MEMBER SPOTLIGHT 700 Main Street, Sebastian, FL 32958 www.SebastianChamber.com (772) 589-5969 September 2010

Darlene Forage Executive Director

Plumbago Volunteer Services I was raised in Corpus Christi, Texas and began my volunteer service as a Candy Striper for our local Hospital. Volunteering gave me the opportunity to learn skills and meet people I would not have met otherwise. It also helped me to break out of my shell as I was always very shy. That experience changed my outward perspective and from that point on I was hooked on volunteering. After I earned my Bachelor’s Degree in Po-litical Science and a minor in Criminal Jus-tice from Florida Atlantic University I began working for the State Attorney’s Office in West Palm Beach as a Victim’s Advocate. My position brought me immense personal satisfaction and shortly after I moved to Vero Beach. After working for 211 Palm Beach/Treasure Coast I consistently heard how nonprofits

were seeking volunteers. In addition to my personal experience as a new resident seeking volunteer opportunities, I was in-spired to create a Volunteer Center. Plumbago Volunteer Services began in July 2008. The mission of Plumbago Volunteer Services is to promote volunteerism, con-nect people with the opportunities to serve, and to build the capacity of volunteer pro-grams. Volunteers need to be encouraged and supported in order to continue their hard work. Our main goal is to support volun-teers and to recognize their dedication be-cause they have a strong passion to serv-ing their community and helping those in need. Volunteers serve a variety of roles within the community. They help families in need, add spiritual and cultural value to our com-munity, distributing food to the elderly, and even assisting our public safety agencies keep our communities safe and secure.

Plumbago Volunteer Services is deter-mined in providing 1000 hours of service to Indian River County for 2011. We look for-ward to working with the volunteers in our community to help us reach our goal. If you are interested in volunteering, please visit our website www.plumbagovs.org or con-tact Darlene Forage at (772) 257-8193. “Exercise Your Heart and Soul – Volun-teer!”

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Proposed renovations to the Chamber building on

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AUGUST CHAMBER EVENTS

Business & Pleasure at Mel Fisher’s Treasure Museum

Wesley Davis, Indian River County Commissioner, District 1

Ken Pendleton, Home Instead Senior Care

Lunch at Marsh Landing Restaurant

Breakfast at Jerry Smith Tile, Inc.

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Press Release (2) Your Business information will be broadcast to media contacts from Orlando to Miami and you will receive ex-posure in all media outlets in the East Central & South Florida Regions.

Facebook Posts/Twitter Feeds (5) Share exciting updates, upcoming events or promotions for your business with hundreds of online followers.

Email Blast (1) Broadcast your latest news, upcoming event or promo-tion to over 400 Chamber members.

Flyer (1) Introduce your business along with new products and/or services to our newsletter audience. The newsletter is mailed out to 500 local businesses, government and community leaders in the Sebastian River Area monthly. It is also emailed to Chamber members and uploaded to the Chamber website, www.SebastianChamber.com.

Color Biz Card Ad (1) Reach over 500 local business members, employers, employees, government and community leaders in the Sebastian River Area for 12 consecutive months. In ad-dition to being mailed, the newsletter is also emailed to Chamber members and uploaded to the Chamber web-site, www.SebastianChamber.com.

Web Page (1) In 2009, our Chamber website had just under 3 million hits! Increase your web exposure by having your own dedicated page on www.SebastianChamber.com. Your business will be featured on your category page with a link to your business web page. Your web page will in-clude: your logo, 750 words about your business, and three photos.

