October Chamber Connection

connection

Letter from the Chairman

It’s hard to believe that Fall is officially here. The air is getting crisper, and all the fun fall activities are just around the corner.

In September, the Chamber held its inaugural Pearls of Women ladies luncheon at One Roof Event Space. Attendees enjoyed networking, a delicious lunch, and an inspiring talk from Dr. Martha Sales.

October is Targeted Business Appreciation month, and this month the Chamber will be honoring the targeted businesses in our community at the annual Targeted Business Awards on October 12. Get your tickets here.

Next month the Chamber will be honoring Judge Mike Buchanon with a Night of Tribute at SKyPAC on Novmeber 10. Grab your tickets and get all gussied up for this special formal event!

Hope to see you soon!

John Dix 2022 Chairman

PEARLS

WISDOM

LEADERSHIP BG RETREAT

DO LUNCH

LifeWorks at WKU

A Bridge to Independence for Autistic Young Adults

Chances are you know, or know of, someone diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Currently, 1 in 44 children is diagnosed with autism – a lifelong neurological/developmental disorder of variable severity characterized by difficulty in social interaction and communication.

As autistic individuals transition to adulthood, programs like LifeWorks at WKU serve as a crucial bridge to a life of independence.

Located in Bowling Green, LifeWorks is a nonprofit 501(c)3, two-year postsecondary certificate program designed to prepare autistic young adults and those with other learning differences for a successful transition to work and independent living. Our person-centered approach empowers autistic individuals to develop crucial skills in the areas of career-readiness, self-reliance, and social interaction.

LifeWorks was created as a continuation of the lifespan of services provided by the Suzanne Vitale Clinical Education Complex (CEC) at Western Kentucky University and offers two distinct learning pathways through the LifeWorks Transition Academy and LifeWorks Bridge Program. Additionally, LifeWorks is a Community Rehabilitation Provider for the Kentucky Office of Vocational Rehabilitation (OVR) providing PreVocational Services and Supported Employment.

Individuals on the autism spectrum have the potential to work and live independently if provided the proper skills and support. LifeWorks provides the instruction and practice necessary to equip autistic adults with the tools to obtain gainful employment and succeed in living on their own without requiring lifelong public financial assistance. LifeWorks is one of only a few transition programs for autistic young adults across the country – and the only one of its kind in Kentucky.

As an independent non-profit, LifeWorks operates on financial support from public-private partnerships and wishes to gratefully acknowledge the support of Summit Title Company, LLC for sponsoring LifeWorks to host the November 4th Chamber Coffee Hour.

To learn more, visit www.lifeworksatwku.org

October Coffee Hour

THE SPEAKER

DOUG GORMAN

Doug Gorman currently represents citizens as the First District Magistrate on Warren County Fiscal Court. He was elected to his first term in November 2014 and began serving as Magistrate on January 1, 2015.

Gorman’s career in the private sector included owning and operating Booth Fire & Safety for over two decades. During his ownership he quadrupled operations, created local jobs, and was named the Chamber’s Small Businessperson of the Year in 2000.

He was a board member of the Bowling Green Area Chamber of Commerce for 10 years and served as Chairman in 2008. Also in 2008, Gorman joined the inaugural Warren County Downtown Economic Development Authority (TIF) board. He later became Chairman and oversaw more than $350 million of capital investment in downtown Bowling Green.

Gorman currently serves on the Board of Directors for LifeWorks @ WKU, a non-profit transition-to-work and independent living program for autistic young adults.

GREEN

RELEASES

TESTING

IN

Bowling Green, Ky., Sept. 29, 2022 – Element Materials Technology (Element), a global leader in testing, inspection, and certification (TIC) services, celebrated the grand opening of its transportation laboratory in Bowling Green, Kentucky Thursday. This 16,000 sq. ft. testing facility allows Element to serve the General Motors Corvette Assembly Plant, an over $5M investment that created 16 new jobs in the community.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE

Upcoming Monthly Networking Events

OCTOBER 19 | 4:30 - 6:00 PM

Ramen Bar

College Street

OCTOBER 20 | 4:30 - 6:30 PM

1101 College Street Sponsored by: ELPO Law

NOVEMBER 1 | 12-1 PM

Sonny’s BBQ 145 Three Springs Rd. Sponsored by: Graves Gilbert Clinic

NOVEMBER 4 | 7-8:30 AM

Knicely Conference Center 2355 Nashville Road Sponsored by: Lifeworks at WKU

NOVEMBER 14 | 4:30-6:30 PM FRIENDSGIVING

BG Area Chamber of Commerce

College Street

View all events here

Thank you to those (ladies) who attended the inaugural Pearls of Wisdom Ladies Luncheon on September 21st hosted at One Roof Event Space in downtown Bowling Green.

