2nd Annual Salute to the Troops

The Old Cannery Furniture Warehouse was bustling with activity early Saturday morning as our local Chapter of AUSA got to work preparing for their annual event to honor our local military service men and women.  Lots of vendors and raffle prizes, balloon art and face painting, not to mention local daffodil royalty were visible during the event.  Local families and children could see military strykers and other equipment up close and learn from our troops how the equipment is currently used during deployment.  Special thanks to all our chamber members who participated and supported the event.  

 

Military Tradition Revived in Tacoma

It was a great weekend honoring the military for our Chamber and the cities of Puyallup and Sumner.  The Daffodil Festival revived the once popular military parade in Tacoma and both of our cities were represented on Saturday evening downtown on Pacific Avenue.  Puyallup Councilman, Steve Vermillion, and Puyallup Police Office, Greg Massey, both accomplished military veterans, participated in the parade, as did Sumner's Mayor Dave Enslow and his wife, Bertie Enslow, also both veterans.  Following behind in a Corvair convertible was Jerry Yoder who chauffeured Sumner Councilman, Ed Hanus, and former Sumner Mayor, Leroy Goff, who were also military veterans.  The parade was a heart warming tribute to our local service men and women.

Mixing Work and Play in Monterey

The world seems to get smaller as I get older.  I took two vacation days last week to visit a friend in Monterey. And because I have a "thing" about visitor information centers, I made sure to stop by a few while I was in California and see how they promote their communities.  I visited one in Monterey and one in Carmel and low and behold while I was there I ran into one of my peers, CEO of the Carmel by the Sea Chamber of Commerce, Monta Potter.  Monta and I have attended conferences together so it was great to see her organization in action.  Her mother lives here in Washington so I've invited her to stop by on her next trip here.  I also had an opportunity to meet Kelly Violini, CEO of the Monterey County Fair, while I was in California.  When I asked her if she knew Kent Hojem, CEO of the Washington State Fair, she said "Oh yeah, he's the President of our Western Fairs Association, I definitely know who he is".  Like I said, it's a small world but I get a kick out of these chance meetings and conversations.  And I always invite them to come visit Puyallup and Sumner.  

Heck of a Good Cup of Coffee

Congressman Denny Heck knows a good thing when he hears about it, even though he knows I have a habit of bragging out our local Chamber businesses.  But I'm not the only one who talks about the impressive growth of the Green Mt. Coffee Roasters manufacturing plant in the Sumner industrial district.  So this week after sharing a cup of Tully's French Roast, John Rader, Director of Operations for Green Mt Coffee Roasters and the Chamber Chairman of the Board, hosted Congressman Heck and Sumner's Mayor Enslow on a roasting tour of the plant explaining the organization's growth over the past three plus years, as well as the scope of work conducted at the plant.  One of the most impressive statistics was an increase of jobs from the original 65 to the current 368.  And of course no discussion about business impacts in the valley would be complete without mentioning SR-167.  A big thank you to Congressman Heck for his continued advocacy regarding SR-167 transportation issues, local businesses and employers.  And another Chamber thank you to John Rader and Mayor Enslow for participation in our advocacy efforts to promote a business environment that supports living wage jobs in our communities.

Mama Stortini's Goes Blue

The Ambassadors sported their "Blue" at Mama Stortini's for this month's restaurant Blue Review.  At least once a month our Ambassadors are getting together after work to experience the culinary delights of our member restaurants.  Rob Lewis, Chair of the Ambassadors, schedules the after hours gatherings at 5pm sharp, where the members in Blue order a variety of menu items to sample and share.  They are always on the lookout for local highlights like salmon, farm fresh fruits and vegetables, and wine and ales.  The goal of the Blue Invasions at our local eateries is threefold:  1)  Encourage member to member patronage and word of mouth promotion of fellow chamber members;  2)  Let our members know there are strategic benefits to being a chamber member; and 3)  Utilize the positive comments and reviews in our upcoming marketing materials for Puyallup and Sumner promotions.  The two most asked questions at our visitor centers by drop ins, phone calls and emails are "Do you have a map" and "Where's a good place to eat?"  A big Chamber thank you to our Ambassadors for their dedication and participation in our organization.  Their enthusiasm, welcoming smiles and word of mouth promotions are an integral part of our success.