Sebastian River Area Chamber of Commerce Calendar of Events

September 2010

Sept. 2 Executive Committee Meeting 8:00 a.m. Chamber Main St. Office Sept. 3 Good Morning Sebastian! 8:00 a.m. Monthly Breakfast & Special Ribbon Cutting Pelican Island Properties 1068 Main Street, Sebastian 8:30 a.m. Legislative/Government Affairs Committee Chamber Main St. Office Sept. 6 Labor Day, Chamber Closed Sept. 8 Full Board Meeting 8:00 a.m. Chamber Main St. Office Sept. 14 Monthly Luncheon at Capt. Hiram’s Tiffany Room Noon Sponsored by: SpringHill Suites by Marriott—Vero Beach Guest Speaker: Katie Nall, Indian River State College Reservations Please- $15.00, At the Door- $20.00 **Please note: The luncheon is September 14th not the 8th as listed on the reservation sheet. We apologize for any confusion!** Sept. 16 17th Annual Lifestyle & Media Auction at Disney’s Vero 6-9 p.m. Beach Resort, 9250 Island Grove Terrace, Vero Beach Sponsored in part by Sebastian River Medical Center Featuring Hamp Elliot, 93.7 the Breeze, Master of Ceremo - nies and IRC Commissioner Wesley Davis as Auctioneer Extraordinaire Chamber Members $5.00, Non-Chamber Members $10.00

Member News and Notes

At a recent Chamber Business & Pleasure, Riverside National Bank made a surprise pres-entation of $250 to the Sebastian Fishin’ Chics, a local non profit that has given back to our local community in numerous ways including college scholarships, mentoring children from the Family Homeless Shelter and outreach programs through local food banks. Riverside was able to make this donation because of their self serve coin machines which are located in most of their banking locations. Riverside Bank is a trade name of TD Bank, N.A.

Melbourne International Airport announces that US Airways has extended its discount fares from Melbourne International Airport to dozens of cities across the country with one way fares as low as $79. The new round of discounts is the third since the carrier resumed service from Melbourne International Airport in February. The fares include major market destinations such as New York, Boston and Washington, D.C. For additional details, go to www.MLBair.com.

In Cleverley & Associates’ annual report, State of the Hospital Industry, Indian River Medical Center received its highest rating (five stars) for 2010. It is one of only three hospitals in Flor-ida and the only Treasure Coast hospital to earn 5 star recognition this year. The CVI sug-gests that hospitals that have low costs, low charges, use financial resources efficiently for reinvestment back into the provision of healthcare, and provide high quality patient care oper-ate with a high degree of community care.

Laura LaPorte wants you to check out the new website for all of the events planned for the fall. Butterfly release in September, a pumpkin patch, hay rides, a sunflower field, fall festival and scare crow contest in October and a Cowboy Christmas in December. Check out La-porteFarms.com or visit them on Facebook!

The Indian River Lagoon National Scenic Byway Coalition announces the unveiling of their new website, IndianRiverLagoonByway.com, which includes the newly designated por-tion of North Indian River County. This effort took a year and half, and Nicole Holbrook, our Tourism Director, was the ongoing chair for this effort. Take a minute and check it out! And travel one of the nation’s most beautiful byways in the country!

LoPresti First Saturday event on Saturday, September 4 will feature Missionary Flights Inter-national as both speaker and charity. Involved in on-going support reliefs to Caribbean coun-ties, their DC 3 flies in food, supplies, work teams and humanitarian needs. Breakfast begins with coffee and full breakfast at 9 a.m., presentation from 10-11:30 a.m. Donation $8. Sebas-tian Airport, X26. 210 Airport Drive East. All welcome. Call Mimi Erskine 772-562-4757.

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Sebastian River Area Chamber of Commerce

Board of Directors List of Candidates

Pursuant to the Sebastian River Area Chamber of Commerce By-Laws, Article Iv, Section 2 b and c, the Chamber’s Nominating Committee has submitted the following business members as candidates for the slate of new board of direc-tors to serve terms from 2011-2013. Members shall chose three of the candi-dates to serve three year terms on the Board of Directors of the Chamber. The official ballot is enclosed in this newsletter. The election results will be tabulated on November 1, 2010. We thank the following Chamber members for agreeing to serve if elected: Rick Clayton, Oculina Bank—Rick is a Senior Vice President with Oculina Bank, in charge of the retail operations of the bank. He has been in banking for over twenty five years, and with Oculina Bank for the past six years. He moved from Western North Carolina in 1989 and has lived on the Treasure Coast for fifteen years. He has served on the Board of Directors for a number of organiza-tions through out the Treasure Coast. He enjoys reading and the outdoors. His passion is life and his goal is daily success.