Over 100 south central Kentucky business professional women turned out for this first-ever event.

SEE MORE

THIS EVENT? CLICK HERE!

This event was created to provide a space for the business professional women in our community to continue to come together to learn, grow, and develop both personal and professional skills.

The Chamber extends a special thanks to this year’s sponsors.

• Little Blue Box Sponsor: Goodall Homes, Signature Healthcare of Bowling Green

• Mother of Pearl Sponsor: Gordon Ford College of Business

• Daughter of Pearl: Barbara Stewart Interiors

Dr. Martha Sales

Dean of Students and Assistant Vice President of Student Life at Western Kentucky University

The primary objective of the leadership retreat is to bond as a class through trust activities that require cooperation and dependence on one another for success. All class members conquered something outside of their comfort zone through team support. They also applied lessons to their professional and personal lives. It was a great way to start the class year!

Thank you to the day chairs for leading such a great retreat: Kelly Arnold with Gemini Homes, Danielle Brown with Franklin Bank & Trust Company, Amy Combs with WKU PBS, Travis Keller with Independence Bank, and Katie Tabor with Foreman Watson Land Title. Also a big thank you to the 2023 Chair, Chad Webb with CrowdSouth, and the Co-Chair, Jessica Carver with Western Kentucky University for coaching and cheering on the

Thank you to all the other sponsors of Retreat 1:

Foreman Watson Land Title, Franklin Bank & Trust, Gemini Homes, Houchens IGA, Independence Bank, Warren County Public Schools, and WKU

Presenting Sponsor 7 Habits Sponsor

Class of 2023 — Retreat 1

Building upon The Leader In Me and LEAD, SCK LAUNCH Student Ambassadors program focuses on the application of the principles of leadership. This program is a leadership opportunity for students who are dedicated to serving and representing their high schools. The program is supported by the Bowling Green Area Chamber Foundation.

Nearly 95 students--representative of the student population including age, gender, race, culture, ethnicity from our area high schools--were selected by their schools through an application process. School faculty advisors, facilitate and guide the teams. The Chamber provides corporate-level leadership training through the FranklinCovey organization. The Student Ambassador’s mission is to make a significant impact in their school community.

The teams of all six high schools kicked off their year together, hearing from a former Student Ambassador and current Western Kentucky University student, Dalton Ground, and engaged with FranklinCovey trainer, Gary McGuey.

BOWLING GREEN HIGH SCHOOL

GEO INTERNATIONAL HIGH SCHOOL

GREENWOOD HIGH SCHOOL

*DATES/TIMES ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE

WHAT GREAT LEADERS HAVE IN COMMON

Tuesday, October 11, 2022

Program is designed for all who are motivated to better lead self, a team, or an organization. The workshop is grounded in decades of research of the world’s most admired leaders.

SEALING THE DEAL: MASTERING NEGOTIATION TECHNIQUES

Tuesday, October 18, 2022

How strong are your negotiation skills?

Being a solid negotiator can help you make successful deals, build healthy relationships, solve problems, and minimize stress. You owe it to yourself to build your negotiation skills, not only in the workplace, but in everyday situations as well.

DEVELOPING STRENGTHSBASED TEAMS

Tuesday, October 25, 2022

The training is designed to help participants excel by recognizing and developing their unique talents and strengths. By tapping into this source of wisdom and power participants will be more efficient, act with more confidence, direction, and be more productive.

INTERMEDIATE EXCEL

Thursday, October 13, 2022

This intermediate Excel course will introduce you to charting features and database management in Microsoft Excel. You will design worksheets that meet Excel criteria for database functions such as sorting and filtering.

ADVANCED EXCEL I

Thursday, October 20, 2022

See just how much Excel can do! In this course, you will work on creating action queries and macros, linking to and grouping worksheets to create a workspace in excel, using pivot tables and charts, integrating Excel into Word and PowerPoint and more!

