SEPTEMBER MEMBERSHIP MEETING

Our monthly meeting will be held on Thursday September 1^st at 8am – at the Mt Airy Fire Hall (corner of Watersville Rd and Main St, park at the rear/lower level and enter through the back doors).

As always, there will be a very full agenda – especially in advance of the Planning Meeting on the 9^th (see item below).

This meeting will be followed by a new member orientation so if you haven’t attended a membership meeting before, we’ll hope to see you there!

NEW MEMBER ORIENTATION

Ambassador’s committee chair Ellie Bonde of the Blossom & Basket Boutique will head a new member orientation immediately following our Chamber membership meeting on September 1^st (see above for location and time).

Chamber officers and committee chairs will be present, and all new Chamber members who have joined over the past 12 months are invited. Refreshments will be served! We look forward to the opportunity to meet you, to describe Chamber activities and benefits, and answer any questions you might have.

2006 PLANNING MEETING

Members are encouraged to attend the planning meeting for 2006 Chamber activities. This will be held on Friday, September 9^th, 11am – 4pm at Lorien Assisted Living.

Please come with new ideas and topics, etc. There are many items already on the agenda so member input is more important than ever.

Lunch will be served, so please RSVP to Paula Wilhelm at 301-829-6050, ext. 112.

NOMINATIONS

We will be presenting our slate of officers for the Chamber for 2006 at our October 7^th morning meeting. We will be voting on the slate of officers at our November morning meeting. We encourage all our members to come to our meetings and get involved.

If you would like to know more about the nominations process, how to nominate or be nominated, please contact Audrey Stapf, Membership Secretary, at 301-831-7339.

NWSB CARD EXCHANGE

Our next Business Card Exchange will be held on Wednesday October 12^th, 5 – 8 pm at the New Windsor State Bank, Twin Arch Center. (Please note new time). We hope each of you will put this date on your calendar and make every effort to attend.

GALA DINNER DANCE

The Social Committee is pleased to announce the first annual Greater Mount Airy Chamber of Commerce Gala Dinner Dance, scheduled to take place on Saturday, January 14, 2006 from 7:00 – 11:00 p.m. This "black tie optional" event will be held at the Gold Star American Legion Post 191 and promises to be a very special occasion.

We are excited about celebrating the tremendous growth and numerous accomplishments of the Chamber with a catered dinner and dancing. The Committee has been diligent in planning, and is making an effort to keep the costs reasonable, while providing a memorable time for all. Be sure to mark your calendars, and get ready for a great evening!

For more information please contact Paula Wilhelm at 301-829-6050, ext. 112

BRICK RIDGE BUSINESS CARD EXCHANGE

We wish to thank Todd Bricken, Brick Ridge Restaurant, Charlie Stott, Susquehanna Bank, and Carol Cahall, Main Event, for the wonderful Business Card Exchange on August 18^th at Brick Ridge. It was very well attended and everyone had a very good time. Guests were Robert and Leslie Sier, Pre-paid Legal Services, Inc.

Door Prizes were given out by David L. Tracy, Dave’s Lock and Key; Wilma Brown, Longerberger; Geri Moldaschel, Mary Kay Cosmetics; Laurie Dilks, Juice Plus; Randy Hively, A Touch of Class Limousines; and Tom Neff, Main Street Computer Consultants. We wish to thank each of the companies for supplying the door prizes.

Door Prize winners were:

Paula Wilhelm, Lorien; Archie Rogers, Rogers Engraving & Stamps & Plus; Wilma Brown, Longerberger ($50 gift certificates to Brick Ridge from Charlie Stott, Susquehanna Bank.)

Sudha Kaistha, S K Printing; Arn Halpin, Direct Electric; D. J. Fenton, Stauffer Funeral Home; Karen Pelton, Pelton Marketing Services. (Dave’s Lock and Key T-shirts.)

Laurie Dilks, Juice Plus (3 hour limo ride – A Touch of Class Limousines.)

Robert and Leslie Sier. (Blossom and Basket Treat Basket given by Main Street Computer Consultants.)

Sam Zee, Fastmail Boxes & more; Geri B. Moldaschel, Mary Kay Cosmetics;  (Hover discs from The Main Event.)

Catherine Nazarene, The Catherine Ditman Group (Juice Plus gifts)

David Tracy, Dave’s Lock and Key, (Longerberger bag).

Patrick Ronan, The Law Office of Patrick Ronan (Mary Kay Cosmetics).

AMBASSADOR’S PACKETS

Ellie Bonde of Blossom & Basket Boutique, chair of the Ambassador’s Committee, has more packets of marketing materials ready for new members. Ellie and her committee will be distributing those over coming weeks.

To have materials from your business put in future packets, keep an eye on the e-mail list or check in with Ellie at (301) 829-8300.

MOUNT AIRY PHONE BOOK

If you would like extra copies of the Phone Book for your office, we do have some available. You can pick them up at any Chamber meeting or event, at the Mt Airy Library, Town Hall or call Keir Knight, Plain English Writing & Design at (301) 829-1982.

Extra copies have also been set aside, and will be delivered to new residents moving into the area.

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE

Marlene Titus of Carroll Community College, chair of our Professional Development Committee, is preparing a proposal to run a series of seminars and workshops benefiting Chamber members. Please stay tuned for details.

2006 BUSINESS FAIR VOLUNTEERS

We are looking for volunteers to help with setting up and running the 2006 Business Fair. It’s a great way to get involved and meet other Chamber members. If you would like to be involved, please contact Archie Rogers of Rogers Engraving at (301) 663-4311.

E-MAIL LIST

All Chamber members are added to the Yahoo Groups list – mtairybusiness – but anyone wishing to receive just special announcements can contact Keir Knight of Plain English Writing & Design at (301) 829-1982 or klknight @pipeline.com

Use of the Yahoo list is open to all Chamber members. We ask that messages follow the Chamber’s mission "to promote and support local businesses" – general announcements, events and advertising opportunities are all legitimate uses. Direct advertising of an individual business is not.

NEW MEMBERS

We are very happy to announce the following new members for the month of August:

Provident Bank, 301-829-4720, Ilene Griffin.

Sierra Design & Build, Inc. 301-620-9122, Chris and Michele Pasch.

Matlin Signs and Graphics, 301-846-0880, Michael and Laura Leidhecker.