INSIDE THIS ISSUE
Social Media Workshop 1
Town Hall Meeting 1
Chamber Announcements 2
Visitor Report 2
Josephy Center Event 3
Travel Writers Tour 3
SBDC Workshops 4-5
NEON Healthcare Service 6
Inserts
WC Chamber Election Ballot
Citizen Awards Nomination Form
WALLOWA COUNTY CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
309 South River Street, Ste B
PO Box 427 Enterprise, OR 97828
Phone: (541) 426-4622
Email: [email protected]
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Jessie Cunningham, President
Jenni Word, Vice President
Ruby Lathrop, Treasurer/Secretary
Cynthia Warnock, Past President
Kathy Casper, Director
Michael Vali, Director
Bridget Brown, Director
Liz Neveau, Director
Marc Stauffer, Director
John Williams, Director
Tammy Strampe, Director
Nancy Rudger, Director
Cheryl North-Coughlan, Director
Heather Tyreman, Director
Doris Woempner, Ambassador
CHAMBER STAFF
Vicki Searles, Executive Director
Diane Knox, Admin. Assistant
November 2017
Social Media WORKSHOP
Link up to Travel Oregon and Eastern Oregon Visitor Association √ Travel Oregon Website and Social Media. How to get the right attention from Travel Ore-
gon and Eastern Oregon Visitor Association. √ Media stories. How to submit feature stories and images to Facebook for Travel Oregon,
EOVA and other local facebook sites. √ Learn about Google and other search engines. How do they search your sites. Old myths
verses today’s search engine methods. Dos and don’ts. √ What is the new database Travel Oregon is using referred to as “OTIS”. √ Best practices for building your Instagram following. √ Learn Instagram for Business (Come prepared with your smart phone, the Instagram app, and an account).
November 16, 2017 Thursday Morning, 9:45 am - 2:00 pm
309 S. River Street, Enterprise, OR Tomas Conference Center
$10 Class Fee
RSVP the Wallowa County Chamber:
541 426-4622
Join us November 8th for a Town Hall Meeting! November 9, 2017
Thursday, Evening 5:30 pm - 7:00 pm 309 S. River Street, Enterprise, OR
Tomas Conference Center Light Refreshments
Rep. Greg Barreto (R)
District 58 Email:
Website:
http://
www.oregonlegislature.
Sen. Bill Hansell (R)
District 29 Email:
Website:
http://
www.oregonlegislature. Town Hall Meeting
What's on the minds of Wallowa County Citizens?
Page 2
Citizen Awards Banquet for 2017 Wallowa County — Blazing Our Own Trail!
A 2017 Citizen Awards Application is in this Newsletter.
What makes Wallowa County so special? Well, you do! It’s people like you reaching out and helping your neighbor. Its people like you,
working together to improve our community. It’s people like you striving for excellence in the workplace. Its people like you promoting
the arts and education of our youth, and it’s people like you volunteering to help make Wallowa County a better place to live.
One great way to participate in the fun at the Citizen Awards Banquet is to sponsor a dinner table or a tradeshow table. This is an easy
thing to do if you want to showcase your business or organization or just do some networking within the community. The cost of a trade-
show table is $10 and we provide a table and table cloth. There is no fee for sponsoring a dinner table. The only cost to you is the deco-
rations you provide on the table.
If you are interested in a tradeshow table contact Darlene Johnson (541) 426-3025 or if you would like to become a table sponsor con-
tact Cammie Hale (541) 432-9050. These opportunities are “first come — first serve”. Please make early arrangements.
Information Contacts October 2017 September 2017 Year to date October 2016
Walk-ins: Visitors/Business 149 291 2171 205
Information Packets Mailed Out
40 16 483 31
Phone Calls, Web & Emails 224 299 3,211 243
Total Contacts 413 614 5,871 479
Website Visits
8092 10,887 97,156 6815
Membership Referrals 1144 1451 13,034 1689
Chamber Visitor Report for October
Wallowa Lake 63
Wallowa Lake Tramway 22
Joseph, Arts & Galleries 89
Hells Canyon & Over Looks 85
Hells Canyon Scenic Byway 56
Wallowa Mountains 19
Wallowa Valley & View Points 2
WC Events 4
Fishing, Hunting, Outdoor Rec. 48
Visit Family & Friends 1
Family reunions, wedding, etc. 0
Other: Oregon’s 7 Wonders 0
New! Why do Visitors
Come to Wallowa County
2018 Board of Directors Elections — Please Vote!
Nominations are now closed for the 2018 Board of Directors. A ballot is included inside this newsletter.