ADVANCED EXCEL II

Thursday, October 27, 2022

Once you have learned some of Excel’s many features, it’s time to apply them in Excel Applications! Excel Applications is a comprehensive problem solving approach that incorporates Excel into real work applications.

Welcome

NEW PARTNERS!

Allen Family Dental

Dentists & Orthodontists

Bluegrass Massage Institute Education

Bowling Green Football Club Recreation

Brighten Dental Dentists & Orthodontists

Brown & Brown Insurance Insurance

Bruster’s Ice Cream Restaurants

Cheernastics & Party Place Recreation

The Cove - Flaherty & Collins Apartments

Dublins Pub Night Clubs/Bars

Genesis HealthCare Hopkins Center Nonprofit Organizations

Glean Kentucky Nonprofit Organizations

The Groovy Gus Donut Bus Food Trucks

Horizon PACE

Assisted Living & Retirement Fa cilities

Jenkins Farms Partnership Farm Services

The Kid SpOt Center, LLC Healthcare Services

LobbyFox Computer Technology

Mark S. Allen, DMD Oral Surgeons

Merdzic Transportation Services, Inc. Transportation/Trucking

O’Reid Insurance, LLC Insurance

Precision ADAS Calibration Auto Repair/Services

ProConcepts LLC

Automation Design

Recyclops

Recycling Centers

ResourceMFG Employment/Staffing Agencies

Select Property Management Property Management

SoKy Fire Protection, LLC Fire & Safety Equipment

Staffworx LLC Employment/Staffing Agencies

T-Mobile Telecommunications

Tracey Holland, REALTOR Real Estate-Residential

Wise Staffing Group

Employment/Staffing Agencies

your business's name on these TV and radio stations:

Milestone Partners

Chamber

PEARLS OF WISDOM

Thank you for Renewing!

AARP Kentucky

All Creatures Animal Hospital

Alliance Corporation

Arcadia Senior Living Bowling Green

Arts of Southern Kentucky

Atalla Plastic Surgery

Audubon Area Community Services

Aviation Heritage Park

BADA/HENNESSY

Barren County Business Supply, Inc.

Barren River Area Child Advocacy Center

Barren River Area Safe Space, Inc.

BC Roosters

Ben Smith Life Compass Financial, Inc.

Benmark Properties, Inc.

Berkshire Hathaway Home Services

Partners Realty

Berry & McGehee Law Firm, PLLC

BG Internal Medicine & Pediatric Associates

Bguniforms

Big Country Powersports

Bowling Green Independent School District

Bowling Green Tent Rental

Bowling Green Warehousing

Bowling Green Warren County Jaycees

Bowling Green Winlectric Company

Bud Greenup Real Estate & Auction Company

Burger & Bowl

CDS #10 Pharmacy, LLC

Chandler Park Assisted Living

Chandler Real Estate, Inc.

Chestnut Title, LLC

Chick-fil-A

Chick-fil-A at Campbell Lane

City County Planning Commission of Warren County

Clinic Pharmacy

Cook Property Management, LLC

Country Oven Bakery

Crouch Family Chiropractic

CrowdSouth

CRS Construction, Inc.

D & M Electric, Inc.

DDS ENGINEERING, PLLC

Design Builders, Inc.

Division Nine Finishes, Inc.

Doctor’s Diet Program of BG

Eezy.com

Embellish Home

Evergreen Life Services

Family Enrichment Center

Fisher Contracting

Ford’s Furniture Company

Foreman Watson Holtrey, LLP

Forever Communications, Inc.

Freddy’s Frozen Custard & Steakburgers

Friends of the Lost River, Inc. Gerald Printing

Ginger Cleary State Farm Insurance Greenwood Refrigeration, Inc. H + W Dukes Sports Hale Roofing, LLC

Hall’s Parking Lot Sweeping & Maintenance Hill’s Pet Nutrition, Inc. Hilltop Pallet & Supply LLC Hitcents.com

Holston Gases, Inc. Home2 Suites by Hilton Homeworks HOTEL INC

Housing Authority of Bowling Green Hunt Farms iGo Motors

Iron Bridge Sod Farms, LLC

JR Wade State Farm Insurance

KENMOLD North America

Kentucky Science Center

KYCORE, LLC Lawless Orthodontics

Lee Myles AutoCare + TRANSMISSIONS

LifeSkills, Inc.