Rob Hill, Blue Tangerine Solutions—Rob Hill is a local business man who has lived in Indian River County for over 13 years. He has been a board mem-ber of the following organizations: Indian River County Indian Guides, Children’s Ministry for Community Church of Vero Beach, and Indian River Riding Club. He is currently serving as a Chairman of the Membership Committee and a board member of the Indialantic Rotary Club. He is very active in the VBHS and GMS bands with his son, Jake and daughter, Katie respectively. He is currently VP of Network Services for Blue Tangerine Solutions, Inc. a web site develop-ment and network management company which serves the SE United States from Indian River County. Christy Lenz, “Casual Cruisin” - Capt. Christy was raised in Vero Beach, holds a degree in Criminal Justice from Northern Michigan University and spent twelve years with the USAF. She is the owner/operator of “Capt Christy’s Casual Cruisin” established in 2006, with a USCG Master Captain license. She provides pontoon boat tours, kayak tours and rental and shuttles to the spoil islands and picnics on the Indian River Lagoon. Capt. Christy is an active Chamber member, and a proud member of the Sebastian Fishin Chics.

Betty Lollio, Seacoast National Bank - Betty is currently the Vice Presi-dent and Branch Manager at the Seacoast National Bank here in Sebas-tian. She feels strongly about living in the community that you work and play in. She has been extremely involved in the community and her experience in-cludes; President of Sebastian Exchange Club - 10 year member, served on the Board of Directors for the Exchange Club & Castle Exchange, President of Sebastian Toastmaster and member for over 6 years and President and Vice President of the local BNI chapter, and a Sebastian Chamber of Commerce member for over 12 years. She has always been supportive of the Sebastian Chamber and is looking forward to the opportunity to serve as a Board Member.

Ted Pankiewicz, Park Place - Ted is the Community Manager of Park Place, a 400 home gated retirement community in Sebastian. He is a US Navy Veteran and a retired police officer with the City of Irvington, NJ, having earned over 100 police and civic commendations with multiple life saving awards. He was also an owner/operator of Underground Pet Fencing business for seven years before his move to Florida. Ted is married with two children, three grand-sons all of whom reside and own homes in Fellsmere. He has been an active Chamber member for a number of years. Maggie Sammons, Custom Air Systems—Maggie is the co-owner of Cus-tom Air Systems, Inc. located in both Fellsmere and Port St. Lucie, celebrating 36 years of being in business. She is married and a mother of two. She was raised in St. Lucie County and relocated to Fellsmere twelve years ago. She cur-rently serves on several community boards such as the Fellsmere From Leg Festival, City of Fellsmere Beautification Committee, SRHS Booster Club and volunteers her time with many others. She looks forward to serving on the Sebastian River Area Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors. Theresa Tolle, Bay Street Pharmacy—Theresa is a pharmacist and owner of Bay Street Pharmacy and Home Health Care in Sebastian. She graduated with a BS in Pharmacy from the University of Florida in 1988 and became owner of Bay Street Pharmacy in 1999. She is very active with local, state and national pharmacy associations and served as President of the Florida Pharmacy Asso-ciation in 2003/2004. She is currently the Vice President of the Chamber, and the Chair of the Legislative/Government Affairs Committee, she also serves on the Board of Directors of the Sebastian River Medical Center, North Indian River Chapter of the American Cancer Society and on the planning committee for the ACS Relay for Life. She also serves on the Indian River Substance Prevention Council. In her spare time, she enjoys spending time with her husband, Joe and their three children.

