Chamber Office closes at noon on Friday
The Blair County Chamber of Commerce Office will close at noon on Friday in recognition of the Good Friday religious observance. The office will re-open on Monday, April 18, at 8:30 a.m. 
Leadership Blair County Open House set for tomorrow
The Chamber’s Leadership Blair County program will hold an Open House tomorrow, April 19, from 5 to 6:30 p.m. at the Devorris Center for Business Development. Anyone interested in learning more about the LBC Adult program is welcome to attend. Several graduates of the program will be on hand to answer any questions. Stop-in and enjoy some snacks and
beverages. There is no cost to attend but registration is encouraged. Call The Chamber at 943-8151 or register online.
Green Drinks scheduled for Tuesday at Marzoni’s
The Chamber’s Coalition on Sustainability will hold its monthly Green Drinks on Tuesday beginning at 6:30 p.m. at Marzoni’s in Duncansville. The event provides an opportunity for anyone interested in discussing topics related to sustainability to do so in a relaxed, social environment with no hidden agendas. There is no cost to attend Green Drinks
and no obligation to pre-register – just show-up! For more information, contact Katrina Pope at 942-7472.
Grants, sponsorships on Foundation Board agenda
With the future of the Educational Improvement Tax Credit (EITC) program still in flux, the Board of Directors of the Blair County Chamber Foundation is leaving nothing to chance. The agenda for Wednesday’s Board meeting leans heavily to discussions about ways to pursue grants and sponsorships to maintain the viability of The Chamber’s Leadership Blair County Youth program. “The Board
is assuming that the EITC dollars will not be there,” explained Cindy Cessna, secretary-treasurer of the Foundation Board. “We need to be aggressive in identifying funding for LBC Youth and for the BASICS program so that we don’t miss a beat in furthering the effectiveness of what those things mean to our community and, in particular, to our young people.” Anyone interested in helping the cause should contact Cessna at
943-8151.
Chamber Board to consider key changes to recognition programs
When the Chamber’s Board of Directors meets Thursday morning at the Devorris Center, it will consider a number of recommendations from its Member Recognition Subcommittee that will likely impact future events. Key among those changes would be a proposal to change the format of the Annual Business Excellence Dinner beginning in 2012. The proposal would add a small business honoree to jointly
receive the prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award for Business Excellence. Changes to the Business Hall of Fame awards will also be discussed. For further information or to address the Board, contact Joe Hurd at 943-8151.
Thursday’s Lunch ’N’ Learn to focus on disaster preparedness
The Blair County Chamber’s next Lunch ’N’ Learn program, to be held this Thursday, April 21 from noon to 1:30 p.m. at Park Hills Country Club, will help businesses of all sizes to assess their ability to respond to a disaster or a major business disruption. Tom Kristofco of Business Continuity Concepts will present, “What is Your Tsunami?” Kristofco will stress the importance
of businesses having a business continuity plan in place, the responsibilities of a response effort and how to close the gaps when something unforeseen occurs. The cost to attend the Lunch ’N’ Learn is $22 for Chamber Members and $30 for non-members. To register, call The Chamber at 943-8151 or register online.
Chamber playing prominent role in movie premiere
The announcement last week that the City of Altoona would be hosting a movie premiere on April 27 at the Jaffa Shrine is no secret to The Chamber. The organization has been heavily involved with the planning of the event since it was first introduced several weeks ago. “Linda Stotler has done a tremendous job coordinating several phases of what will be happening during that evening and before,”
explained Chamber President Joe Hurd. “She’s worked closely with the Sheetz people as well as with representatives of the city, ABCD Corporation and the AMCVB. We’re really anticipating something special and we’re happy to play a part.”
Safety Committee plans tour of DelGrosso Foods
For more than 50 years DelGrosso Foods, Inc. has been manufacturing the family’s recipe of spaghetti sauce in Blair County. The company started with the homemade sauce that Fred and Murf DelGrosso prepared for their pasta dinners at DelGrosso Café in Altoona and now manufactures sauce in its 110,000-square-foot facility in Tipton. In its long history of success, the family–owned company has had an excellent track record for employee
and consumer safety. The Chamber’s Safety Committee has arranged to hold a presentation and tour at DelGrosso Foods for its April Safety Program. The program will begin at 10 a.m., April 29 at the facility with a presentation followed by the tour of the working facility. The tour will be limited to 30 attendees, and will be granted on a first-come, first-served basis. Following the tour attendees will meet at LaScalia’s Restaurant in Pinecroft
for lunch, which is included in the price of the program. The cost to attend the event is $22 for Chamber Members and $30 for non-members. To register for the Safety Tour of DelGrosso, call The Chamber at 943-8151 or register online.
