Good afternoon,
April showers bring May flowers! When it rains it pours, at least that’s what we’ve experienced here this past week, heavy showers and moments of sleet have been part of our forecast. The weather prompted Makayla and me to visit the oldest operating theatre in the world, the Plaza Cinema, to watch the new Super Mario Bros Movie on Saturday. We both have memories of playing these games growing up, between nostalgia and good family fun, this is a great watch in my book. It’s still showing this weekend if you or the family are interested in catching it downtown!
Sunday I got to spend time with the former boss as we headed up to Kauffman Stadium to watch the Royals (picture here). The chilly day prompted many layers, we were warm but the Royals were cold as we watched another loss from the boys in baby blue jerseys. It’s a tough time to be a Kansas City sports fan, KC Current, Sporting KC and the Royals are all having slow starts to their seasons. The Chiefs must have stolen the talent of our other teams to pull of their Super Bowl win in February (Space Jam reference). Regardless of wins or losses, it is still fun to spend time with friends and family in sports stadiums.
KOFO
I have been able to experience many firsts over the past handful of weeks, and getting to spend time with Jeff Brewer recording at the station was another first for me. We were able to discuss my journey, my experiences at OU and in the community, my vision moving forward for our 100-year-old organization, and some goals I hope to be able to accomplish as your President. I appreciate Jeff spending time to talk with me and editing the segment… hopefully I didn’t make the editing too tough for him! You’ll be able to catch the interview this Sunday at 8:05 am for the community perspective. If you aren’t in the car or don’t own a radio, no problem, www.KOFO.com allows you to listen live as long as you have an internet connection. One of my favorite parts about listening to KOFO is hearing our local business leaders in commercials, their team does a great job of creating unique blurbs to give your business or organization a voice in the community. Even if you’re not a public speaker, they help walk you through with tips, they’ll even come to you to record. Derek Chappell tells me that some of the best success they have is when a business owner is just themselves, giving the customer that connection before they even visit your store. A great example of local helping local!
Trivia Champions
While we’re talking about KOFO, they also host a bi-weekly trivia night down at PrimeTime Grille and Fusion Alley. Makayla and I made our way south of town to participate Wednesday evening and ended up walking away with a gift card and some bragging rights! Derek Chappell's trivia consists of a handful of rounds including multiple-choice, audio challenge, visual challenge, and true or false. The topic of questions for the evening was numbers and luckily I have a math wiz of a wife who carried the team (pictures here). Trivia is free to play, in a comfortable restaurant, with yummy food and drinks… three reasons you should put May 3 on your calendar for some good wholesome fun.
Pints with Friends of COF
The Friends of COF teamed up with our local brewery, Not Lost, for a fundraiser and night of mingling on Thursday (pictures here). COF (which stands for Coffey, Osage and Franklin counties) has been around since the late 60s, paving the way for our community to care for individuals who are intellectual/developmentally disabled. Without this type of support organization, many of these citizens would be unable to survive on their own. COF relies heavily on government funding as its primary source of revenue, allowing them to keep its doors open. But without added support from the communities they operate in, the scope of these goals would not be met. That’s why the Friends of COF was created in 2011, to help fill those gaps and further integrate the organization with the counties they reside in. Through the collaboration with Not Lost Brewery, $1 of every beer bought that evening goes back to COF to help support the mission. What a great partnership and an example of how to work together and get results that benefit both parties. If you’re interested in knowing more about COF check out this link here… If you’re interested to see if Not Lost Brewery could partner with your organization, find their contact information here.
Optimists Unsung Heroes
I was honored to be invited to the Franklin County Optimists “Unsung Hero” awards for high schoolers this week (pictures here). Historically this has been an event that just incorporates students from Ottawa High School, but recently the organization has made a point to change the emphasis on supporting the entire county and its youth, both Wellsville and Central Heights were able to be a part of the celebration as well. The group has high hopes that next year they will have West Franklin in attendance, achieving representation from all four local schools. Sixteen students were being recognized that evening, ranging from 9th to 12th grade. This award is unique in nature, as academic or athletic accomplishments are not necessarily how one is nominated and chosen. As the name suggests, unsung heroes are those who have integrity, do the right things without applause, help others around them succeed, or has overcome adversity in one way or another. Faculty and staff in the schools make nominations and then administrators help finalize the winners, awarding each student with a plaque, $50, and a pizza party for them and their families at the event. Representatives from each high school introduced the winning students, some reading the nomination forms from the student’s mentors in the school. I was touched by these student’s testimonies with many having overcome adversity in the truest sense… stories include overcoming a loss of a parent, or instances where the student is working to provide for their family while still in school, or supporting singled-out students in their class and sticking by them even through the loss of “status”. The level of resiliency that these students possess humbles me to my core. Though I just met all of them that evening, I couldn’t be more proud. I appreciate the Optimists for putting forth the effort to recognize these individuals, talking health, happiness and prosperity to every student recognized.
Chamber Top 10
Your chamber makes sure that all prospective new members receive a Chamber Top 10 sheet, but if you have been a member for some time, maybe this is new to you. This sheet encapsulates some great benefits you receive for being a Chamber member. Including marketing, networking, and cost-saving resources we offer. This includes promoting your events, job postings, volunteer opportunities, and specials in our newsletters, social media and in our office as print material. We can save you money on bulk mailings, conference room reservations, health insurance opportunities and the creation of a website landing page. We hope you pay attention to and attend our Chamber Coffees, Ribbon Cuttings, After Hours and Socials as these are great ways to meet other business leaders, learn about what is happening in our community, and find ways to collaborate. Connecting you with transparent and precise information is one of our goals, we hope you think of your Chamber when you need assistance or info. We don’t do our jobs if you are not supported, so check out our benefit sheet and let me know if you see anything that you might be interested in pursuing further.
This next week is lined up to keep me on my toes, full calendar ahead. Starting with Earth Day tomorrow, our downtown corners will be getting spruced up in the morning! I’ll be on Main Street and hope to see you there. As always, it’s a great day to live in Ottawa, talk to you soon.
Ryland Miller
President/CEO
Ottawa Area Chamber of Commerce
ryland@ottawakansas.org
785-242-1000