MAC’S Restaurant Equipment Massey Springs Senior Living Med Center Health Meijer

Merrick Printing Company

MidSouth Lumber & Supply, Inc. Monticello Banking Company-Cave Mill

Mr. Rooter of Bowling Green Murphy, Napier & Company

National Corvette Museum & Motorsports Park

NCTC - North Central Norton Children’s Hospital Oak Tree Awards & Recognition ORI, Inc.

Owlbus Financial Coaching Services, LLC Panera Bread

PJ Murphy Forest Products Corporation

Plumbers Supply Company

Precision Strip, Inc.

Professional Tax Service

Ramada

Reference Services, Inc.

Rexel

Reynolds Sealing & Striping, Inc.

Rich Pond Market & Deli

Rick DuBose

Rubber & Gasket Company of America

Saylors Golf Carts, Inc.

Sheldon’s Express Pharmacy at Buckhead Square

Sheldon’s Express Pharmacy at South Glen Gables

Signature Signs & Ad Specialties

Southern Kentucky Financial Services

Southern Kentucky Rehabilitation Hospital

Stockdale’s America’s Rural Outfitter Stupp Bridge Company

Super Home Surplus

TAZ Trucking, Inc.

The Barkmore

The Center for Courageous Kids

The Law Firm of Flora Templeton Stuart

The Unity Refugee Center

The US Small Business Administration (SBA)

The Wheeldon Company, LLC

Tony Walker Financial

Topper Donuts dba Dunkin’ Donuts

Trinity Full Gospel Baptist Church

Vid Monster Productions

Village Manor/Christian Health Center

VIP Bowling Green

Vision Builders, LLC

Wal-Mart #299

Wal-Mart #5236

Warren County Jailer Stephen Harmon

Wehr Constructors, Inc.

Weichert Realtors-The Hunt Group Westen Dental Group

Woosley Brothers Painting Co., Inc.

Wrought Iron Concepts

EMPLOYERS, GET CONNECTED TO STUDENTS AT WKU!

JOBS HANDSHAKE

A t W K U , w e u t i l i z e H a n d s h a k e a m o d e r n p l a t f o r m f o r c o l l e g e r e c r u i t i n g R e a c h s t u d e n t s u t i l i z i n g t h i s m o b i l e f r i e n d l y p l a t f o r m f o r r e c r u i t i n g ! I f y o u d o n o t h a v e a H a n d s h a k e a c c o u n t , y o u c a n c r e a t e o n e h e r e W a n t m o r e i n f o r m a t i o n ? V i s i t H a n d s h a k e ' s E m p l o y e r S i t e h e r e

GET SEEN EMPLOYER SPOTLIGHTS

T h e W K U A d v i s i n g a n d C a r e e r D e v e l o p m e n t C e n t e r ( A C D C ) p r o m o t e s f r e e E m p l o y e r S p o t l i g h t s w h i c h a l l o w y o u t o m e e t s t u d e n t s i n a m o r e c a s u a l s e t t i n g . O n l y o n e c o m p a n y w i l l a t t e n d e a c h E m p l o y e r S p o t l i g h t , a l l o w i n g y o u t o m e e t q u a l i f i e d s t u d e n t s a n d t e l l t h e m a b o u t y o u r c o m p a n y

I f y o u ' r e i n t e r e s t e d i n b e i n g a n e m p l o y e r s p o t l i g h t , e m a i l a s h l e y b r o w n @ w k u e d u

O B B Y T A B L I N G

E m p l o y e r s h a v e a n o p p o r t u n i t y t o t a b l e o n c a m p u s t o i n t e r a c t w i t h s t u d e n t s f o r r e c r u i t i n g p u r p o s e s E m a i l a s h l e y b r o w n @ w k u e d u

K U C A R E E R F A I R

T h e c a r e e r f a i r i s a n o p p o r t u n i t y t o s h a r e y o u r i n t e r n s h i p o p p o r t u n i t i e s w i t h W K U s t u e n t s o n S e p t 2 8 L o g o n t o h a n d s h a k e f o r d e t a i l s

w n @ w k u

u

Green & South Central Kentucky

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