Dear Chamber Supporters:
I’m writing this from sunny Arizona (only a cool 50 degrees – but better than 27 with snow and ice like you are experiencing)…and no I didn’t go to the Super Bowl! I am however still smiling about the results (few family game pictures here)…I’m sure many of you are too. What a game and what a finish!! Already being dubbed as one of the greatest Super Bowls of all time!! The Chiefs are slow to call the team a dynasty – if not a dynasty, it’s fair to say they are on a pinnacle and looking down at the rest of the NFL. What a fun year!!
I’m in Surprise, Arizona to attend Ottawa University board meetings and see the work which has been completed on this campus (pictures here). Pretty amazing…this was absolutely nothing but desert 6-years ago, and now, one new dorm recently finished, and another being built. With the football field, student union, sports arena, classrooms, and dormitories…this is an amazing achievement.
I’m here right in between my sports teams…the Chiefs just left and the Royals really don’t report until next week – rats! There were a lot of baseball players on my plane ride here…you can spot them easily...they are all 18-21 years old, tall, athletic physics and (mainly because they are) all carrying their ball gloves (guess they are too important to go in checked luggage). Collectively they are easy to recognize…but I have no idea if any were Royals. There are 15 total teams who hold spring training in the entire Phoenix Valley...also known as the Cactus League.
Thursday morning the City of Surprise and OUAZ (Ottawa University Arizona) participated in Partnership Day (few pictures here). A joint proclamation was read and a new bell was donated by Surprise City Development Company and dedicated to the university. The proclamation stated many “whereas’s” but basically acknowledges the establishment of the partnership 6 years ago and declared every 3rd Thursday in February to be Partnership Day between the city and university. They are looking to establish traditions on this fledgling campus…this should be a good one.
5-Love Languages:
Diane Munrou-Seymour (picture here) was our Rotary speaker this week. A trained psychiatrist, Diane has been in practice for more than 29 years and has diverse experiences…especially in clinical social work. Additionally, she is a Counselor of Addiction & Substance Use Disorder, a Counselor of Mental Health, a Social Worker and Clinical practice. She affiliates with no hospital, cooperates with many other doctors and specialists but hasn’t joined any medical groups. For 20 years she has used the book by Gary Chapman, The 5 Love Languages to help couples and families navigate challenging times. The 5 love languages are:
- Words of affirmation
- Acts of service
- Gifts
- Quality time
- Physical touch
This was new to me…many already knew of Chapman’s work and the potential of using and knowing your love language. Diane emphasized it’s important not only to know your love language but the love languages of your partner and also your co-workers. Here is an article printed in “Woman’s Magazine” if you would like to learn more. The basic thrust is everyone has a way they express love…and it’s the same manner in which they most appreciate receiving love. At times, tensions can fester when we speak in our love language, but it is a different love language than the person with whom we are communicating. We feel we are being compassionate...the message is not received the same way. If we become sensitive to others and can learn their love language…the manner in which they best receive information, we can reduce conflicts and disagreements. Anything we can do to better express love to everyone around us is a worthwhile investment in effort and time!
Leadership Franklin Co. to Capitol:
Every year, the LFC class spends a day in Topeka learning about state government (few pictures here). This is always a good excursion and opens eyes as to how state laws are created. They were able to sit and visit with our own legislators and get a tour of the Capitol…an extremely beautiful building. It cost Kansans $20 plus million to refurbish the building to its original glory in the early 2000's, but it was worth it. The magnificent building makes a statement about how valuable democracy was to early Kansas citizens…what it means and how we value it today. Same is true of our own local courthouse. Maintaining the integrity and grandeur of these symbolic buildings is important!! Leadership class participants discover making state laws is much more complicated than creating local ordinances. It’s good orientation…and good indoctrination!!
USD 290:
Dr. Ryan Cobbs updated the Chamber Board this week regarding legislation currently before the Kansas Legislature which affects education and education funding. Most concerning to me is a bill which would extend the number of contact days for teachers and students from 180 days to 193 days…two full weeks! The cost to the Ottawa school district alone would be over $2 million…the question is – will the legislature mandate additional funding to pay for this; and think of the cost for the entire state of Kansas. Don’t misunderstand…I think more contact time is great, but at what cost? It is not only dollars…it’s also teacher burnout – already a problem. Supposedly this particular legislation was some lawmakers’ response to school districts implementing 4-day weeks. I still much prefer them staying out of it and letting local school boards make the decisions.
Destination Strategies That Work in Any Economy:
There was a handful of Franklin County businesses representing our community this Thursday in Garnett for the Destination Strategies workshop and marketing roundtable (pictures here). Big thank you to Paul Bean for leading the Franklin County E-Community which made it possible for us to attend this program. The speaker/creator of this content was Jon Schallert, who has been teaching businesses how to turn themselves into consumer destinations for over 24 years. The three-hour gathering touched on just some of the steps in his full “14-Step Destination Business Process” that usually takes place over the course of three days at his boot camp in Colorado. Though the information shared Thursday was just the tip of the iceberg, there was plenty of relevant knowledge to come away with. Just one of the thoughts Jon mentioned to the group… “all local businesses are already unique in nature; it is finding ways to magnify their uniqueness that will make them a destination”. With so many special businesses to experience in Ottawa, there’s no reason why we cannot be a destination location, I hope you all feel similarly! Stay tuned as there might be more educational opportunities on this topic around the corner.
Finding Dorothy:
Finding Dorothy is the O-Town reads book this spring…Thursday author, Elizabeth Letts, came to Ottawa to visit with about 50 local citizens regarding the book and her inspiration for it. At noon she addressed the civic clubs at Prime Time Grille (hosted by Rotary). Unfortunately, I’m in Surprise…but Cherry attended and shared several interesting comments and these pictures. Of course, her interest in the original story, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, began as she read the epic tales to her children. Most intriguing were the strong women characters developed in the Frank Baum stories…so much so, she wondered if Frank Baum was a pen name for a woman. This wasn’t the case but while investigating the story she discovered a strong woman in Frank’s life…his wife Maud. The story is a historical fiction which tells Maud’s story of representing her husband and the integrity of his written word as it was translated onto the big screen. Oh…and one last interesting fact – Elizabeth learned that Frank Baum came to Ottawa when he was promoting his stories. Pretty neat…what a fun time I missed…still encourage you to read this story!
Appanoose Chili Supper:
Last Saturday evening, Cherry and I went to the Appanoose Elementary School chili supper…a tradition in that small farming community which has been going on for at least 60 years (few pictures here). Our Flory grandkids go to school there…it is a close-knit community and a great environment for kids to learn and in which to grow up. You can tell how much the rural neighborhood supports their school by the numbers at this annual event! Besides chili, the event includes raffles, a live auction, a carnival, a cake walk, bingo and a book fair…they raise the money to pay for kid’s school supplies, field trips and whatever financial needs arise for their local school. Fun evening…saw many people from Ottawa there too.
Well, football is over…it’s on to basketball and baseball. But what a fun football season – both for KU and K-State fans… and of course the Chiefs. We probably won’t have as complete a season as this past year has been for a while. It has been a fun run and still much to ruminate on. I had to record the parade and celebration…I’ll watch that when I’m home from Phoenix.
I’ll see you back in Ottawa…talk to you next week.
Onward ~ John
President/CEO
Ottawa Area Chamber of Commerce
john@ottawakansas.org
785-242-1000