg. 5
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Upcoming Events
Contact Us
402 Court Street
Pekin, Illinois 61554
Ph: (309)346-2106
Fax: (309) 346-2104
October 4 – Ambassador Meeting
October 5 – Member Promotions Meeting
October 5 – Cent Il. Healthcare Conf.
October 5 – Executive Board Meeting
October 6 – Pekin 1st Committee
October 6 – Business After Hours
October 11 – Member Services Committee
October 11 – Lunch ‘n Learn
October 12 – Transportation Committee Mtg
October 12 – Board of Directors Meeting
October 13 – Speed Networking
October 14 – Puttin on Pekin Breakfast
October 19 – Marigold Festival Committee
October 20 – Business Recognition Luncheon
October 25 – Business Advocacy Meeting
October 28 – Chamber Challenge Trivia Night
E-mail: info
@pekinchamber.com
Reservations
Appreciated
346-2106 or
email us at
info@pekincham
ber.com
Website: www.
pekinchamber.com
Blog:
http://pekinchamber.bl
ogspot.com
Marigold Blog:
http://marigoldfestival.
blogspot.com
Pekin Hospital
600 S. 13th Street
October 6th
October 14th
Scan to add the
Chamber to
your contacts!
Knights of Columbus Hall
715 N. 11th St., Pekin
6:45 – 8:00 am
Your Chamber Staff:
Bill Fleming,
Executive Director
Jamie Di Donato,
Events Manager
Diane Sego,
Receptionist
Brittney Beal,
\ Office Assistant
Additional features of the breakfast include:
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Presentation by Habitat for Humanity on their Pekin home project
Door prize drawings provided by local businesses
One minute reminders
“Meet the new Chamber Member”
Spotlight on Business presentation
Upcoming Events cont. on page 4
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Join us for
networking,
refreshments,
door prizes, and
more.
RSVP to 346-2106
or e-mail us at
info@pekinchamber.
com
The Relish Magazine
Cooking Show!
Pekin Daily Times and Avanti's Dome is sponsoring
The Relish Magazine Cooking Show. Come to this
great community event for delicious food and fun!
The event will be held on Thursday, October
13 at 7 p.m. at the Avanti's Dome, 3401
Griffin Avenue in Pekin. General admission
tickets are $6 and are on sale now at the Pekin
Daily Times, Monday through Friday 8 a.m. to
5 p.m. Doors open at 5 p.m. Come out early and
see exhibits from local merchants. Goody bags filled with items
from participating merchants and sponsors will be provided for all
attendees. Door prizes will be given away all night including a
$500 grand prize.
Central Illinois Healthcare Cost Containment
Conference for Employers – October 5th
Your healthcare costs are escalating and will continue to do so. Learn how
you can better manage those costs and the drivers that fuel them. As the
Affordable Care Act (ACA) unfolds, you are experiencing numerous
confusing changes in your health plans, the regulatory environment, and
how healthcare is provided. ACA has also raised uncertainty about an
employers continued ability to provide affordable health benefits and
promote the health of their employees.
Contact us to find out
how you can
advertise
As an employer, your choices, your budget, and your time are limited; and
as a consumer, you have concerns about quality, safety and efficiency. This
conference is designed to help you address these concerns and to give you
an opportunity to assess best practice programs and best-in-class partners.
Being proactive and empowering employees to be responsible for their own
healthcare is one of the most essential strategies to this approach.
The Central Illinois Healthcare Cost Containment Conference for Employers
will be held on Wednesday, October 5 from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. at the
Par-A-Dice Hotel and Casino, 21 Blackjack Blvd. in East Peoria. The cost
for attending is $159. Register online at www.ilchamber.org
your company here
and
on our blog.
Pekin Area Business Expo. 2011
January 14
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Artistic Flowers Moves to Court
Representatives from the Pekin
Street
Area Chamber of Commerce and
Mayor Laurie Barra assisted with a
ribbon cutting at Artistic Flowers on
September 13th. Owner Cathy
Homerin was celebrating the grand
opening of their new location at
1712 Court Street. Artistic Flowers
is a full service florist and gift shop.
They also offer memory beads and
dove releases. They can be
reached at 347-0022 or online at www.ArtisticFlowersOfPekin.com
Biz Barometer
Pekin’s unemployment rate increased each of the last three months
according to the Illinois Department of Employment Security. The number
of people working in Pekin decreased for the first time in six months.