Background. The first step in board elections each year is to identify the positions that will open on the Board. This is done in Septem-ber and a nomination committee is appointed by the president. The nomination committee works with the executive director to produce a slate of directors for 2018. The slate is then presented to the Board at the October meeting.
Nominations stay open from October 1 through 31. If the Chamber receives a nomination this individual is added to the slate of direc-tors and a vote will take place in the ballot. If the Chamber does not receive any nominations the slate of directors will be presented to membership for approval. This is a membership only vote.
A Ballot to approve the slate of directors is included with this newsletter. In addition to the inserted ballot, an electronic ballot will be sent to members through Survey Monkey and a ballot will be included in the weekly update. Members are asked to approve the 2018 Board of Directors. A simple check is all that is required.
Upon request, a ballot will be sent by email or mail. Ballots may also be obtained at the Chamber office. Results will be an-nounced in the December newsletter.
Ballots must be received by 5:00 pm November 17th.
Thank you for your time and participation in the elections!
Page 3
Businesses that were showcased in Wallowa County: Belle Pepper’s B&B Bronze Antler B&B Cowboy Riverfront Retreat Outlaw Restaurant & Saloon Rimrock Inn Terminal Gravity Arrowhead Chocolates Stein’s Distillery Josephy Center for Arts & Culture *Time was provided for the team to shop in Joseph and explore the Wallowa Lake area for photography and feature stories.
A team of travel writers arrived in Wallowa County October 27 to experience the Wallowas and see what Oregon offers the visitor in-dustry. Adam Sawyer led the group as he is a prominent outdoor and travel writer, photographer, published author, and guide, based out of Portland, Oregon. He wrote as the Portland Hiking Examiner for Examiner.com and authored the bi-weekly column, Portland Family Outdoors, for Craigmore Creations. In addition to online writing for Travel Oregon, Eater, Canoe & Kayak, Red Tricycle, and Tilla-mook Coast, his work has appeared in Northwest Travel & Life, 1859, Portland Monthly, Columbia River Gorge, Cascade Journal, On-Trak, and Backpacker Magazines. He is the author of the guidebooks Hiking Waterfalls in Oregon, Best Outdoor Adventures Near Port-land, 25 Hikes on Oregon’s Tillamook Coast, and the forthcoming Unique Eats & Eateries: Portland. Team members came from as far away as New York, LA, Canada, Midwest and each with equally impressive portfolios. Such as Brandy Yanchyk, an award winning Cana-dian filmmaker and journalist. Brandy covers documentaries aired on channels including the BBC, CBC, PBS, the CBC Documentary Channel, Rogers, TELUS Optik, AMI, YES TV, SHAW TV and on Air Canada’s In Flight Entertainment System and at film festivals around the world. Please contact the chamber if you would like copies of the bios for each writer.
The tour was arranged by Jaime Eder (Travel Oregon, Global Communications), Alice Trindle (EOVA), Elizabeth Farrar (EOVA Communi-cations), Janet Dodson (Sunnyside Marketing), and the Wallowa County Chamber. This tour demonstrates what is possible through partnerships.
“PUPPY LOVE”
The Josephy Center for Arts and Culture has an exhibit coming up this winter that you’ll want to bark about. It’s called “Puppy Love” and will feature the many aspects of the lives of our canine companions.
For most all of us dogs are a part of daily life and serve many purposes. Dogs are companions, friends, helpers, working tools, ferocious guards and, sometimes even homeless and in need of our assistance.
Currently Josephy is sending out a “Call to Artists.” Artwork may be submitted via email photos until December 1st. All mediums of art are acceptable. Check the website, josephy.org “Call For Entries”, or call for submission parameters. Curators, René Flem-ing and Beth McBee will notify chosen artists by December 5th.
“Puppy Love” will be on exhibit at the Josephy Center from Saturday, January 5th until February 15th, 2018. Join the pack and come to the exhibit! Please visit josephy.org for more information.
Oregon for the Society of American Travel Writers Convention in Portland!
Page 4
Visit our online Learning Center for Small Business Owners calendar of upcoming events.
For online events and fast registration: registration online!
BALLOT 2018 Board of Directors
Wallowa County Chamber of Commerce
2018 Board:
Jennie Word, Enterprise Director
Tammie Strampe, Joseph Director
Kathy Casper, Wallowa/Lostine Director
Michael Vali, Wallowa Lake Director
Lem McBurney, Public Relations Director
Susan Gilstrap, Small Business Director
Bridget Brown, Healthcare Director
John Williams, Education Director
Mike Hayward, Rural Area Director
Jessie Cunningham, Farm & Ranch Director
Cynthia Warnock, Timber & Forestry Director
Nancy Rudger, Heritage & Culture Director
Cheryl North-Coughlan, Arts Director
Heather Tyreman, Tourism Director
Penny Arentsen, At-Large Director
Please check a box to vote and sign the ballot.
