Operation Our Town topic of Thursday’s Breakfast Club
For the third consecutive year, The Chamber will use its February Breakfast Club (set for this Thursday, Feb. 10 at 7:45 a.m. at The Casino at
Lakemont
Park
) to direct attention to the many accomplishments of the Operation Our Town program. "Our Town and the business community work hand-in-hand to address the problems that illegal drugs create in
Blair County,"
explained Chamber President Joe Hurd. "We're honored to play a role in moving that effort forward." Michael Fiore of the Operation Our Town Executive Board and Randy Feathers of the PA Attorney General’s Office will provide remarks at the Breakfast Club about the conquests of 2010. Feathers will then present several awards to members of
Blair County's
law enforcement team. The cost to attend the event is just $16 for Chamber Members and $30 for non-members. To register, contact The Chamber at 943-8151 or register online. Corporate
sponsor for the Breakfast Club is Harry K. Sickler Associates. 
Blair Business Mirror to be Published Tuesday
The February issue of the Blair Business Mirror will be an insert in tomorrow’s Altoona Mirror. The cover feature takes a close look at Appalachia Intermediate Unit 8, which helps local school districts to operate more effectively. Inside features include an update on a former graduate of The Chamber’s Leadership Blair County Youth
program and a testimonial from a
Blair
County
business whose outstanding safety program was the result of attending a Chamber educational seminar. If you don’t get the Altoona Mirror, your business or organization will still get a copy of the Blair Business Mirror mailed to you.
Blue Cards available for pick-up at Chamber Office
Any Chamber-Member Business that hasn't yet picked up its Blue Cards, can do so by stopping at The Chamber Office, located in the Devorris Center. These laminated membership cards are to be distributed to your employees along with a list of discounted offers that they can access for their own use. It's an employee benefit that you're providing by being a member of the Blair County Chamber. The
Chamber Office is open Monday thru Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Business Before Hours moved to this Tuesday
Due to incliment weather, The Chamber's first Business Before Hours event was postponed last week and will be held this Tuesday, Feb. 8. The event will be held at the new location of McIntyre’s Candies on Sixth Avenue in Altoona near Mansion Park. Stop-in anytime between 7:30 and 9:30 a.m. to see the attractive candy store décor, enjoy a light breakfast and get great discounts on candy items including
$2 off on McIntyre's famous chocolate-covered strawberries just in time for Valentine’s Day. (That discount is only for Business Before Hours attendees.) There is no cost for Members to attend Business Before Hours but registration is strongly encouraged. Cost for non-members is $10 and must be paid in advance. To register call The Chamber at 943-8151 or
register online.
Interested in Becoming a Chamber Ambassador?
The Chamber Ambassadors play a key role in The Chamber's ability to recruit, retain and recognize new members. The Ambassadors are restructuring and are looking to add new committee members. Interested? It’s a great opportunity to make valuable business connections while helping The Chamber meet its goals of serving the needs of the
Blair
County
business community. The Ambassadors meet next Tuesday (Feb. 15) at 8 a.m. at the
Devorris Center.
If you're unable to attend that meeting, contact Joe Hurd at 943-8151 and we’ll provide details on how to get involved.
Hotel Roundtable to explore b
etter ways
to promote attractions
Visitors to
Blair
County
who stay in any of the county's lodging properties often rely on those lodging properties to provide information on local attractions. What's the most effective way to disseminate that information? That's what The Chamber's Hotel/Motel/Lodging Property Roundtable will be discussing at its next meeting on Wednesday at 8:15 a.m. at the Hampton Inn. To provide input into this promotional
challenge, contact Joe Hurd at 943-8151.
Altoona Curve to
Host
Multi-County
Business After Hours
The
Blair
County
and
Bedford
county
chambers will visit the
Blair
County
Ball
Park
on Thursday for a joint Business After Hours. This is the second time that the Altoona Curve has hosted the two chambers during the past three years. The event begins at 5 p.m. and concludes at 7 p.m. The cost is just $5 for members in advance and $6 at the door. Non-members can attend for $10 in advance and $12 at the door. To register,
call The Chamber at 943-8151 or register online.
Informational meeting for Chamber Trip is next week
Since incliment weather forced the cancellation of last week's informational meeting on The Chamber's trip to China, the meeting has been rescheduled at a larger venue. The meeting will be held Feb. 17 from 5:30 to 7 p.m. at the Hollidaysburg Area Junior High School auditorium. Preregisteration is required and can be done by calling The Chamber at 943-8151 or online.
If you already registered for the previous meeting, registration is not required. There is no obligation or cost for attending the informational meeting.
Booths still available for Home & Garden Show
The Blair County Home & Garden Show will be held from March 4-6 at The Jaffa Shrine and there is limited booth space available on a first-come, first-served basis. Members of the Blair County Chamber and the Blair-Bedford Builders Association receive discounted rates on those booths. Contact Stacy Hoover at 943-8151 for booth or sponsorship information.
Additional Meetings Set for Chamber Energy Program
Still not convinced that the electric bill at your business will be taking a significant jump? By February 23rd you should have received your January bill for electricity and be wondering why you waited so long to address this inevitable situation. Is there anything you can do at this point to lower that rate, beyond launching some serious conservation measures? Of
course there is. The Chamber is offering two sessions on its Energy Program on February 23rd at 11:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. at the
Devorris
Center
. Come and find out how you can be guaranteed a lower rate on electric power, just by being a member of The Chamber. There is no cost or obligation to attend and pre-registration is not required. Just show up.
Promote Your Business With BAH Door Prizes
Looking for an inexpensive way to promote your business or organization? Why not offer a door prize at Business After Hours? Let people know that you're an active Chamber Member and get exposure in front of large groups of Chamber Members. There’s no cost to participate – just provide anything of value to Stacy Hoover at least two days before
each Business After Hours. Contact Stacy at 943-8151 if you’re interested.
InfoLaunch Program Helps Protect Businesses from Data Breaches
The Chamber's newest affinity program will help Chamber Members to be protected in the event of data breaches associated with their businesses. The InfoLaunch Breach Ready program is accepting customers and the cost to participate – only $700 annually – is less than one-third of the cost for non-members. "This is true peace-of-mind," related Chamber President Joe Hurd. "So
many of our businesses are vulnerable to breaches of data that they need some sort of protection. InfoLaunch is that protection." For further information, contact The Chamber at 943-8151.