While the recent employment trend is negative, these numbers are better
than a year ago. Pekin’s unemployment rate of 9.9% in August was two
full points lower than August of 2010. The number of persons employed
in Pekin in August was 16,339, which is 2.9% or 460 more than August of
2010. Tazewell County, the Peoria Metro area, and the State of Illinois all
reported similar trends.
Sales tax receipts continued to improve throughout Tazewell County.
Pekin’s sales tax receipts disbursed from the Illinois Department of
Revenue during the past 12 months were up 2.2% over the 12-month
rolling average from a year ago. Other are communities fared better, with
Morton posting a 7.6% increase and East Peoria and Washington each
gaining growing by 4.3%.
Business After Hours Held
Pekin Community Bank hosted the September
1st Business After Hours at their new branch
facility at 3512 Court Street. The refreshments
were prepared by Mashies at The Clubs at
Sunset Hills. As part of the festivities, a ribbon
cutting was held to officially open the new
branch. Mayor Laurie Barra, and representatives
from the Pekin Area Chamber of Commerce and
employees from Pekin Community Bank watch
as Gordon Honegger, Co-Chairman of the Board
of Directors of Hometown Community Bancorp,
cuts the ribbon. You can see more pictures from this event at
http://picasaweb.google.com/PekinChamber
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Membership Announcements
For all the details regarding these announcements, visit our blog @ http://pekinchamber.blogspot.com
Pekin Hospital is pleased to
announce that Tracey A. DeLucia,
M.D., Ph.D., recently joined its
medical staff and is now accepting
new patients. Her areas of interest
include treating children under 18
years of age. Her expertise is in the
care of limb deformity and limb
lengthening, club foot, infant hip
dislocation, and cerebral palsy. To
make an appointment with Dr.
DeLucia, please call (309) 353-4159
or visit www.pekinortho.com
Ameren Illinois ActOnEnergy®
program will over the next two
months be offering four FREE online training courses that you can
access from the comfort of your
desk. These training events are
designed to help businesses
become more knowledgeable
about energy efficiency. For more
information on all ActOnEnergy
training events, go to the
Education and Training page at
www.ActOnEnergy.com
Savant Capital Management is
excited to announce that it has again
been recognized by two of the
leading financial trade publications
as one of the top investment firms in
the country. Barron’s and Financial
Advisor have ranked Savant among
the leading wealth management
firms.
Pekin Hospital is pleased to
announce that Ahsan Usman,
M.D., is now providing
nephrology services at Pekin
Hospital. He will diagnose and
treat patients with kidney
diseases, kidney stones as well as
those requiring kidney
transplantation or dialysis therapy.
Dr. Usman is now accepting new
patients at Kidney HealthCare
located at 19 Olt Avenue in Pekin.
MPact is holding auditions on
October 8th at 1pm at Yesterday's
(corner of 4th & Court) for their
production of "A Christmas Carol."
It will be performed during
Christmas on Court on Friday,
December 9th in downtown Pekin.
Pekin Hospital is pleased to offer
an adult diabetes education
workshop on October 17, 18, and
19. The series of three classes will
be held from 2 – 5 p.m. in the 4
South Education Classroom at Pekin
Hospital.
The Speakeasy Art Center has
openings for art studio leasing.
These studios are considered some
of the nicest and most reasonably
priced in the downstate area. For
tours or information, call Nancy at
(309) 346-0507 or 253-4728.
The next First Tuesdays will be
held on Tuesday, October 4, from
5 to 7 pm at Olio and Vino
located at 4603 N. Prospect Rd.,
Peoria Heights. The Women’s
Fund of the Community
Foundation of Central Illinois
invites area women to a monthly
networking opportunity for
Peoria-area women. Catch the
spirit of Fall and celebrate the
spirit of giving by meeting other
dynamic women who are
passionate about empowering
women and girls in our
communities. Appetizers and
beverages will be served and door
prizes awarded. Donations will be
accepted to further the work of the
Women’s Fund.
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Pekin Hospital was named one of the
nation’s top performers on key quality
measures by The Joint Commission, the
leading accreditor of health care
organizations in America. Pekin
Hospital was recognized by The Joint
Commission based on data reported
about evidence-based clinical processes
that are shown to improve care for
certain conditions.
