Celebrate With the Chamber As We Honor Our Home Front Heroes

Come celebrate the WWII era as our Chamber honors our Home Front Heroes at our annual Chamber Bash on Thursday, February 6, 2014, at the Manor in downtown Puyallup.  Our annual fundraising event will focus on local businesses of the 40's and feature tastings from local restaurants, wineries and distilleries.  We encourage all members to dress in your best 1940s themed attire and what better place to rent a military or 1940s outfit than at Chamber member, Northwest Costume, 253.383.4700.   Come and learn about how our communities have grown since the 40s and experience local cuisine as you mingle with local business owners and representatives.  It'll be a night to remember and a great way to support our Chamber activities.  See you there.

Rising Star Awards Breakfast Tuesday, January 14th, 2014

Don't forget to register for the annual Rising Star Awards Breakfast which will be held at the Pioneer Park Pavilion on Tuesday, January 14, 2014, 7:30am.  Bring a friend or co-worker and start your day off celebrating with our local businesses who are being recognized for excellence.  See you there!  

Nominees Receive Certificates at Group Health After Hours Reception

Chamber Board members, Ambassadors, staff and Group Health Cooperative representatives all gathered December 19th to honor 62 Chamber members nominated for our 2013 Rising Star awards.  In addition to our nominee announcements and general holiday well wishes, we also had the opportunity to hear Dr. Delgado from Group Health give an update on the growth of their new facility on So. Hill.  Celebrating with our members at Group Health during the holidays has become a great tradition and we look forward to seeing everyone at the January 14th Annual Rising Star Awards Breakfast.  Congratulations to all of our nominees and a big Chamber thank you to Group Health and all of our members who took the time to nominate well deserving individuals and businesses.  Happy Holidays from our Chamber staff and we look forward to seeing you in 2014.

Dillano's Tours a Big Hit with Chamber Members

Our Wake Ups at Dillano's on the first Thursday of every month is growing in popularity and our December 5th meeting included a tour of the plant with the ever popular green hair nets.  A big thank you to our monthly hosts at Dillanos for making waking up a fun place to be.

And the 2013 Award Nominees Are......

Our Chamber nominating committee has received 62 nominations for our 2013 Rising Star Awards.  A big thank you to our chamber members who submitted a record number of nominations this year and a hearty congratulations to all of our businesses and community leaders who were recognized and named as award nominees.

Business After Hours Award Nominee Reception:  

      Thurs. Dec. 19th, 5:30pm  Group Health, So Hill Campus

Annual Rising Star Awards Breakfast:

      Tues. Jan 14th, 7:30am  Pioneer Park Pavilion

See you at the Reception and the Breakfast!

John Porter Memorial
Dave Radcliffe, The Old Cannery Furniture Warehouse
Karissa Thompson, Heritage Bank
Mayor Dave Enslow, City of Sumner

Bridget O’Connor, Red Canoe Credit Union

Rob Lewis, Columbia Bank

Volunteer of the Year

Captain Scott Engle, City of Puyallup/Puyallup PD

Cheryl Mamiya, Hampton Inn & Suites

Mike Nelson, Retirement Planning Inc.
Officer Loren Houselog, City of Sumner/Sumner PD
Sherrie Duggan, City of Sumner/Sumner’s Toy Box
Rhonda Kirkes, Relay for Life

Volunteer Business of the Year

Act 1 Theatre Productions

Cascade Regional Blood Services

Dr. Cool, Dr. Heat Inc.

Holiday Inn Express Sumner

McLendon Hardware

Ambassador of the Year

Karissa Thompson, Heritage Bank

Laura Davis, Heritage Bank

Michele Suepke, LegalShield

Rob Lewis, Columbia Bank 

Small Business of the Year (1-10)

Epic Donuts

Goldenrod Jewelers

Grossland Branding Co.

Honey Baked Ham

Mt. Rainier Coffee Company

Parliament Distillery

Medium Business of the Year (11-50)

Bridge Property Management, The Hamptons

Diagnostic Imaging Northwest

Eterna Vein & Medical Aesthetics

Northwest Brewing Company

Salon Ish

Taco Del Mar

Large Business of the Year (51+)

