The Chamber
Frank White Jr.
Jackson County Executive, Frank White Jr., was the guest speaker at the February luncheon.
March 2017
Charter M embers
The Independence Chamber of Commerce is grateful to our Charter members for their ongoing support, which allows us to offer programs and events that help our city and members grow and prosper.
Thursday, May 11 12:00 pm - 6:00 pm Stoney Creek Hotel & Conference Center Independence, MO Featuring:
Speaker Sessions & Taste of Independence Business After Hours from 4:00 pm - 6:00 pm
Booth Price for members is $325 BEFORE March 15! Presenting Sponsor
Our Business is Business 210 West Truman Road Independence, MO 64050 816-252-4745 www.iChamber.biz
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The Chamber View
For booth space and sponsorship opportunities contact: Mikealene Evans mikealene@ichamber.biz 816.252.4745 - Ext. 4
Jodi Krantz Jkrantz@iNedc.biz 816.463.3512
Online registration now open! ichamber.biz/expo
March 2017
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March Calendar of Events 2
Ribbon Cutting
Monthly Membership Luncheon 24
March 2 Drumm Farm Fitness Center 4:00 - 5:30 pm 15400 E 34th St, Independence, MO 64055
This is a F
March 24 Guest Speaker: Mayor Eileen Weir 11:30 am - 1:00 pm Hilton Garden Inn, 19677 E. Jackson Drive, Independence, MO 64057
Join us for our March luncheon with guest speaker, Mayor of Independence, Eileen Weir, as she delivers the State of the City Address.
Come join the ribbon cutting party at Drumm Farm Fitness! Enjoy food, drinks and fun while checking out the new Fitness Center and Banquet Room. The Ribbon Cutting portion will be at 4:30 pm.
Monthly Legislative Briefing
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March 10 8:00 am - 9:15 am Independence Chamber of Commerce 210 W. Truman Road , Independence, MO 64050
• Heroism • Community Service • Bravery • Dedication • Sponsors
The Chamber View
March 28 3:30 pm - 4:30 pm Morgan Perry, Business Specialist at Mid Continent Public Library Independence Chamber of Commerce 210 W. Truman Road Independence, MO 64050
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Topic: How to talk to your best customers about why they buy from you.
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Ribbon Cutting March 30 Blair’s Foster Socks 4:30 pm - 5:30 pm Historic Independence Square 121 E. Lexington Street Independence, MO 64050
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Sponsor
The Monthly Legislative Briefing will be held at the Free Enterprise Center. The briefing is open to all Chamber members who are asked to register free of charge. This month’s briefing will focus on legislators updating us on issues at hand and an overall update on what is going on in Jefferson City. First Responders Recognition & Awards Breakfast March 15 7:30 am - 9:00 am Truman Memorial Building Honoring the Men and Women that protect our city every day. Annually, the Independence Chamber recognizes and gives thanks to our local first responders for the significant and highly valued contributions they provide to the businesses and citizens in the City of Independence. As part of this annual recognition, four awards are bestowed on behalf of the Independence business community to members of the local First Responder family:
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RIDAY!
Come join the ribbon cutting for Blair’s Foster Socks! Enjoy food, drink and fun! The official ribbon cutting will begin at 4:30 pm.
March 2017
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Jackson County Executive, Frank White Jr. was the guest speaker at the February luncheon. Frank shared the Jackson County 2016 Year in Review video of county accomplishments and spoke about the plans for improving for 2017. You can view the video on YouTube - https:// www.youtube.com/ watch?v=csxpQUvufGY
February Membership Luncheon Sponsor
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The Chamber View
March 2017
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To start the day off, representatives from the Fort Osage and Independence School Districts, as well as representatives from Graceland University spoke on recent challenges and successes in their fields of education. The group toured the Mid-Continent Public Library North Independence Branch to learn about public education programs through the library, including on-site and online opportunities. They also toured the Career & Technology Center at Fort Osage High School and enjoyed a delicious lunch prepared by the Culinary Arts students. From there the group visited the Independence Police Department where they learned how officers and firefighters are trained and about the education opportunities that are offered to members of the community. The LEAD members finished up the day with a tour of the new All Things Independence Store on the Square that is operated by high school students from the Independence School District.
