The Chamber Scenehuntingtoncountychamber.com/files/4b60872ed546ca569fed310b57… · The TinCaps are in line to play at home on Thursday, September 7 at 7:05 p.m. Simi-lar to the regular

The Chamber SceneHUNTINGTON COUNTY CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

305 Warren Street • Huntington, Indiana 46750 • (260) 356-5300 • www.huntington-chamber.com • September 2017

Source: Gov. Eric Holcomb

Indiana’s on a roll. We’re on a record-set-

ting pace for winning new economic devel-

opment projects in 2017. Homegrown

companies are thriving, and we’re support-

ing a growing, diversified economy with

new initiatives like the Next Level Indiana

Trust Fund.

Unemployment is low, and corporate

confidence is high. Indiana is routinely

lauded for its pro-growth business climate,

world-class infrastructure, appealing quality

of life and affordable cost of living.

But there is a caveat that chills this eco-

nomic hot streak. Employers can’t keep

growing if they can’t hire people with the

right skills, and we need more Hoosier

workers with the skills to secure better op-

portunities in our job market.

That’s why we introduced Next Level

Jobs, a campaign that targets working-age

Hoosiers and Indiana employers with the

goal of enhancing skills among our work-

force to fill the high-wage jobs available

right now in every part of the state.

With funding from Workforce Ready

Grants approved by the General Assembly

this year, we’re saying to Hoosiers who

haven’t yet earned a degree or certificate be-

yond high school: If you’re willing to learn

the skills that our employers need most,

we’ll pay for your training. For businesses,

we’re offering Employer Training Grants

that will provide $2,500 per new employee

companies hire, train and keep for at least

six months.

Both grant programs target Indiana’s

fastest-growing industries with high-wage

job openings, including advanced manufac-

turing, logistics, healthcare, in-demand

business and IT services (such as account-

ing), and the skilled construction trades

some of which are offered at the Huntington

County Community Learning Center. These

two grants will provide about $24 million

over the next two years to put Hoosiers to

work in these fields as quickly as possible.

The need today is great, and it’s only getting

bigger.

Indiana will

need to fill more

than a million job

openings within

the next decade,

and the majority of

those jobs will re-

quire some educa-

tion beyond high

school. According

to the Brookings Institution, Indiana ranks

second in the nation for high-paying, high-

tech “advanced industry” employment per

capita – and more than 70 percent of these

positions already require a college degree

or industry certificate.

These are rewarding jobs that are well

within reach for Hoosier adults. Workforce

Ready Grants will provide free tuition for

more than 100 certificate programs at Ivy

Tech Community College and Vincennes

University. Employer Training Grants will

help Indiana companies offset the costs they

incur when they hire and train new employ-

ees.

In total, Next Level Jobs will be a “secret

weapon” for continued economic growth –

strengthening our workforce and helping

Hoosiers transform their professional lives.

Indiana’s new Secretary of Career Connec-

tion and Talent Blair Milo will be working

in partnership with the Indiana Department

of Workforce Development and the Com-

mission for Higher Education to spread the

word about this new statewide initiative and

make that critical connection between

Hoosiers, employers, and the many pro-

grams and resources available through the

state.

It’s a smart program based on a simple

truth: People power our economy.

Learn more and apply for either the

Workforce Ready or Employer Training

grant with a simple, five-minute online ap-

plication at www.NextLevelJobs.org. Since

the launch, more than 2,800 Hoosiers and

86 companies have completed applications.

Taking Hoosier jobs to the Next Level

A B.I.G. Day Golf Outing

scheduled for September 13The Huntington County Chamber of Commerce’s A B.I.G.

Day Golf Outing will be held on Wednesday, September 13 at

the Norwood Golf Course, 5961 W. Maple Grove Road. JJ’s

is the corporate sponsor.

Registration begins at 10:30 a.m. with lunch being served

at 11 a.m. The event will begin with a shotgun start at 12

noon. Each team consists of six golfers with an entry fee of

$85 per golfer or a team of six for $510. Golfers will be treated to lunch, dinner and

six beverage tickets that may be used for beverages on the golf course throughout the

day. The first place team will win $360; second, $180 and third place, $90.

The Chamber will have four beverage stations located on the course hosted by the

Bowen Center, Edward Jones, Markle Health & Rehabilitation and Wells Fargo.

Along with the four beverage stations, there will be six premium hole sponsors. Pre-

mium hole sponsors to include: Ad Design, Community Development of Fort Wayne,

Parkview Huntington Hospital, Pathfinder Services, Regional Chamber of Northeast

Indiana and W.A. Zimmer Co.