BJ’s Restaurant and Brewhouse

Columbia Bank

Linden Grove Health Care Center

Mama Stortini’s

Puget Sound Energy

Sound Family Medicine

Young Professionals: Individual

Ashley Blair, Best Western Premier Plaza Hotel and Conference Center

Derek Barry, City of Sumner

Kyle Hardtke, Evergreen Ground Works

Scott Jones, Newland Communities

Traci Nelson, Best Western Premier Plaza Hotel and Conference Center

Young Professionals: Organizational

Columbia Bank

Dillanos Coffee Roasters

Green Mt. Coffee Roasters

Salon Ish

Non-Profit of the Year

Communities for Families – Sumner School District

Communities in Schools of Puyallup

Exodus Housing

Helping Hand House
Good Samaritan Hospital MultiCare Health System

Best Company to Work for

Columbia Bank

Dillanos Coffee Roasters
Good Samaritan Hospital MultiCare Health System

Heritage Bank

IKEA
Red Canoe Credit Union

Entrepreneur of the Year

Charla Neuman, Neuman Navigations

Gary Kemmer, STAC Inc.

Jarrett Tomal, Parliament Distillery

Kyle Hardtke, Evergreen Ground Works

Mike Brown, Dominos Pizza, Pizza Theatre

Business Innovations

Eterna Vein & Medical Aesthetics

Good Samaritan Hospital MultiCare Health System 

MOD Pizza

Newland Communities

Troutlodge Inc.

Washington State Fair

From One Mayor to Another

Sumner Mayor, Dave Enslow, bids a fond farewell to Puyallup Mayor, Rick Hansen, last week at a reception at Puyallup City Hall.  Mayor Hansen will be retiring from city government due to term limits on the council.  

A number of local community leaders, city staff, friends and family, attended to give their thanks to Mayor Hansen for his service to the community. Puyallup City Manager, Bill McDonald, Deputy Mayor, John Knutson, Police Chief, Brian Jeeter, Senator Bruce Dammeier and Representative Hans Zeiger, Col. Louis Ziesman, from 2nd Stryker Brigade at JBLM, Puyallup Public Works Director, Rob Andreotti, Central Pierce Fire & Rescue Chief, Keith Wright, and more came to speak and wish Mayor Hansen well.  Tuesday, December 10th, was his last council meeting as Mayor of Puyallup.  

On behalf of our Chamber, we also thank Mayor Hansen for his advocacy of our business community, attending our government affairs functions and many of our ribbon cuttings and business grand openings.  As a former President of our Chamber Board, and a business owner himself, we appreciated his relationship with our members and organization and wish him well in his future endeavors.

  

2015 U S Open - Pierce County Updates

The holiday season is a great time to talk about golf in Pierce County.  So hearing from our local USGA representative, Danny Sink, Pierce County Economic Development Director, Denise Dyer, and Brian Simpson from Chamber Bay Golf Course was a big hit for our December luncheon. 

There were lots of new and familiar Chamber faces who attended to hear about the current status of plans for the 2015 event and they had plenty of questions to ask as well.  Danny talked about Sound Transit's plans for a new stop right at the golf course, 2015 ticket sales and parking availability, sponsorship opportunities, volunteer sign ups, youth admissions, pre-event course closures, weather impact and more.  

Our Chamber will continue to work with Pierce County, the USGA and local tourism organizations in the coming year as we create and augment existing programs to make guests from all over the world feel welcome in Puyallup and Sumner.  Our Chamber will also be working with our business members interested in being sponsors to partner together for affordable alternatives.  If you are interested in more information, please contact our office.

The event is June 15-21, 2015, and that's only 548 days away for world wide media exposure for our region and Danny has agreed to come back again in December next year with event updates so be sure to watch for next year's December luncheon announcement.  

   

Bridge Lighting at the Cannery

Congratulations to the Old Cannery Furniture Warehouse for another great bridge lighting event and a big thank you to Columbia Bank and Sunset Chevrolet for co-sponsoring the fireworks show that wowed the crowd after the bridge was lit.  It was also great to hear the Sumner High School Choir singing Christmas carols with Santa and all the children who came to see him.  It's a wonderful Sumner tradition and one of our newest Chamber members who attended it for the first time said he felt like he was in Bedford Falls.  When you're standing there caroling with 4,000 of your closest friends, you realize it really is a Wonderful Life.

Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving from the Puyallup Sumner Chamber and Traci Nelson from the Best Western Premier Plaza Hotel.  We hope you have a happy holiday with your family and friends.

New Signs Around Town

If you haven't seen them yet, keep an eye out for the new Heritage Bank signs that are popping up all over downtown Puyallup.  The merge between Heritage Bank and downtown Valley Bank locations is complete and the new signs are evidence that Heritage Bank has an additional three banking locations in Puyallup's downtown core.  