□ I approve the Wallowa County Chamber 2018 Board of Directors as presented.
□ I do not approve the Wallowa County Chamber 2018 Board of Directors as presented.
Signature ____________________________________________ Date__________________
Return ballot to the Wallowa County Chamber office by 5:00 pm November 18th.
Wallowa County Chamber of Commerce 309 South River Street, Suite B * P.O. Box 427
Enterprise, Oregon 97828 Phone: 541.426.4622
Thank you for your time and participation in the elections!
Page 3
Thank you for your interest in the Citizen Awards nomination program. All nominations are due 5:00 pm, Friday, December 1, 2017.
The purpose of this program is to recognize extraordinary individuals in our county that have given of themselves selflessly to improve life in Wallowa County. Awards are presented the evening of the Annual Citizen Awards Banquet, a Wallowa County Chamber annual social event.
The success of any community is built upon the efforts of individuals and organizations that are committed to working for the common good of all. There are a lot of quiet achievers out there who serve as magnificent role-models for others and who deserve recognition for their selfless dedication.
What makes a competitive nomination?
1. Your nomination should include details of the nominee's contribution to the people and quality of life in Wallowa County. Please do not assume that "everyone" knows your nominee and your nominee's merits. A good nomination letter should give explicit details about what this individual has done and over what period of time these activities have occurred. 2. Letters from other people supporting your nomination are helpful, especially if they provide addi- tional useful
insights into the nominee's contributions. Since only one person is selected each year, you should support no more than one person per year for the award.
3. Write the nomination in a manner that is easy for the nomination committee to review. A two to four page summarized document is of sufficient length. Supplemental letters can be attached. The committee should be able to easily evaluate the achievements as highlighted in the nomination.
4. One small rule, nominators will not be able to nominate a member of their family.
Nominators assume the champion role of the nomination. It is the nominator, and their team of supporters, that pos-sess the valuable knowledge of the nominee. This role is a vital part of the process. The smooth coordination of the nomination is dependent on the willing participation of friends, family members, neighbors, and co-workers.
The Citizen Awards Banquet is the evening of “TBA” 2018.
The Chamber appreciates your participation in the awards program.
Wallowa County Chamber of Commerce, PO Box 427, 309 South River Street, Ste B, Enterprise, OR 97828
(541)426-4622, [email protected]
Page 4
Wallowa County Chamber of Commerce 2017 Citizen Awards Nomination Application
Please provide all required information
Nominee:_______________________________________________________________
Nominee address:________________________________________________________
Nominee phone:_____________________ Email: _____________________________
*Please check the category and read category description on the front of this flyer.
Awards Category: ___ Business, ___ Employee of the Year, __ Arts, ___ Education, ___
Natural Resources/Timber/Agriculture, ___ Nonprofits/Events, ___ Unsung Hero
Nominator Agreement Required:
Your name:_______________________________________________________________
Nominator address:________________________________________________________
Day time phone number:____________________ Email: ___________________________
Nominators assume the champion role for the nomination. It is the nominator, and a team of
supporters, that possess a relationship and the knowledge of the nominee. This role is a vital part of
the award. Please check each box below signifying you agree to the role as a nominator.
Please note that incomplete nomination forms will not be entered into the awards selection. The at-
tached letter describes how to develop a nomination.
By signing this nomination form you agree to the above terms. Be sure to include your address, email and
phone number so the Chamber can contact you. Thank you for your participation in the Citizen Awards.
Signature Date
Completed forms and all supporting information must be submitted by December 1, 2017 to the
Wallowa County Chamber of Commerce, PO Box 427, Enterprise, OR 97828. (541) 426.4622.
The nominator will be responsible to arrange for the presentation of the award once the
nominee is selected. A nominator will not be able to nominate a family member.
If the nominator is unable to attend the awards banquet, the nominator will
arrange for someone else to give the presentation. Presentations are 3-5 minutes.
The nominator will coordinate with the nominee to make arrangements for their
attendance, or on a rare occasion, to have someone receive the award on their behalf.
ANNUAL CITIZEN AWARDS WALLOWA COUNTY CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
CATEGORIES, ELEGIBILITY, AND JUDGING CRITERIA
Thank you for your interest in the citizen awards programs. The purpose of this program is to recognize those individuals in our communities that have given of themselves above and beyond the norm to improve life in Wallowa County. Attributes of nominees may include: passion, energy; community dedication, selfless giving, longevity of service, volunteerism, leadership, or visionary qualities. Awards to be presented TBA, 2018.