Tazewell County Genealogical &
Historical Society presents: The Ninth
Annual "Harvest Time for Genealogists"
Workshop - October 8, 2011 from
9AM to 3PM at our library, 719 N 11 th
St., Pekin. Join us again for a full day of
genealogy (including lunch). This year's
speaker is Carol Whitton, CG (Certified
Genealogist) from St. Louis, Missouri.
To register for the conference call
TCGHS at 477-3044 or visit the website
at www.tcghs.org
The Goodwill of Central Illinois
“Recycle Your Style” competition is
back! This 3rd annual event is a chance
for the high school in your community
to donate clothing items to help them
win a SMART Board, compliments of
Bradfield’s in Peoria.
The contest will be October 1st – 31st,
2011. Anyone who is a part of your
community is eligible to participate.
Please make sure that when they drop
off their donations at a Goodwill
location they inform the Goodwill
employee which school they are
representing. If you need any additional
information about “Recycle Your Style”
or Goodwill of Central Illinois, please
contact Jim Lynch at 309.573.5700 or
jlynch@goodwillpeo.org
Thank you to the following members who recently renewed their investment in the
Pekin Area Chamber of Commerce:
Ace Hardware ~ Body Wealth Massage ~ Concorde Inn & Suites ~ Cordts Heating & Air Conditioning
Covenant Heating & Air ~ Cranwill's Drive In ~ Deuce Development ~ Deverman Advertising
Home Health Care Plus ~ Hopedale Medical Complex ~ John M. Evans Supportive Living Community
Methodist at Pekin ~ National Rental ~ Pekin Main Street ~ Pepsi Cola ~ Personal Finance Company
Rescued Heart Animal Hospital ~ Salvation Army of Pekin ~ Sign Shop ~ SJB Promotions
South Side Bank and Trust ~ Speakeasy Art Center ~ Stropes Real Estate and Investments
Tazewell County Genealogical & Historical Society ~ UAW Highrise
Velde Cadillac Buick GMC ~ Zumwalt & Associates
Board of Directors
Ambassadors
President
Skip Schermerhorn, Herget Bank
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President Elect
Drew Leman, Leman Property Management
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Vice President
Tom Hornstein, Excalibur Seasoning Company
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Treasurer
Aindrea Balagna, Wolf Tesar & Company
Past President
Althea Geiser, B'Ribboned, Etc.
Board of Directors
 Kevin Andrews, Pekin Hospital
 Courtney Antonini, Tazewell County
 Denise Comerford, Sound Choice Hearing Clinic
 Daryl Dagit, Savant Capital Management
 Paula Davis, Pekin Community High School
District #303
 John Dennison, Ray Dennison Chevrolet
 John Franks III, Pekin-Peoria Yellow Checker
Cab
 Yancy Green, Riviera Tan
 Renna Hadsall, Busey Bank
 Greg Henderson, Henderson Funeral Home
 Neal Johnson, Ameren Illinois Utilities
 Scott Kriegsman, Elliff, Keyser, Oberle &
Dancey
 Brent Morgan, Timbercreek Rehab & Health
Care
 Paul Scherer, Heartland Bank
 Diane Steiner, Pekin Insurance
 Laurie Barra, Mayor, City of Pekin
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John Abel, Preston Hanley Funeral Homes
and Crematory
Beau Austin, Enviro-Dry
Amber Bernshausen, McDaniels Marketing
Communications
Daryl Dagit, Savant Capital Management
Amy Darling, Pekin Insurance
Brittany Dorf, Pekin Community Bank
Arlene Heine-Meyer, World Wide Travel
David Homerin, Advanced Media Partners
Cathy Lusch, Herget Bank
Rose Melz, Illinois Collections Unlimited
Stacey Mutchler, Harbor Light Hospice
Christie Perry, Pekin Hospital
Amanda Rogy, Amanda’s Closet
Les Rosiere, Jim Maloof Realtor
Paul Scherer, Heartland Bank
Bill Shock, Unland Companies
Diane Steiner, Pekin Insurance
Kim Tarpley, Morton Villa / Terrace
Robin Thomas, Chemtura Agrosolutions
Teresa Ann Tucker, Avon Independent
Representative
David Vaupel, Preston Hanley Funeral
Homes and Crematory
Milissa Welborn, Busey Bank