Leadership Institute Interviews Slated for August 26th

We're receiving lots of inquiries this week about our 2013-2014 Leadership Institute program which will start in October.  We've partnered with even more great presenters this year to help facilitate the class curriculum and that makes for some great class discussions and networking.  If you're interested in finding out more about our program and if it could benefit your organization, contact the Chamber office.

Ambassadors See Green at Tournament

Once again the Puyallup Sumner Chamber sponsored the Beer cart for Sumner's Golf For Life tournament at Sumner Meadows.  So while Lana and I drove the cart, four of our ambassadors and members played to represent the Chamber.  A big thank you to Rob, Troy, Karissa and Bridget, for participating and to our partner in the sponsorship, Northwest Brewing Company.  Everyone loved the Three Skulls Pale Ale.

Chamber Continues to Partner with County

It's always a good idea to document events, meetings and accomplishments with photographs so I have a habit of taking lots of photos with the intent of using them as visual aids when sharing with members about something I attended if I think the knowledge will benefit their company or organization.  

When I went to the U.S. Open in June and took over 300 photos, I decided to print up a couple of books utilizing more than 100 of my photos to tell a specific story about everything from transportation, to security, to volunteers, to catering and more, in order to help my board and members better visualize the experience.  In this photo with County Executive, Pat McCarthy, I'm giving her one of my books in appreciation for allowing me to be part of the 2013 advance team to Merion.  We will be sharing more of this information with our members in the coming months so watch for modern information in our ePulse. 

Puyallup Council Candidate Forum a Success

A great turnout today for our Puyallup City Council Candidate Forum which was held at the Best Western Premier Plaza on So. Hill.  The Forum featured two candidates from each district race.  District 1: Corry Glucoft, John Hopkins; District 2: Steve Hastings, Heather Shadko; District 3:  Julie Door, Chris McNutt.  The Chamber hosts candidate forums to provide opportunities for our local candidates to speak to issues that affect the City of Puyallup and our business community.  Today's questions focused on topics like B&O tax, utility rate increases, Sound Transit parking, various zoning and economic development topics and the candidate responses provided our members with information about current city issues.  A big thank you to Pierce County Council Chair, Joyce McDonald, for moderating the forum, and to Chamber Board member, Dan McReynolds, Principal at Parametrix, our emcee for today's luncheon.

We also want to thank Occasions Catering and the Best Western for doing their usual great job of providing a welcoming atmosphere for our candidates and guests.  And it's worth mentioning  that Traci Nelson, Best Western's sales VP, outdid herself with an entertaining spoof on the Price Is Right showcasing the hotel.  Seriously, Traci, we all voted it was your best presentation ever!

AUSA Hosts Reception for Col. Zeisman

AUSA held a Welcome Reception at the Hampton Inn & Suites this Monday for Col. Louis A. Zeisman, the new commander of Puyallup's connector unit, the 2nd Stryker Brigade.  Col. Zeisman, his wife, Missy, and their two sons have just recently moved to Pierce County as he assumes his role as the new commander of the unit at JBLM.  Col. Zeisman is a native of Fayetteville, N.C. and a graduate of Pembroke State University.

Col. Zeisman’s most recent assignment was as the operations officer for Combined Joint Task Force 82, ISAF Regional Command - South Headquarters, Afghanistan. Col. Zeisman deployed three times in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and twice in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. 

At the reception to welcome Col. Zeisman was Sen. Bruce Dammeier, Rep. Hans Zeiger, Pierce County Councilman Doug Richards, Puyallup City Council members, Tom Swanson and John Knutsen, and Central Pierce Fire Chief, Keith Wright. 