If you would like to join the Chamber for a day on the golf course, download a

form by clicking on the A B.I.G. Day website ad on the Chamber’s front page. For

more information on the event, call the Chamber office at (260) 356-5300.

Page 2 Huntington County Chamber of Commerce September 2017

Board of Directors

2017

Chairman of the Board

Ryan Lemon

Novae Corporation

Chairman of the Board-Elect

Steve Petry

W.A. Zimmer Company

Treasurer

Randy Warner

Randal J. Warner CPA, LLC

Assistant Treasurer

Sonya Foraker

Parkview Huntington Hospital

Immediate Past Chairman

Kay Schwob

Huntington University

Amy Mattox

Clear Elevation

Arthur Daronatsy

Dean Foods

Ben Davis

Parkview Huntington Family YMCA

Darlene Stanley

JJ’s

Eric Fawcett

Bippus State Bank

Erin Covey

MetroNet

Jerry Reid

Continental Structural Plastics (CSP)

John Garrott

Beacon Credit Union

Mike Hartburg

DeLaney Hartburg Roth & Garrott LLP

Trace Hinesley

Huntington County Community School

Corporation

STAFF

Steve Kimmel

Executive Director

Angie Garcia

Office Administrator

SEPTEMBERBusiness of the Month

Gerdau Huntington Facility

Gerdau Huntington Facility, 25 Commercial Road, was named Chamber Business of

the Month for September by the Chamber Ambassadors. Gerdau is one of the largest

suppliers of special steel in the world and the leading producer of long steel in the Amer-

icas. Gerdau’s special steel North American division specializes in producing special

bar quality (SBQ) steel for the automotive, commercial vehicle, agricultural and energy

markets.

Shown in the front row, from left, are Kerry Beaver, Lime City Title Services; Terry

Miller, Real Living Ness Bros. and both Chamber Ambassadors; Greg Sands, Rich Card,

plant general manager, Ginger Olson, Kendall Mickley, division controller, Dianne Met-

zger, all from Gerdau and Staci Mathias, Huntington County Habitat for Humanity and

Chamber Ambassador. Second row, from left, are Davin Smith, Bowers Brewer Garrett

& Wiley and Chamber Ambassador; Jarrod Fisher, Jeremy Lambert, Adam Tabor, Nick

Schweickart all from Gerdau; Danielle Shaw, Bippus State Bank, Shelly Gray, Wells

Fargo Bank, Jessi Brown, Huntington City-Township Public Library and JoDeane

Knowles, TCU and all Chamber Ambassadors. Back row, from left, Doug Melchi, Ger-

dau; Kolby Rosemeyer, iAB Financial Bank and Chamber Ambassador; John Garrott,

Beacon Credit Union and Chamber board member and Tim Geerling, American Family

Insurance Natalie Chevalier Agency and Chamber Ambassador.

TinCaps prepared to appear in postseason playThe Fort Wayne TinCaps are prepared to appear in the Midwest League’s postseason

for the eighth time in nine years, striving to win the title like in 2009. With the regular

season winding down now, fans have an early opportunity to make sure they don’t miss

out on exciting playoff baseball at Parkview Field.

The TinCaps are in line to play at home on Thursday, September 7 at 7:05 p.m. Simi-

lar to the regular season, it will be a Thirsty Thursday, presented by Rudy’s Shop featur-

ing $1 domestic drafts and other drink specials.

Tickets for the playoff game at Parkview Field are on sale now. Playoff tickets are

available for fans to purchase at TinCapsTickets.com or by calling (260) 482-6400, and

at the Parkview Field ticket office.

The open round of the Midwest League Playoffs is a best-of-three series format. Fort

Wayne is expected to open on the road on Wednesday, September 6.

If necessary, the TinCaps will play Game 3 at Parkview Field on Friday, September 8.

If the TinCaps advance out of the first round, they will host either the West Michigan

Whitecaps (Detroit Tigers) or Dayton Dragons (Cincinnati Reds) in the best-of-three

Easter Division Championship Series on Saturday, September 9.

September 2017 Huntington County Chamber of Commerce Page 3

PHH to offer help with

prescription costsWhether it’s antibi-

otics for a sudden ill-

ness, or certain

medications to manage

a chronic health condition, being able to afford medicines can

sometimes be challenging. For Huntington County residents

needing assistance with necessary medications, the Free

Health Clinic used to be an option. With the closure of the

clinic earlier this year, though, resources became much thinner.

Starting in September, a new source of help will be avail-

able. The Parkview Medication Assistance Program, or MAP,

serves as a link between the patient, healthcare provider and

pharmaceutical manufacturers for the purpose of providing

prescription medications to uninsured or underinsured patients.