Ambassadors Invade Charlie's Wine Tasting Event

Last week the Ambassador November Blue Invasion took place at Charlie's Restaurant where we all celebrated with lots of local wine tasting connoisseurs.  Though we've heard about the specialty event at our local restaurant, most of us had never participated.  We were "wined and dined" with a wonderful variety of wines and wine coctails paired with some fabulous tastings from Charlie's in house chef.  Needless to say, the food and adult beverages were great and my "Blue Companions" we as funny as ever.  Our Chamber Ambassadors would definitely recommend the wine tasting event at Charlie's and bringing your spouse.  It's a fun evening to learn new wines and menus, it's reasonably priced at $20pp and you can't beat Janice and Theresa's event hosting.  Tell 'em the Chamber sent you.

Emerald Ridge Pilot Program A Success

The Business Education Committee here at the Chamber has had a banner year in 2013 for successful programs and the new pilot program which was held at Emerald Ridge two weeks ago was evidence of all the hard work our committee has invested over the last 12 months.  Spearheaded by committee members, Patti McMullen and Tana Hassart, Insights from the Field was a hit with the AVID students at Emerald Ridge who are starting to think about which career field they are interested in and what education is necessary.  A big thank you to our chamber members who participated in the program and spoke about their training and job experience.  Salon Ish owner, Katelyn Corrado, spoke about her career journey as an entrepreneur, Captain Scott Engle from the Puyallup Police Dept. shared his education and career history, as did Sandy Maynard about her IT Director experience, Wil Johnson, as a KITE Teacher at PHS, Lise Musson regarding Science and her related career as a Boeing inspector, and Sandy Lewis who shared about the fast growing medical related fields.  The Chamber hopes to grow this program to include all high schools in the Puyallup and Sumner School Districts.  A big thank you to our Business Education committee members, Tana Hassart, Patti McMullen, and Sandy Maynard for all your efforts and expertise this year, and to our chamber members who participated and have a heart for our students and developing our local workforce.  It's economic development work at the grassroots level and much appreciated by our Chamber.

Operation Turkey Drop a Success

It's that time of year again when our Chamber partners with AUSA and lots of local businesses to deliver almost 400 frozen turkeys to our servicemen and women at Joint Base Lewis McChord.  This year I assisted two of my dedicated board members with deliveries to JBLM, Carlene Joseph, from Harborstone Credit Union and Dave Radcliffe from the Old Cannery Furniture Warehouse.  We picked up the Thanksgiving bounty at our local Walmart on So Hill at 0630 last Thursday morning and then headed south.  Though we made deliveries all over base, it was fun to connect with our local connector units, the 2nd Stryker Brigade for Puyallup and the 593rd for Sumner, as well as the 62nd Airlift Wing and 17 Fires.  Many thanks to our local AUSA Chapter for all their hard work in putting this project together.  It was very appreciated by the unit commanders and we heard over and over again how great they think our communities are.  Roger that from the Chamber, Col. Ziesman, and thank you for your service to our country.

Airmen Love Washington State

The Chamber hosted 20 airmen from Joint Base Lewis McChord, including our Guest Speaker, Col. Dave Harmon, Western Air Defense Vice Commander, at our monthly luncheon last Thursday.  The chamber members that attended really enjoyed Col. Harmon's  presentation about the mission and responsibility of the 62nd AW and the 446th AW at JBLM.  In addition, we all had a great time listening to each of the airmen describe what they liked best about Washington State.  Everything from the weather (believe it or not) to the Seahawks.  Just about every single one of the them advised that Washington was a great place to live, and that's music to our ears.  A big thank you to Col. Harmon and all of the attending airmen for making our November lunch so special, and especially for your service to our country.  Our communities really appreciate all that you do.  We also want to thank our sponsors, Linden Grove Health Care Center and  Eterna Vein and medical aesthetics.

Pierce County's Top Mega Transportation Project

For the first time, Pierce County has the top mega transportation project instead of King County.  And it's the result of our business communities' regional lobbying to complete SR 167.  

It's understandable that everyone is "issue weary" and pretty much sick and tired of hearing about SR 167, but this is the last push for the year on Pierce County's transportation project as legislators head back to Olympia.  Helping our state electeds get to "YES" by respectfully providing our voices and comments is the only way to success on this issue.

Investment in our state transportation infrastructure creates jobs, sustains existing jobs and keeps our region competitive in the global economy.  If you're wondering why our Chamber doggedly continues to advocate for this issue, look 25 years ahead for our region.  Is Washington State competitive and providing sustainable jobs for its citizens and residents, or have we fallen behind and become obsolete?