Sebastian River Area Chamber of Commerce

Board of Directors, 2010

Officers President – Debbi Vickers, Scripps Treasure Coast

Newspapers

Vice President – Theresa Tolle, Bay Street Pharmacy & Home Healthcare

Treasurer – Rick Wisner, Wisner Controls

Secretary – Patti Jamar, RE/MAX Riverside

Past President – Margie Duffell, Wells Fargo Home

Mortgage

Elected Directors Sandi Gehrke, Riverside Bank

Emily Holliman, Sebastian River Medical Center

Sherri Sproch, Sherri’s Floral Shoppe, Inc.

Michelle Napier, Dill & Evans, LLC

Bob Daberkow, Southern Fulfillment Services

Appointed Directors

Mickey Capp, Capp Custom Builders

Daisy Knowles, Sebastian River Medical Center

Chuck Mechling, Collier Club

Chris Pinson, Rotary Club of Sebastian

Chris O’Rourke, CPA

Beverly Paris, Paris Productions

Shawn Reeves, Merriweather Designs

Ex-Officio Wesley Davis, Indian River County Commissioner

Susan Adams, Mayor, City of Fellsmere Don Wright, Councilman, City of Sebastian

Jason Nunemaker, City Manager, City of Fellsmere Beth L. Mitchell—Executive Director

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September 2010 Beth L. Mitchell, Executive Director

“My favorite poem is the one that starts “thirty days hath September, because it actually tells you something…” Groucho Marx We had a rockin good time at Light Up Your Grill Night last month, with many of our businesses re-porting that they had in excess of 500 visitors in three hours. In its third year, we also heard two of our businesses say that they had the best numbers ever, in sales, because of Light Up Your Grill Night. Seems to be catching on with the community. We appreciate a couple of folks who helped make this happen including Wanda Simmons at Paradise Ice Cream who chaired the event, Susan Adams, Marsh Landing who donated all of the steak for the Chamber’s “steak and potato” menu, and Ken Vickers for all of the cooking. Check out the insert to see the watermelon contest winners and fabulous pictures from the evening! We move right into our next event, and our Chair, Beverly Paris, Paris Productions, promises to ratchet it up another notch. The 17th Annual Lifestyle and Media Auction needed a little freshening up, and Bev was just the person to do it! She added the “Lifestyle” component to the event, and there are packages for some very interesting things to do: a package with a bed and breakfast in Beaufort, South Carolina, a condo for a week in Marathon Key, and the opportunity to go flying with Corky Fornof, movie stunt pilot who works with LoPresti Speed Merchant. Awesome media pack-ages are also available, and Hamp Elliot, from 93.7 FM the Beach will share the spotlight with Wesley Davis at Disney’s Vero Beach Resort. By the time you receive this, the primary elections will be over (yeah!), and we will know who the candidates are for County Commission in Indian River County. We learned quite a bit about the can-didates at the Chamber’s Candidates Forum, held in August, which was well received by the public, and the candidates. Many thanks go to the Legislative/Government Affairs Committee, chaired by Theresa Tolle. Also thanks to Rene VanDeVoorde for his moderation of the event, his fairness and professionalism. Our Chamber team has created a new opportunity for our members to help them promote their busi-nesses, and it will be rolled out at our Media Auction. Ask yourself this question “What is my mes-sage, and how do I want to promote it?” We have some new tools to help you deliver that message, and look forward to sharing it with you! Pelican Petey and our Friday afternoon Facebook puzzlers have created a stir. Some are trying to answer our questions within moments of posting and the buzz is challenging us to create questions that cause a conversation. Check out Pelican Petey on Friday’s and again on Monday’s for the an-swers! Join the conversation on “Sebastian River Area Chamber of Commerce & Visitors Center” facebook page. This issue of the Currents has been dedicated to the Chamber members who have agreed to serve on our Board of Directors, if elected. There is a wealth of talent in our membership ranks, and some really, really nice people to work with. We are appreciative of their willingness to get involved in the business community, and their biographies are worth reading! Also don’t forget to send your ballot in to us, with your choices for Chamber leadership! Have a profitable month!

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