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The Chamber View
Education Day
Business Before Hours
March 2017
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Ribbon Cutting
Cricket Wireless
March 15th, 2017 7:30 am - 9:00 am Truman Memorial Building 416 W. Maple Avenue, Independence, MO 64050 Join us in recognizing outstanding public safety members.
February 9 Independence Center Mall 18801 E. 39th St. S 135 Independence, MO 64057
Board of Directors News
At the February Independence Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors Meeting. The Board voted to support the city’s clean-up initiatives on 24 Highway.
Medical Imaging Eastland - TMC
Bentonville Trip – from Mayor Eileen Weir
February 23 1900 E. Eastland Center Court, Suite 100 Independence, MO 64055
The idea of a Leadership Exchange trip has been discussed by the Chamber, EDC and City for a number of years. The purpose is to visit a peer community that has demonstrated success in key areas that are important to Independence. Bentonville, Arkansas was chosen because of its proximity to Independence and its achievements in tourism, downtown redevelopment, education, and economic growth. The Leadership Exchange delegates brought valuable lessons home from Bentonville, and a renewed excitement and sense of cooperation for bringing Independence into the 21st century. Mayor Eileen Weir, City of Independence, MO // Eweir@indepmo.org
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The Chamber View
March 2017
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iMembership 101
A full class! Members from all business aspects attended the iMembership 101 on February 28th, and were eager to learn how to maximize their benefits through the Chamber. Each member that attended agreed that they walked away with extra knowledge about their membership.
Mark your calendars for our next iMembership 101 Class on April 25th!
Member News
Help us give a warm welcome to the new Tourism Manager – Kristi Eckfeld! Kristi, formerly the events coordinator at Stoney Creek Hotel & Conference Center was hired as the tourism manager in January. Here’s a quote from Kristi taken from the Independence Examiner – “It is humbling to be able to represent a city where the trails start and the buck ends.”
Also, Dr. Jason Snodgrass of the Fort Osage School District gave a presentation at the Chamber board meeting in February on the funding needs within the school district for items such as, construction of a new early childhood center, District stadium improvements, playground upgrades, safety and security improvements at the high school, roof replacement at various district facilities and replacement of District warehouse freezers for food services. Dr. Snodgrass spoke about the bond issue that will be put on the April 4th, 2017, ballot to support a no tax increase bond issue for facility enhancements and a 67-cent operating levy increase to offset losses in revenue. The Chamber Board of Directors unanimously approved to support and endorse the no tax increase bond issue and the 67-cent operating levy increase an endorsement for the school district. Fort Osage School District is hosting a Job Fair for over 400 juniors and graduating seniors enrolled in CTC programs on from Fort Osage on Friday, March 31 at the Fort Osage Career & Tech Center. There’ll be a morning session, 8:15 to 9:45, and an afternoon session, 12:15 to 1:45. About 200 students will cycle through each session. The students will be from Blue Springs, Blue Springs South, Fort Osage, Grain Valley and Oak Grove. They’re interested in full-time jobs for the graduating seniors as well as part-time, volunteer, and intern opportunities for juniors and seniors going to college. If you have interest or have any additional questions please feel free to contact Becky Conrad, Recruitment & Placement Coordinator with Fort Osage’s Career & Tech Center at rconrad@fortosage.net or 816-650-7251.
Members on TV
Member Nicole Medley made it on Fox 4 News this past month!
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The Chamber View
A Little BBQ Joint also made it on FOX 4!