How the program works. MAP is a free service, and repre-

sentatives will be available through Parkview Huntington Hos-

pital. Patients who need assistance with prescription

medication costs can apply to Parkview MAP through these

representatives, who draw on pharmaceutical assistance pro-

grams through drug manufacturers, as well as product replace-

ment and co-pay assistance programs.

The idea, explains Chelsea Johnson, medication assistance

coordinator, is to connect people with resources that can help

improve their situation: “We try to give them more options, to

offer other avenues that they weren’t aware of before, such as

manufacturer programs, or prescription coupons, or even rec-

ommendations on pharmacies that have the lowest prices. We

want to find at least some piece of information that could help

them.”

Anette Lane, MD, Parkview Physicians Group – Family

Medicine, is the former medical director of the Huntington

County Free Health Clinic. She notes that there is a tremen-

dous need for this kind of support: “There are so many people

who don’t really know where to turn for guidance when they

find they can’t cover the cost of their medications. Parkview

Huntington understood that and stepped in to make sure this

service could be available for people who are having a tough

time.”

Johnson and Jennifer Matson, MAP supervisor, assist people

who need medication help for any of a variety of reasons.

“Some patients we talk to have worked all their lives and are

retired, and they’re embarrassed to ask for help, but they’re

struggling to make ends meet,” says Johnson. “Others have

lost their jobs, or they have a family member with cancer and

can’t afford the costs of treatment. Maybe a parent is working

two jobs but has no insurance, or there’s a gap in Medicaid. If

their child becomes ill and needs an expensive antibiotic,

they’re faced with the question of how to afford it.”

Beginning in September, Matson will be available at

Parkview Huntington Hospital from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on

Wednesdays, and Johnson will be available at the hospital on

Fridays during the same hours. For information, call (260)

266-4542 or (260) 248-9263.

Page 4 Huntington County Chamber of Commerce September 2017

Crisis Hotline (260) 530-7676www.ysbofhuntingtoncounty.org

E: [email protected]

W: www.huntingtonunitedway.com

Kyle Metzger

President and CEO

356 W. Park Drive

P.O. Box 347

Huntington, IN 46750

Phone: 260-356-6160Fax: 260-356-5109

Consumers grade today’s

economic conditions as

best since July 2001American consumers give

today’s economy the highest

grade in more than 16 years.

The Conference Board

said Tuesday that con-

sumers’ assessment of cur-

rent economic conditions hit

the highest level this month

since July 2001. The busi-

ness research group’s overall consumer confidence index,

which takes into account Americans’ views of current condi-

tions and their expectations for the next six months, rose to

122.9 in August from 120 in July.

Americans’ spirits have been lifted by a healthy job market.

Employers added a robust 209,000 jobs in July, and the unem-

ployment rate has dropped to a 16-year low of 4.3 percent.

The Conference Board found that 34.5 percent of respon-

dents described business conditions as “good” – the highest

percentage since January 2001. Similarly, 35.4 percent de-

scribed jobs as “plentiful” – most since July 2001.

Lunch ’n Learn to focus on heroin,

overdose stats, clues and moreThe Huntington County Cham-

ber of Commerce will hold its fall

Lunch ’n Learn on Wednesday,

September 27. Sheriff Terry Stoffel

will talk about the drug issues that

are plaguing Huntington County along with every other commu-

nity in the nation. The Lunch ’n Learn will take place at the Ho-

race Mann Educational Center, 2485 Waterworks Road, from

11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Chamber board members Randy Warner and Darlene Stanley

said, “Even though no one wants to hear about our drug problems

in Huntington, they look forward to this seminar to see what local

law enforcement and the medical community are doing to eradi-

cate the epidemic of drugs and opioids in Huntington County.”

Sheriff Stoffel will explain what heroin is and what the drug

does to the body. He will show before and after photos of those

that are using heroin. Stoffel will also talk about ways to ingest

the drug and clues that a person is a user. There will also be over-

dose statistics shared with the group and personal stories of fami-

lies that have felt the crush of finding a loved one passed away.

If you would like to learn more about the heroin epidemic in

Huntington County, how to recognize someone using, or simply

like to be able to help another from even beginning on this dan-

gerous journey, this seminar may be of interest.

Contact the Chamber office by emailing skimmel@huntington-

chamber.com or by calling the office at (260) 356-5300 by Mon-

day, September 25 to RSVP. The cost of lunch is $10.

September 2017 Huntington County Chamber of Commerce Page 5

Career Day scheduled for

Wednesday, October 11The ninth annual Life

Long Learning Career Day

will be held on Wednesday,

October 11 at Huntington

North High School. This

year’s event will be held in

the Fieldhouse and will include all freshmen and senior stu-

dents.

