The Chamber Golf Outing was loads of fun. Not only was there great weather, but people had a great time, lots of prizes and good food. Even better was the company and contacts people were able to make that day.
Networking and meeting others outside the workplace is just another way the Chamber helps embers build their working relationships.
The Oconto Area Chamber and Oconto Falls Chamber will host a joint golf outing on Monday, July 30th, at River Island Golf Club. 2 p.m. shotgun start. Scramble format. Registration is $60 and includes 9 holes of golf, cart, prizes, refreshments on the course, and a chicken & Swiss steak dinner. Registration form is attached. Proceeds will help fund an Oconto and Oconto Falls joint billboard located on Hwy 41-141.
Good Afternoon Members:
The Oconto Falls Chamber Fun Fest is fast approaching and there are a few things that I think you would like to take advantage of regarding this event. Some of the things in the works are an Art Fair, Craft Fair, Children’s activities (bouncers, sidewalk art, face painting, youth football games), music by the band Diamond and Steel, various food tents, (Lions, Chili-Cookoff by OF Lionesses, Youth Football). Panther Pride is putting together a walk/run for the 8th of September, and of course the city wide rummage sales. We would also like to see participation from area businesses with sidewalk and store sales.
1.) We are looking for Sponsorships for various events throughout the weekend. Amounts in the past have varied from $50.00 to $1,000.00.
Please contact me if you have done this in the past or would like to start out with our new and improved Falls Fest!
2.) One new item this year would be to put together a sheet of coupons from area businesses to be handed out in the local paper with the rummage sale ads as well as handed out at Memorial Field. These coupons would not have to be good for just that weekend but perhaps other times as well to promote your business. If you are interested in this aspect of the Fun Fest please contact me as soon as possible. Space will be limited for these coupons.
I hope everyone has a great weekend.
Pam Lemorande
Oconto Falls Area Chamber of Commerce
The Panther Pride Run/Walk, formally the Hot Cake Hustle, is a 5K run or walk and a 10K run through Oconto Falls over the Falls Fun Fest weekend. We will be starting and finishing at Memorial Park, the heart of the Falls Fun Festival rain or shine. We will have refreshments during and after the race for the runners.
Saturday, September 8th, 2012
• Entrance fee is $20 prior to race and you can pre-register by filling out a form and mailing to the address provided.
• Register the day of the race from 6:30am-7:45am with a race start time of 8:00am. Fee day of race is $25.
• Pre-registrants may pick up their packets Friday night from 5-7 PM at Oconto Falls Elementary cafeteria. Saturday 6:30-7:45 at Memorial Field concession stand or the day of the race (September 8th) from 6:30am-7:45am.
• Awards will be given out for the overall male and female as well as 1st -3rd place in each age group.
• We will have emergency personnel around the course for anybody needing assistance. Pets on a leash are welcome to join in on the 5K portion of the race.
• Children in strollers or wagons are welcome to join in on the fun for the 5K portion of the race.
• Check back at the Panther Pride Website for race results.
• After the race enjoy the Falls Fun Fest activities.
• Stick around and listen to the band Diamond and Steel from 1:30pm-5:30pm.
We had a meeting at Community Memorial Hospital Last Thursday. It was well attended. We were introduced to Paul Ehrfurth , the new Oconto County Economic Development Director among others and many updates were given.
I believe the chamber continues to build momentum and encourage others to get involved.
Please stop over at https://www.facebook.com/OcontoFallsAreaChamber and just click the like button to support the social media effort of the chamber.
Here are the minutes for that meeting:
Minutes May 17, 2012
The regular membership meeting was held at the Community Memorial Hospital.
Introductions made by Pam Lemorande.
Minutes from April 26, 2012 filed as read
Financial Report filed for Audit.
Membership Report. Yes we had some non renewals but are picking up new ones. April Konitzer was contacted by a potential business owner wanting to get information on office sites. Where do we find this out? City once had a Downtown Development Plan. Paul Ehrfurth , the new Oconto County Economic Development Director hopes to have a county directory and we can make referrals to them. He would like to be contacted with any questions regarding potential business opportunities.
Showcase Events. Carrie Hill from Peshtigo Bank said that on May 30th, Peshtigo Bank will host a Showcase event in honor of their four year anniversary. Hospital (?) Golf Outing in June and Chamber Golf Outing in July. Carrie Takes care of posting events to the Chamber Calendar. If you have an event to post, email her at Carrie Hill chill@peshtigobank.com.
Memorial Day Celebration. A donation was made to the Fireworks Display.
Scholarships. Two scholarships were awarded on behalf of the Chamber at the Senior Scholarship evening by Carrie Hill. The winners are Alexa Hiller and Cody Nielsen.
Fun Fest. Dave Polashek is the chairman of the committee. A sheet was passed around for volunteers. June 4th is next meeting at School District office. Music is booked for the afternoon of Fun Fest. Art Show and competition will be held but may need sponsorships.
Beautification. Gail Yatso attended the last city council meeting. Gail would like to have flags going throughout Oconto Falls on Main Street, Highland Drive, Hwy 22 and across the river. The problem is not all poles are owned by Oconto Falls. But project is moving forward. Also, we need to start planning for the Hwy 22 reconstruction. If you have time, chamber members should attend city council meeting to make a presence.
Golf Outing. Joel Pionek and Shane Senn have ideas. Please sign up if interested in serving on the committee. Joel plans on ‘new stuff’ and ‘new twists’.
There were two guests at the Chamber meeting. Lisa Peitersen from United plumbing talked about the new location for the store. Business is doing very well. People commented on how they like the company. Lisa would like to see businesses support local schools more. Contact her if you would like to do something.
The Chamber welcomed Paul Ehrfurth and Nancy from the Oconto County Economic Development. Paul started two weeks ago as director. Their mission is to assist and expand the business climate in Oconto County and promote tourism. Nancy showed pictures of the 2011 billboard campaign that Oconto Falls participated in. The billboard was located east Hwy 172 by Bay Park Mall before crossing the river. They will also look into missing pages in the Oconto County Discovery Guide. In some copies, pages 43-50 are missing and these are the pages listing the Oconto Falls Directory. Chic Tabor Tousey (?) commented that we as a group need to get these guides out to surrounding areas. She challenged everyone to carry some in their cars.
Website Development. Bill Koehne spoke on the website encouraging all members to like the chamber on Facebook. It is a very easy and popular way to get the word out about activities and events. The website is running well. Based on the success of our website, Bill is bidding on the Antigo Chamber website development. He asked that people take pictures at events to post. Must get stuff to Carrie. He would like to see the Chamber start a newsletter.
Other Business. Bob Rodich is a member of the Senior Center Board. He reminded members that the official name of the center is the Oconto Falls Area Senior and Community Center. Originally, it was intended that a third of the center would be used for Youth programs. Room rentals are a revenue source for the center. There are two rooms and a commercial kitchen available for use. Capacity is about 120 people. Contact Bonnie Johnson to ask for rates and make reservations. Gail announced the Hometown Vet Clinic will host a Bark for Life Rely on June 23rd as a fundraiser for the American Cancer Society. Contact Hometown for more information.
If you haven’t checked out the March newsletter yet, make sure to do so.
You can get it online by clicking here.
This is a reminder of the Oconto Falls Area Chamber of Commerce Membership Meeting, this Thursday, February 16th at 12:00 noon at the Oconto Falls Community Library. Lunch will be served by the chef of the Oconto Falls School District.
We ask that you please e-mail your intentions to attend no later then Tuesday, so that we can accommodate everyone.
Hope to see you there.