March 2017
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New Members Anniversaries Hartsook Companies
866-630-8500 PO Box 410046 Kansas City, MO 64141
LDS Independence Missouri Visitors’ Center 816-836-3466 937 W Walnut St Independence, MO 64050
Nancy K Eppert 816-506-7900
McAlister’s Deli 816-804-3830 19130 East 39th Street South Unit K007 Independence, MO 64057
Zans Engineering, LLC 816-377-0505
GM Peters Agency, Inc. 816-220-7660 704 W Main St Blue Springs, MO 64015
1-4 Years
15-24 Years
Trudy Beard CPA PC
Carmel Hills Healthcare and
Matchstick Websites
Rehabilitation/Genesis
Zucca & Daughters & Sons Roofing Co., Inc Truckmovers.com Carhartt Independence Center Eleven:12 Communications Studio
Orbital ATK, Inc. Orbital ATK, Inc: Lake City Army Family Housing Orbital ATK, Inc: Lake City Business Center Celsius Tannery
FirstCall HomeCare Dickey’s Barbecue Pit Grace Church of Independence
25+ Years
GOAD COMPANY
Family Golf Park
Groves Community Hospice
United Consumers
Palmer Place Leasing Office
Credit Union Hawthorn Bank- 39th St
5-14 Years Kansas City Zoo Bayer Crop Science
Hawthorn Bank- White Oak K Martin Kuny Attorney Show-Me Presentation Resources
Vance & Associates, Inc.
Super 8 Independence
Cruise Planners
Independence Center
Central Communications
Republic Services of
Credit Union DeLuccie and O’Hara Law Offices L
Kansas City
Officers:
Dave Williams Past Chair of the Board Centerpoint Medical Center
The Chamber View
Jonathan Zerr Chair Elect Kapke & Willerth, LLC. Tom Weir Treasurer Blue Ridge Bank & Trust Co.
Board of Directors: Bob Glaser Summit Bank of Kansas City
Wes Cowan Space Center
Dr. Michael Banks Metropolitan Community College–Blue River
Julie Moreno The Examiner
Kim Deveney American Funding Solutions, LLC
Mike Sanders Humphrey, Farrington, & McClain, PC
Mary McNamara Cornell Roofing & Sheet Metal Co.
Steve Graffeo Community of Christ
Cindy McClain McClain Enterprises, Inc.
Jon Ellis Paradise Park Dr. Karen Cox
Doug Williams Morgan Stanley
Sonci Bleckinger Central Bank of the Midwest
Children’s Mercy Hospitals and Clinics
Beth Franklin Keller Williams Real Estate
Kent Holiday Alliant Techsystems, Inc.
Terri Steele Evans & Steele Financial, LLC
Lynette Wheeler Truman Medical Center Lakewood
Ron Finke Stewardship Capital
Ex Officio Members: Tom Lesnak Independence Council for Economic Development Zach Walker City of Independence
Chamber Team: Hap Graff, President & CEO hap@iChamber.biz, ext. 5 Trina Anderson, Director of Membership Services trina@iChamber.biz, ext. 1 Lois McDonald, Vice President of Community Development lois@iChamber.biz, ext. 2
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Tom Waters Chair of the Board Corporate CopyPrint
Dr. Jason Snodgrass Fort Osage School District
Dr. Dale Herl Independence School District
Dr. Jim Finley Blue Springs School District
Hap Graff Independence Chamber of Commerce
Steve Patton, Business Liaison to the Chamber steve@iChamber.biz, ext. 7
Mikealene Evans, Director of Marketing & Communications mikealene@iChamber.biz, ext. 4
Kris Zerr, Vice President & Director of Finance kris@iChamber.biz, ext. 3
Kelsey Edwards Academies of ISD Liaison kelsey@ichamber.biz, ext. 0
March 2017
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210 West Truman Road Independence, MO 64050
Leadership
Quote of the Month
Outstanding leaders go out of their way to boost the self-esteem of their personnel. If people believe in themselves, it’s amazing what they can accomplish. Sam Walton
Save the Date! 37th Annual Chamber Golf Classic June 16th, 2017 7:00 AM – 3:00 PM WinterStone Golf Course 17101 E. Kentucky Road Independence, MO 64058