BUSINESS LEADER Eligibility: An owner or operator of any business in Wallowa County. Or an individual nominated by the business community who has provided business services vital to businesses and the economy of the county.
Judging Criteria: 1. Entrepreneurial spirit. 2. Provides a quality product or service. 3. Provides exceptional customer service. 4. Long standing exceptional business practices.
EMPLOYEE OF THE YEAR Eligibility: An employee of a Wallowa County business, organiza-tion or government entity.
Judging Criteria: 1. Quality of work and achievements. 2. Attendance, reliability, loyalty, and responsibility. 3. Attitude, customer service, and cooperation.
LEADER IN ARTS Eligibility: Open to performers, artists, presenters, designers, and educators of an arts-related field or program that sup-ports the arts. This includes but is not limited to visual and performance arts as well as music, writing, and dance.
Judging Criteria: 1. Creativity and passion. 2. Recognition, success, and dedication. 3. Instrumental in promoting the arts in WC.
EDUCATION LEADER Eligibility: An educator who gives above and beyond that required to educate, inform, or train others. Nominees do not need to be employed in a formal school system. Example, someone who teaches through the Red Cross or hunter safety classes.
Judging Criteria
1. May be a leader in youth programs/events. 2. Has touched the lives of many through education. 3. Record of achievements in the education field.
LEADER IN NONPROFITS & EVENTS Eligibility: An individual that shows true leadership in developing or managing an event or nonprofit.
Judging Criteria: 1. Meticulous planner and smooth execution. 2. Ability to manage for the unexpected. 3. Works well with volunteers, good communicator. 4. Works across boundaries to develop transforma-
tional solutions. Creative thinker. 5. Brings innovative ideas forward and to fruition.
NATURAL RESOURCE, TIMBER & AGRICULTURAL LEADER Eligibility: An owner or operator of a farm, ranch, or land based operation. Or an individual nominated for exceptional service by the natural resource industry of the county.
Judging Criteria: 1. Provides a quality product or service. 2. A steward of our natural resources, demonstrates
sound conservation. 3. Provides leadership in forestry, ranching, farming
or any other land base endeavor. 4. Long standing exceptional industry practices.
UNSUNG HERO AWARD Eligibility: An individual in Wallowa County who works quietly behind the scenes and without recognition to achieve a humanitarian or community cause.
Judging Criteria: 1. Long standing leadership and community services. 2. Instills passion and love of community to others. 3. Caught in the act of above and beyond caring.
309 South River Street, Ste B PO Box 427 Enterprise, OR 97828
Wallowa County – Local nonprofit NEON will provide free help to people signing up for health insurance during HealthCare.gov’s open enrollment pe-riod, Nov. 1 through Dec. 15.
The six-week open enrollment period is the time to choose a health insurance plan if you do not have coverage through a job or another program. It does not apply to the Oregon Health Plan, which has no deadline.
“Especially after months of political debates over health care, anyone could be confused about what’s available and how to get covered,” said Vixen Radford-Wecks, Outreach & Enrollment Specialist/Community Health Worker of Northeast Oregon Network (NEON). “But 2018 plans – and help pay-ing for them – are available again at HealthCare.gov, and we can help people complete the application, understand their plan options, and get cov-ered.”
Many Oregonians qualify for help paying for coverage. For example, individuals making less than $48,000 or families of four with income less than $98,000 may be eligible through HealthCare.gov.
NEON staff have been trained and certified by the Oregon Health Insurance Marketplace, a division of the Department of Consumer and Business Services. NEON’s work is supported by a grant from the Marketplace, and its staff can assist consumers enrolling in any health insurance program, whether through HealthCare.gov, the Oregon Health Plan, or Medicare.
Make an appointment for enrollment assistance by contacting Vixen Radford-Wecks at NEON at 541-398-2539 or [email protected].
Local Organization
Poised Help Oregonians Enroll in
Health
Last Chance for Tickets!
22nd Annual Healthy Futures Dinner Auction!
Saturday, November 11, 2017 Cloverleaf Hall, Enterprise
Doors open 5:00 pm
To purchase tickets: Stop by the Foundation Office at Wallowa Memorial Hospital Or mail check made out to WVHCF to PO Box 53, Enterprise 97828. Please specify beef, chicken or vegetarian entrée. Space is limited; Tickets are $60 per person
Your support is greatly appreciated