The information presented at Career Day enables the fresh-

men and seniors students from the high school to make career

choices while in high school and take the appropriate classes.

After hearing from the local business community, the seniors

were added this year to give businesses access to students that

will be graduating in the spring and the students an opportunity

to visit with prospective employers.

Ten different careers will be featured in individual booths

called “career pods” with those experienced in the particular

field available to talk with the 800 plus students visiting the

fair. The fields presented in the pods include agriculture, arts,

technology and communication, architecture and construction,

education and training, health services, financial services, man-

ufacturing and science engineering, marketing and sales, public

safety and security, hospitality and human services and trans-

portation. Each student that participates will also explore the

“soft skills” such as team work, dependability, reliability, moti-

vation, customer focus, commitment, flexibility, communica-

tion and responsibility.

For more information, contact Steve Kimmel at the Hunting-

ton County Chamber of Commerce at (260) 356-5300 or by

email at [email protected] or contact Tiffan-

ney Drummond at the Huntington County Community Learn-

ing Center at (260) 356-2858 or by email at

[email protected].

Huntington County Community

Learning Center “The LC” to hold

After Hours on September 28A Chamber After Hours will be

held at the Huntington County Com-

munity Learning Center “The LC,”

2201 N. Jefferson Street on Thursday,

September 28. The event will be held

in celebration of its first year anniversary.

The “LC” plans to have snacks and beverages for those attending

along with guided or individual tours of the facility. The center will

have instructors located in each class room to talk about the classes

offered and to answer any questions attendees may have about the

center. If you would like to attend, reply to skimmel@huntington-

chamber.com.

After Hours is another great way to network with other business

professionals in Huntington. Stay for 15 minutes or the entire time.

Page 6 Huntington County Chamber of Commerce September 2017

Dustin Lane

Business Account Executive

1002 East Center Road

Kokomo, IN 46902

Mobile: 765-635-1405

Email: [email protected]

Chalk Walk 2017

schedule on Courthouse

Square September 30Pamela Burris

and Katy Strass

plan to hold a

Chalk Walk on

Saturday, Sep-

tember 30 at the

Courthouse

Square in down-

town Hunting-

ton. The event will take place from 1 to 5 p.m. and is free and

open to the public.

The goal of the project is to host an event that encourages

community interaction and participation through the talents of

the diverse people residing within and around the Huntington

area. The aim is to bring people together of all ages to share the

joys of creating. The event is also designed to spread aware-

ness of how rewarding it is to experience art in public spaces.

Several activities have been planned and there is something for

everyone. Children’s activities and family-friendly entertain-

ment will be a part of the afternoon, with the main goal being

to have a substantial amount of fun, while showcasing individ-

ual talents and appreciate the skills of others.

The not-for-profit team has been volunteering their time to

plan and coordinate the event. While plans are underway there

is still a need for help regarding hands-on volunteers and dona-

tions to make this event free to the public and self-sustaining.

All profits made will be donated to a charity not yet disclosed.

Burris and Strass would like for the chalk walk to be an art

showcase where the most involved can win prizes and receive

first, second and third place awards for their creativity.

Volunteers are needed for this event to be successful. The or-

ganizers are looking for teams of volunteers for the following:

Artist Support, five to eight people; Kids’ Activity, four to six

people; Crowd Control, five to eight people; Face Painting,

five to six people and Sidewalk Photo Shoot, two to three peo-

ple. If you are interested in volunteering for the event or would

like to give a donation, contact Pamela Burris at (260) 468-

2065 or Katy Strass at (260) 388-5490 or by email at katys-

[email protected]. Find them on Facebook here.

305 Warren StreetHuntington, IN 46750

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Huntington, IN

Permit No. 194

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Mark Your Calendars

Roanoke Fall FestivalThursday, September 7 to Saturday, September 9

Downtown Roanoke

Memorial Ride for Fallen VeteransSunday, September 17, Staging: Noon; Ride: 1 p.m.

American Legion Post 160, Roanoke

VA Benefits Seminar for VeteransSaturday, September 23, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

VFW Post 2864, 220 W. Park Drive

Forks of the Wabash Pioneer FestivalSaturday, September 23, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Sunday, September 24, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Hier’s Park

Healthy StepsSaturday, October 7, 7 to 11 a.m.

Parkview Huntington Hospital

For A Complete Calendar of EventsVisit our website at www.huntingtoncountychamber.com

ADDRESS SERVICEREQUESTED

PROFESSIONAL JANITORIAL

SERVICE, INC.Industrial and Commercial Cleaning

Since 1985

SAFEGUARD SERVICES, INC.Security Guard and Patrol Service

Since 1962

430 Warren Street Huntington, IN

(260) 356-4726