Sumner Rotary Pie Booth A La Mode

Sumner Rotarians showed up en masse to once again serve their famous Rhubarb Pie at the Sumner Fine Arts Festival.  Strawberry Rhubarb seemed to be a favorite with visitors, especially if it included a la mode.  I worked the Saturday shift and with the sunny weather that showed up for the weekend, the booth was hopping busy.

  

Chamber member, Berryland Cafe, was also serving up slices of Rhubarb Pie.

SDA Burger Booth Tradition Continues

I was back for my 6th annual volunteer burger booth shift last Friday at the Sumner Fine Arts Festival.  Hosted by the Sumner Downtown Association, there was lots of grilling going on in their burger booth as well. Super chef, Ryan Windish, and his trusty assistants helped serve festival goers quite a few tasty burgers.  It was great to see so many Sumner residents in the downtown core.  Even the Herald's ace reporter, Andrew Fickes, ordered one!

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Rhubarb Pie for the 593rd

As you can see, the 593rd Sustainment Brigade, Sumner's military connector unit from JBLM, cracked up when Mayor Enslow and Carmen Palmer presented Col. Douglas McBride and CSM Eric Taylor their very own Rhubarb Pies Thursday at their golf tournament dinner at Sumner Meadows.  The 593rd has been strategic about their Sumner community connections.  The dinner speakers included comments about the recent Great American Picnic where the 593rd prevailed in the majority of sporting contests against the Puyallup connector unit, the 2nd Stryker Brigade, comments from those who attended the Music Man at the PAC last week, as well as the golf tournament at the Sumner course.  Col. McBride and CSM Taylor, who will be leaving the 593rd unit for new assignments this month, thanked the Mayor and our Chamber for greeting their plane returning from Afghanistan to JBLM at 3:00am several months ago.  Our community support is important to our military families and they stressed their appreciation of our Chamber, the City of Sumner and AUSA, so it was great to have Eric Kantor and Cheryl Mamiya at the dinner as well.  God speed to Col. McBride and CSM Taylor as they travel to their new assignments.  We thank you for your support of our Sumner community.
  

Military Procurement Speaker Shares Valuable Information

The Chamber hosted guest speaker, Tom Westerlund, from the Procurement Technical Assistance Center, to speak at our August Mornings with the Military event last week.  Tom spoke about the process of signing up for government contracting assistance for local businesses, small medium and large.  He also shared about how to procure valuable contracts for our local businesses.  Tom will be back to speak at our October 24th 0800 meeting at the Old Cannery Furniture Warehouse with new information about methods of government contracting, various types and requirements, so make sure you put it on your calendar.

 

Good Guys Event Attendance Exceeds Expectations

 It was a banner weekend at the Washington State Fairgrounds last Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday as approximately 30,000 visitors attended the annual Good Guys Car Show.  Our Chamber hosted a booth at the registration area and greeted the car owners who came from all over the United States and Canada to show their cars.  Local hotels were sold out and we distributed boxes and boxes of restaurant guides as well as our community directories to folks looking for recommendations of good local places to eat, places to shop and interesting places to visit.  Our Chamber thanks all our business members who support these publications by purchasing advertising or discount coupons.

 

Mario sees Blue at the Firestone Grand Opening

The Chamber Ambassadors were out en masse and doing their usual great job of representing the Puyallup Sumner Chamber of Commerce last Friday at the grand opening of the Firestone new Sunrise location.  It was our first celebrity event and we were really impressed with how sincere and friendly Mario Andretti was with the crowd of people who attended and came to see him.  I had no idea how many Indy 500 fans we had in Pierce County, but they all showed up to say hi, get an autograph and get their photo taken with Mario.  We learned that he really is a fan of Firestone products and that his "day" car now is a corvette.  I forgot to ask what color it is.  A big blue Chamber thanks to Firestone for including our Chamber in their opening celebration.  We wish you much success in your new location and appreciate your support of our business community.