COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL June 3, 2015
CHAMBER
9A
NEWSLETTER
CHAMBER NEWS
Travis Palmer,
Executive Director
Note from the
Director
Participation is the key to change
and there is no better time to participate
than right now. A local business owner
recently made the statement that, “no one
ever changed the score of a game from
the sidelines” and I couldn’t agree more.
Getting informed and getting involved are
the two best ways to not only feel more
connected to your community, but to also
help shape it’s future for generations to
come.
Getting better informed about local
issues takes work and is the fi rst key aspect
of participation. Information has never
been more readily available to people than
it is right now but that is also part of a
growing problem. Information now comes
to us through so many different mediums
that we are starting to see evidence that
many people have simply stopped looking
for it and now live under the expectation
that “if it’s big enough news, we will
hear about it.” The problem though, is
that “important news” isn’t always “big
news.” City council meetings, board of
director meetings, and public notices often
don’t get a lot of fanfare but anyone who
has followed the recent debates about our
downtown refi nement plan can attest that
there are important issues being discussed
at these meetings. Conversely, there
are entire news organizations that are
dedicated to telling us every move that
Kim Kardashian makes and what idiotic
thing Kanye West has done in the last 24
hours and none of those things have any
impact on our lives or our community
whatsoever. It is, and will always be up
to us, as citizens of a community to look
for the information that is important to
us. Information is easy to fi nd, for those
who are looking but we cannot live under
the expectation that it will simply present
itself to us whenever we need it.
Getting involved is the second key
aspect of participation. To my knowledge,
“Monday morning quarterbacks” have
never changed the outcome of a game in
the entire history of football. Knowing
everything that there is to know about
the game doesn’t mean a thing unless
you are a player, coach or referee. For
those who are not into sports analogies,
Constantin Stanislavski coined the theatre
adage, “There are no small parts, just small
actors.” Each of us has a role to play in
our participation and as Stanislavski quite
brilliantly pointed out, there is no role that
is too small for any of us to play, its how we
choose to play the role that matters. Some
may choose to participate by volunteering,
some by leading, and some by following
but all require the conscious choice to
participate at some level.
I’d like to echo the words of our local
business owner who is encouraging
and challenging all of Cottage Grove’s
citizens and business owners to ”get better
informed, get involved, and participate!”
It doesn’t matter how large or small of a
role that you want to participate in, it just
matters that you look for an opportunity
that fi ts your lifestyle and that you pursue
it to the best of your abilities. Nothing
more can be expected and nothing less
should be accepted. Many thanks go out
to all of the people who participate in the
betterment of Cottage Grove. No matter
what side of an issue you are on, if you are
participating, you are doing something that
sets an example for the rest of the world to
follow.
Travis Palmer, Executive Director
Cottage Grove Area Chamber of Commerce
June Business After Hours
This month the City of Cottage Grove
will host Business after Hours on
Thursday, June 18 from 5:30 – 7:00pm, at
Middlefi eld Golf Course, 91 Village Drive.
They have some exciting things planned.
Come out and enjoy some great fun and
try out the Trifecta of Golf. What is the
Trifecta of Golf? It is three different ways
to experience the joys and thrills of golf;
traditional golf, soccer golf and disc golf.
Bring the family to this family oriented
fun event at Middlefi eld Golf Course.
Test your skills and see how you stack
up against others and possibly even win a
prize.
Bring your business card to enter the
door prize drawing, learn something new,
and have some fun! Refreshments and fun
will be par for the night on June 18th at
Middlefi eld Golf Course. Your attendance
reinforces the spirit in which the Chamber
provides these monthly activities. We look
forward to seeing you there! Many thanks Either way we want you to enjoy an afternoon
to those who support our efforts and your of fun!
We encourage churches, restaurants,
fellow Chamber members by attending
fi
nancial
institutions, and any other groups to
this Chamber program.
Chamber Members!
Give us a call if you want to learn
how to maximize your presence
on our website:
• Enhance your home page information with
pictures and text
• Post hot deals, job openings, and events
• Add keywords to help consumers fi nd you
when they run searches
• Run reports to see statistics for your home
page
Main Street Chili Cook
Off Is Just Around the
Corner
We’re in the planning stages for the Main
Street Chili Cook Off on July 25, 2015. We
hope you’ll join us and enter your favorite
chili against your friends and neighbors in this
year’s cook off! We’re pleased to hold this
event in conjunction with KNND’s Rock, Roll
N’ Rumble and look forward to a big crowd!
Cook your chili on-site or cook it at home.
fi nd your favorite recipe and challenge your
peers to a cook-off! Start thinking now about
how you will decorate your booth for a chance
at the Most Festive Booth award in addition to
Judges Choice and People’s Choice Awards.
