Impact of Non-Profits is Focus of Thursday's Breakfast Club
Chamber Ambassadors Undertaking Membership Recruitment Task
ACE Award Nominations Now Being Accepted
Survey Will Help to Assess Blair County's Health Needs
GRYP "Summer Bash" to be Held August 17th
Changed Your Buying Habits Yet?  Let Us Know!
Privilege Pages Provide Great Value at a Low Price
Chamber Seeking Fall Intern
Chamber Energy Program: Great Savings on Commercial Electric Rates
Congratulations...
Blue Card Discounts 

Impact of Non-Profits is Focus of Thursday's Breakfast Club
Attorney Jack Owen of the Pittsburgh law firm of Rhoades & Wodarczyk, a former board member of the Pennsylvania Association of Non-Profit Organizations (PANO) and past president of Pittsburgh Planned Giving Council, will be the keynote speaker at this Thursday's Chamber Breakfast Club. The Breakfast Club will focus on the impact that local non-profits have on the Blair County economy. Attorney Owen has considerable experience in working with non-profits. The Breakfast Club will begin at 7:45 a.m. at The Casino at Lakemont Park. The cost to attend is $16 for members and $30 for non-members. To register, contact The Chamber at 943-8151 or register online. Sponsor for the August Breakfast Club is The Village at Morrison’s Cove.

Chamber Ambassadors Undertaking Membership Recruitment Task
Despite the fact that the Blair County Chamber has been able to keep its membership numbers relatively steady during difficult economic times, the Chamber Ambassadors are helping to initiate a recruitment effort to bring even more businesses and organizations into the fold.  “The Buy Here. Live Here. program makes it even more important that all local businesses come onboard,” explained Janet Helsel of The EADS Group who chairs the Ambassadors.  “We’re hoping to identify the non-members who would seem to have a stake in what The Chamber is looking to accomplish for our area.  Sometimes people aren’t Chamber members because they’ve never been asked.  We intend to ask.”  Anyone interested in helping the Ambassadors to contact prospective members or to make application to become an Ambassador, contact Joe Hurd at 943-8151 or email him.

ACE Award Nominations Now Being Accepted
The Blair County Chamber of Commerce's Farm-City Committee is pleased to announce that nominations are now being accepted for the ACE (Agricultural Community Excellence) Award.  Nominations will be accepted until Friday, August 17, 2012.  Should you have any questions, please feel free to contact Stacy Hoover at The Chamber, 814-943-8151.  To access a Nomination Form, click here.

Survey Will Help to Assess Blair County's Health Needs
The Healthy Blair County Coalition is conducting a survey to find better ways to utilize assets that impact community health needs. Local employers are being asked to complete the Business Asset Survey which will help the Coalition to develop an intervention plan, an important component of the Affordable Care Act. The survey takes only a few minutes to complete. Individual responses will be kept confidential and the information generated will not be used to solicit your business or to encourage you to participate in projects or programs undertaken by any of the participating organizations. To access the survey, go to https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/6L5H37K. For more information, contact Coleen Heim at 944-0884, ext. 305.

GRYP "Summer Bash" to be Held August 17th
The 2012 GRYP Summer Bash will be held on Friday, August 17th from 6:00 to 10:00 p.m. at the Barneywood facility of NPC, located at 327 Tee Box Road in Duncansville. Any young professional looking to make meaningful connections in a fun, relaxed atmosphere should already have this evening marked on their calendar. The event will feature delicious food, free beverages, awesome door prizes, volleyball, horseshoes, golf, and much, much more. Live entertainment will be provided by Conner Gilbert. The cost to attend is just $10 for GRYP members and $15 for non-members.  To register, call The Chamber at 943-8151 or register online. Prior to this event, there will be a 9-hole golf tourney starting at 4pm. Please contact Jessica Meck for more details and to sign-up. This event is sponsored by S&T Bank, with additional sponsorship by Furrer Beverage Company.

Changed Your Buying Habits Yet?  Let Us Know!
Too often, recognition bypasses people who deserve it most. The Chamber is attempting to change that through its “Buy Here. Live Here.” program. “We’re encouraging people to change their buying habits,” remarked Randy Green of McCartney’s, who chairs the BHLH Steering Committee. “When they do, we want to point that out to others. And we want to thank the people who are showing consideration for the future of their community.” If you are one of those people or your business has taken steps toward local buying, call Joe Hurd at The Chamber today (943-8151) or email him.

Privilege Pages Provide Great Value at a Low Price
If you were able to send an 8 ½ by 11 inch marketing piece about your business or organization to more than 1,100 business people for only $125, would you? Well several smart Chamber Members have been using “Privilege Pages” for quite some time. These marketing pieces are inserted in the monthly issues of the Blair Business Mirror that are direct mailed to The Chamber’s membership list. They are an effective way to hit a target audience that is often hard to reach. If you want your business to gain a competitive edge, call Jessica Meck at The Chamber today at 943-8151 and reserve your Privilege Page.

Chamber Seeking Fall Intern
The Blair County Chamber of Commerce is seeking an intern for the Fall Semester. The intern should be majoring in Business Management, Marketing or Communications. The internship can be either for credit or personal enrichment. Interested students should contact Linda Stotler at 943-8151. 

Chamber Energy Program: Great Savings on Commercial Electric Rates
If your business is a member of the Blair County Chamber and you haven’t enrolled in a discount program for electricity, you’re already losing money. To remedy that situation, check out The Chamber’s commercial energy program through OnDemand Energy. The rates are great and the service is outstanding. Simply visit the website at http://www.ondemandenergy.com/ and see what you’ve been missing!

Congratulations...
. . . to Allison Felix, Director of the Science Outreach Center at Saint Francis University, who recently received the 2012 YWCA of Greater Johnstown Tribute to Women Award.  Felix is a member of The Chamber’s Regional BASICS Coalition.


Blue Card Discounts
Here are a few of the discounts you can receive with your Chamber Blue Card. Click here to see the full list of Blue Card Discounts. To have an offer listed contact Stacy Hoover at The Chamber at 943-8151.    

Sam's Club	Present your Chamber Blue Card to receive a $25 gift card when you join or renew as an Advantage Plus or Business Plus Member. Receive a $10 gift card when you join or renew as an Advantage or Busniess Member.
ServiceMaster Prof. Cleaning	Present your Blue Card to receive 10% off all commercial and residential cleaning services.
Smith Furniture - House of Fashion	Present your Chamber Blue Card to receive a 5% discount on your entire purchase. (Offer excludes sales tax or services.)
Steve Seltzer Powersports	Present your Blue Card to receive half off of your Pennsylvania State Inpection for your motorcycle or motor scooter. (Not off the sticker but the labor portion of your inspection.) OR receive 15 percent off regularly-priced parts and accessory items OR receive a FREE gas can with your purchase of a Honda lawn mower, snow blower, tiller, generator or trimmer. (A $25 to $40 value)
Stuckey Ford & Stuckey Subaru	Present your Chamber Blue Card to receive a FREE tire rotation ($14.95 value) with Oil and Filter Change at regular price. (Cars and Light Trucks only)