Your voice does matter!  Electeds specifically want to hear from local business.....and that's us!  Take 5 minutes, look below to determine who our Puyallup and Sumner legislators are, and pick up the phone and call them or email them.  

In Puyallup's 25th District, thank our legislators for supporting the transportation package.  Let them know that you, as a small business need transportation infrastructure and would like them to tell their colleagues that Washington businesses are relying on this.

In Sumner's 31st District, none of your representatives have expressed support for the transportation package.  Please let Senator Roach and Representatives Hurst and Dahlquist know that we need transportation infrastructure to keep businesses growing.  Tell them your own personal business story, if you have a product that needs to be delivered, etc. because the longer it is on the road, the more expensive it is to get somewhere.

And if you'd like some Extra Credit.......

Though we need everyone to make calls or send emails asking for a transportation package to complete SR 167, if you're comfortable talking about more specific issues like reforms you would like to see in this package, consider mentioning these examples:

• Putting sales tax from transportation projects back into the transportation fund instead of the operating fund so there is more money available for transportation;
• Streamlining permitting processes.  The Skagit River bridge incident was an example of how our State can respond to our transportation needs quickly, efficiently and less costly; and
• Increasing accountability to protect us from costly mistakes like the SR 520 pontoon debacle and the SR 16 off-ramp project that had to be rebuilt for a 12 ft realignment due to an engineering error. 

Make the call or send the email.......then let me know so we can publish your name as an investor in our future!

Your legislator contact information: 

25th Legislative District- Puyallup

Senator Bruce Dammeier

205 Irv Newhouse Building /  PO BOX 40425  Olympia, WA 98504-0425

Bruce.Dammeier@leg.wa.gov 

(360) 786-7648 

Representative Hans Zeiger

468 JLOB / PO BOX 40600 Olympia, WA 98504-0600

hans.zeiger@leg.wa.gov 

 (360) 786-7968 

 Representative Dawn Morrell

306 JLOB / PO BOX 40600 Olympia, WA 98504-0600

morrell.dawn@leg.wa.gov 

(360) 786-7948 

31st Legislative District - Sumner

 Senator Pam Roach 

112 Irv Newhouse Building /  PO BOX 40431 Olympia, WA 98504-0431

pam.roach@leg.wa.gov 

(360) 786-7660 

Representative Cathy Dahlquist

426 JLOB  /  PO BOX 40600 Olympia, WA 98504-0600

cathy.dahlquist@leg.wa.gov 

 (360) 786-7846 

 Representative Chris Hurst

335 JLOB /  PO BOX 40600 Olympia, WA 98504-0600

christopher.hurst@leg.wa.gov 

 (360) 786-7866 

THANK YOU FOR YOUR HELP!

Welcome Cathryn Lewis

If you've noticed a new face at our Chamber, that means you've met our newest member of the Chamber team and the head of our our member services here, Cathryn Lewis.  Cathryn comes to us with more than 15 years experience in the catering and food services industry heading up marketing and sales.  She understands business and has a passion for working with local companies to support their success.  Her common sense demeanor and experience with events and marketing is refreshing and a great addition to our hard working Chamber team.  Be sure and introduce yourself if you see her at one of our Chamber functions.  

Welcome Cathryn!

Waking Up at Dillanos!

I can't think of a better way to start the day than at a tasting room in a local coffee roasting plant like Dillanos.  And that's what our Chamber did this last Thursday morning even though it was pouring down rain and traffic was horrendous.  A big thank you to our member, Dillanos Coffee Roasters, who will be hosting our Wake Ups the first Thursday of every month.  This month our Sumner Wake Up featured our annual Fair Contest winner presentation by Washington State Fair Board Member, Dan McClung.  Next month's Sumner Wake Up at Dillanos will feature a tour of the coffee roasting facility, so be sure to put December 5th, 8am on your calendar and we'll see you in Sumner.

Helping Hand House Breakfast a Success

Once again Helping Hand House hosted a wonderfully heart warming annual breakfast to honor our local contributors who help make their program such a success.  Executive Director, Duke Paulson, welcomed all of the guests to the Pioneer Park Pavilion and shared many of their organization's success stories.  I am a big fan of this organization and their program to help our local families get back on their feet and provide education and training for sustaining their independence.  Helping Hand House is a wonderful resource for both the Puyallup and Sumner communities and another reason I truly believe these are two of the best cities in the country.  Kudos to Duke, his staff and his foundation board for all their efforts.  The results are meaningful and important to our communities.