So pull out your recipes and form your
teams. We need your CHILI and those secret
ingredients that make this event a success!
Entry forms are available at the Visitor Center,
700 E. Gibbs or on the chamber website www.
cgchamber.com.
Another Chamber Night
at the Speedway!
It was a fun night of action-packed racing at
Chamber Night at the Speedway in April. The
winner of the 50/50 raffl e that night walked
away with over $600! A special thanks to the
speedway for offering the discount and our
members who attended. Mark your calendars
now and plan to attend the next Chamber
Night at the Speedway on June 27th. We look
forward to another fun night at the race track!
2015 Visitor Center Stats
Phone calls
Walk-In Visitors
Relocate Requests
Visitor Requests
Referrals to Chamber Members
5/1 Thru 5/28
211
365
3
1
120
YTD
1281
1671
13
21
551
1105
3352
1376
198
1653
842
45
36
4815
17771
8054
926
6995
3002
234
165
2015 Website Stats
Business Directory Searches
Members Listed in Results
Member Page Views
Links to Member Website
Event Searches
Event Page Hits
Hot Deal Searches
Job Searches
2015 Summer Concerts and Market Begin
Mark your calendars now and plan to attend these events brought to you each week
through the summer by the Cottage Grove Area Chamber of Commerce. Join us on
Wednesdays beginning June 17 at the Bohemia Park Amphitheatre on 10th Street. Bring
a friend and support your local vendors, musicians and their sponsors by attending the
Wednesday evening activities. These concerts are made possible with fi nancial support
through sponsorships. Concerts begin at 6:30pm. There is a large variety of music this
season. Every week will be different than the next and we have great bands that are
looking forward to entertaining you with style and an abundance of awesome talent.
Below is this year’s line-up:
Jun-17-15
Jun-24-15
Jul-01-15
Jul-08-15
Jul-15-15
Jul-22-15
Jul-29-15
Bradley Shepherd’s Perfect Flavor
Eclectic Covers and More
The Larsen Group
Jazz Fusion
The Men From S.U.R.F.
Surf Rock / BeachBoys
Gumbo Groove
Folk-Fueled Fungrass
Fret Boys – Al Bennett
Classic Rock
Ian McFerron
Bob Dylan, Folk Rock, Folky
pop, etc.
Flies with Honey
Rock
Aug-05-15 Blue Skies Big Band
Classic Swing Jazz
Aug-12-15 Celtic Tradition
Celtic Festival Music
Aug-19-15 CASCADA
Latin Guitar World Music
Aug-26-15 Coupe de Ville
50’s-80”s Rock music
Sep-02-15 Left of Yellow
Pop/Rock Cover
Sep-09-15 Umpqua Valley Bluegrass Band
Traditional mountain style
bluegrass
2015 Chamber Board of Directors,
Advisors and Staff
Cottage Grove Area Chamber of Commerce
700 E. Gibbs • Cottage Grove, OR
info@cgchamber.com • www.cgchamber.com
P. (541) 942-2411 • F. 888-832-2045
2015 Chamber Board of Directors: Thank you for your hours upon hours of volunteer time,
commitment, and service!
Offi cers
Tiffany Thackara, President
Emerald Valley Resort Event Center
Joe Raade, President Elect
South Lane County Fire & Rescue
Paul Tocco, Vice President
Busterʼs Main Street Cafe
Amanda Akers, Treasurer
Commonwealth Financial Network
Tim Wilson, Past President
Universal Trucking
Directors
Lorraine Eriksen
Sheri Henry
Lindsay Laycock
Jennifer Radcliffe
Linda Schmale
Candace Solesbee
John Trombly
Don Williams
Rhonda Worley
Cottage Grove Souvenirs
Banner Bank
City of Cottage Grove
South Valley Athletics
Retired, Past Board President
Shampoo Dolls Salon
Fort Rock Construction
Retired, Past Board President
CJW, LLC
Advisors
Tim Herrmann
Richard Meyers
Mayor Tom Munroe
Krista Parent
Darby Valley
PeaceHealth Cottage Grove Community Medical Center
City of Cottage Grove
City of Cottage Grove
South Lane School District
Cottage Grove Community Acupuncture
Visitor Center Volunteers:
Heidi Abbott, Susan Jeppesen, Suzy Kanich, Sunny Kennedy, Donna Laney,
Chieko Tomasulo, Jim Vander Platt, Judd Van Gorder, Sharon Van Gorder,
Sherry Wendt , Penny Westling, Nolene Wheeler.
Staff:
Travis Palmer
Beth Martin
Jennifer Violette
Executive Director
Offi ce Manager
Bookkeeper