GRYP Lunch ’N’ Learn will focus on attitudes
The Growth and Relationships of Young Professionals is offering everyone an attitude adjustment. GRYP's Lunch 'N' Learn program “Your Attitude is Showing” will be presented by John Moore of Moore Power Sales and will focus on increasing communications through understanding attitudes. Attendees will gain a better understanding of what energizes and motivates them and how to steer their way into top performance. Understanding others’
viewpoints and learning how to influence them by finding their motivators can help create more effective communication in the workplace. The program will be held at the Park Hills Country Club. GRYP and Chamber Members can attend the program for $22 while non-members may attend for $30. Chamber Member businesses that send three or more employees will receive admission for $17 per person. Resgister by calling the Chamber at 943-8151 or online.
Sam’s Club to host next Business Before Hours
The next Chamber Business Before Hours will be held Wednesday, May 4 from 7 to 9 a.m. at Sam’s Club in Altoona. The event is being held in May to correspond with “National Small Business Week,” which is a particular focus of Sam’s Club. Tours of the facility and refreshments are part of this Business Before Hours. Also, Chamber Members who
attend can get a $10 or $25 gift card if they renew their existing membership or start a new one. There is no cost for Chamber Members to attend and non-members can attend for $10. Register by calling The Chamber at 943-8151 or online.
Holland Brothers return as Golf Classic caterers
For the fifth consecutive year, the Highmark/Chamber Golf Classic will send golfers out onto the course with full stomachs. The pre-golf luncheon will once again feature a pig roast with all the fixins’ catered by Holland Brothers of Duncansville. "Great taste, great variety and a great way to
coat your stomach," was the way one Golf Committee member, who preferred to remain anonymous, described it. Sign-ups currently are taking place for the Golf Classic and it’s expected that the event will be completely sold-out by the beginning of May. Don’t delay. Call The Chamber Office at 943-8151 and get your name or your foursome’s names on the list.
A limited number of tee and green opportunities also are available.
Do you know a business that deserves Hall of Fame consideration?
The Chamber’s Business Hall of Fame Committee has opened nominations for the 2011 Blair County Business Hall of Fame and General Business Awards Program. The Hall of Fame Dinner will be held on Oct. 17 at the Blair County Convention Center. The committee asks that nominations be submitted as soon as possible so that nominees can submit completed applications by the June 9 deadline. Nomination forms are available online or
by calling The Chamber at 943-8151.
Farm-City Committee accepting new members
The Chamber’s Farm-City Committee works throughout the year to organize events and activities that promote agriculture. Another important part of its mission is to educate individuals on the importance of Blair County’s business and agricultural communities working together towards a common goal. There currently are a few seats available on this committee. Committee
Members may represent both the agriculture and business community. Meetings are one hour in length and are held one day each month from April thru November. The organizational meeting for the 2011 events will be held on Friday, April 29 at noon at Hoss’s in Duncansville. If you would like to serve on this committee, or see what the committee is all about please contact Stacy
Hoover at 943-8151.
Energy Expo seeking exhibitors, attendees
The Chamber is partnering with the Altoona-Blair County Development Corporation and the Southern Alleghenies Planning & Development Corporation to sponsor an Energy Expo on May 4 from 8 a.m. to noon at the Blair County Convention Center. Businesses interested in being exhibitors at the Expo can do so at only $150 by contacting Matt Fox at 944-6113. There is no cost to attend the Expo. Register
to attend by calling Janice Streightiff at 949-6523.
Airport survey hoping to attract additional carriers
The Blair County Chamber, together with 14 other chambers or economic development organizations and Penn State University, is working with the University Park Airport to identify additional air services within the service area of UPA. By completing a brief survey, you will provide useful information concerning perceptions of additional air transportation needs in relation to your business or industry. Individual
responses will be kept confidential and only group data will be reported. The air service needs identified by this survey will be presented to air service providers, together with available incentives, to establish a strong business case for providing unmet demands for air service. The survey only takes a few minutes to complete. Click
here to access the survey.
“Issues” program on transportation continues this week
With transportation such a major issue in Pennsylvania's future, how does
Blair
County
stack-up in terms of infrastructure, public transit, air travel and other modes of moving people around? That question is the focus of the Chamber “Issues” program that will air for the next several weeks on the Altoona Public Access Channel. The program will run every Monday at 11 a.m. and every Tuesday at 9 p.m. Panelists for the program, titled, “Moving People Around: Blair County’s
Transportation Challenges," are: Patrick Miller of Altoona-Blair County Development Corporation, Chuck Pillar of Altoona-Blair County Airport, Tom Prestash of PennDOT District 9, Jamie Van Buren of New Enterprise Stone & Lime Company and Eric Wolf of AMTRAN. Carolyn Donaldson of WTAJ-TV moderates the show. Sponsors for the program are:
Altoona
Blair County Development Corporation, AMTRAN, Keller Engineers, P. Joseph Lehman, Inc., Skills of Central PA, The EADS Group, GAI Consultants and Ward Transport & Logistics.
Congratulations . . .
. . . to 611 MRI-CT of Altoona which was recently awarded a 3-year term of accreditation in magnetic resonance imaging as the result of a recent review by the American College of Radiology.