Businesses Receive Awards for Fair Contest

Columbia Bank branches swept the winning categories at our Wake Up Awards Ceremony last Thursday at Dillano's Coffee Roasters for our best Washington State Fair decorations annual contest.  Fair Board Member, Dan McClung, presented the contest winners with their Award Certificate, Prize Ribbon, and a check between $150 and $75.  Here you see Columbia Bank's Rob Lewis, So. Hill Branch, and representatives from the Edgewood Milton and Graham branches as they stepped up to receive their prizes.  Some of the decorations were spectacular and represented many of the new attractions at the Fair this year like the Rainier Rush and Luminasia.  A big thank you to Dan McClung and the Washington State Fair for continuing this fun contest tradition at the Chamber.

Nominations for Rising Star Awards

It’s that time of year again to recognize our outstanding businesses and Chamber leaders in Puyallup and Sumner by nominating your favorite business or leader for our 2013 Rising Star Awards.

Please take the time to nominate chamber members you feel should be recognized and send us your completed nomination form by December 10^th.  We will publish the names of the nominees in the Chamber ePulse and present them with certificates at the annual Nominee Reception on December 19^th.  Award winners will be announced at our Annual Rising Star Awards Breakfast on January 9^th, 2014.

Click here for nomination form

Save the dates on your calendars:

Nominee Reception: 

December 19^th, 5:30pm, 

Group Health Cooperative, So Hill, Puyallup

Annual Awards Breakfast:  

January 9^th, 7:30am, 

Pioneer Park Pavilion, Puyallup

Transportation Call to Action

That's right.....the job is not finished and our Chamber is once again rallying our members for a final push to request a special session this November!

YOUR ACTION IS URGENTLY NEEDED!

The Governor and state Legislature are considering a special session, possibly at the end of November, to pass a transportation package.  This package, as it stands currently, is likely to include a significant number of projects that will benefit the South Sound region including:

Hwy 167 expansion and completion

Hwy 509 expansion to link with I-5 and Port of Seattle

I-405 interchange with Hwy 167

Tolled express (HOT) lanes from Renton to I-90

Completion of the Federal Way Triangle

Improvements on I-5 at JBLM

WE NEED YOU TO CALL OR EMAIL YOUR THREE LEGISLATORS THIS WEEK WITH THE FOLLOWING MESSAGES:

• Please support and work for inclusion of the projects (listed above) important to the South Sound region.  

• These projects could bring more than 100,000 jobs to the region by reducing traffic congestion, improving freight mobility and increasing the ability for our ports to be globally competitive – THIS BENEFITS THE ECONOMY OF THE ENTIRE STATE AND INCREASES OVERALL STATE REVENUES. 

• Support reform ideas which bring greater transparency to project costs, increase accountability, reduce overall costs for road projects and speed up the permitting process so projects can be done more efficiently and quickly to enhance the benefit to the state’s economy.

PLEASE SUPPORT THIS PACKAGE NOW RATHER THAN WAITING.  Many of our South Sound projects have been planned and studied for 30-50 years.  Our economy cannot afford to wait any longer.  The revenue investments will be worth the vote!

Find your legislator contact information below: 

25th Legislative District- Puyallup

Senator Bruce Dammeier

205 Irv Newhouse Building /  PO BOX 40425  Olympia, WA 98504-0425

Bruce.Dammeier@leg.wa.gov 

(360) 786-7648 

Representative Hans Zeiger

468 JLOB / PO BOX 40600 Olympia, WA 98504-0600

hans.zeiger@leg.wa.gov 

 (360) 786-7968 

 Representative Dawn Morrell

306 JLOB / PO BOX 40600 Olympia, WA 98504-0600

morrell.dawn@leg.wa.gov 

(360) 786-7948 

31st Legislative District - Sumner

 Senator Pam Roach 

112 Irv Newhouse Building /  PO BOX 40431 Olympia, WA 98504-0431

pam.roach@leg.wa.gov 

(360) 786-7660 

Representative Cathy Dahlquist

426 JLOB  /  PO BOX 40600 Olympia, WA 98504-0600

cathy.dahlquist@leg.wa.gov 

 (360) 786-7846 

 Representative Chris Hurst

335 JLOB /  PO BOX 40600 Olympia, WA 98504-0600

christopher.hurst@leg.wa.gov 

 (360) 786-7866 

THANK YOU FOR YOUR HELP!