Contents Chamber Board Chair Message - Page 2

Chamber Board Members - Page 3

Alcoa Hosts Manufacturers’ Roundtable - Page 4

Chamber Urges Congress to Support Export-Import Bank - Page 4

Networking Breakfast - Page 5

Simi Valley - The Guide Advertising - Pages 6-9

Safety and Emergency Preparedness Panel - Page 10

Taste of the Chamber Mixer - Page 11

Travel With The Chamber - Page 12

Race Like a Rock-Star at the YPN Social - Page 13

Simi Valley Advisory Council Meeting with Assemblyman Scott Wilk - Page 14

Community Events - Page 15

Ribbon Cuttings - Page 15

Executive Members - Page 15

Member Advertisements - Page 16

Dan Jaeger

Simi Valley Chamber of Commerce 2014 Board Chair

As we hit the mid-year mark of 2014, our board and staff have been busy on your behalf during the first half of the year. We have seen another successful Street Fair and many fun breakfast and luncheon events. We have been exploring some new ventures and partnering with other coalitions to strengthen our member-ship. Here are some highlights:

Promoting the Community

Tourism Marketing District:

The Chamber, Local Hoteliers and The City have partnered to implement a Tourism Marketing District with the intent is to bring groups and organi-zations to the community for meetings event support and attraction to sustain and grow existing events and overnight visitors to our community, to create new events that do the same and to attract events currently taking place elsewhere that bring overnight visitors to Simi Valley.

Street Fair:

Our most successful Street Fair yet, with over 350 participants and more than 15,000 attendees. Held on Cochran Street the second Saturday in May, the event seems to grow each year.

Leadership Simi Valley:

The Leadership Simi Valley program completed the 25th Class, Class of 2014 and held their Graduation ceremony with LSV Alumni in attendance in June. Recruiting has begun for the Class of 2015.

State of the City:

Mayor Bob Huber gave an update on the state of our city. City leaders and department heads gave updates on the status of each department as it related to the business community.

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We Create Opportunities for Business Success by: Creating a strong local economy

Providing networking opportunities

Representing the interests of business

with government

Taking political action

Supporting a sustainable future

MISSION STATEMENT The Chamber Promotes Business in Simi Valley Through Leadership,

Political Action and Services to Increase Opportunities

For Our Members

OFFICERS Dan Jaeger Board Chair

Simi Valley Family YMCA

Leigh Nixon President & CEO

Simi Valley Chamber of Commerce

Michelle Foster Chair-Elect

Simi Valley Hospital

Maggie Kestly Chief Financial Officer Mid Valley Properties

Mike McCaffrey Vice Chair Economic Development

McCaffrey Insurance Services

Jim Vigdor Vice Chair Legislative Action

Alcoa Fastening Systems

Caroline Gibson Vice Chair Tourism

Best Western Plus Posada Royale Hotel & Suites

Mike Nolan Past Chair & Secretary

Aflac Insurance

DIRECTORS Pat Abruzzese, Pacific Cabling Network Solutions

Karen Gabler, LightGabler LLP

Jill Haney, Union Bank

Lisa Hemenway, Waste Management

Mike Hoffman, The 20/20 Network PR

Phil Isbell, Simi Valley Buick GMC

Gina Mazzapica, Time Warner Cable Media

Scott Newbern, AeroVironment

Celina Zacarias, CSU Channel Islands

BOARD ADVISORS Dick Erbe, Law Offices of Richard S. Erbe

Tim Shannon, Farmers Insurance

Larry Hibbler, Simi Valley Ford

STAFF Leigh Nixon, President & CEO

Michele Bennett, Vice President

John Tolson, Director of Membership & Marketing

Kathi Van Etten, Director of Communications

Marybeth Jacobsen, Governmental Relations Manager

Mackenzie Tolson, Projects Coordinator

Michelle Skidmore, Advertising Director

Sally Grant, Receptionist

SIMI VALLEY CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AND VISITOR’S CENTER

40 W. Cochran Street, Suite 100 Simi Valley , CA 93065

Phone: 805-526-3900 Fax: 805-526-6234 www.simivalleychamber.org

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Business Advocacy:

The Simi Valley Chamber of Commerce took an active role in business advocacy in the past six months. This means we lobbied, wrote letters and sent emails on your behalf to State Legislators and bill authors to fight for business issues.

Health care: The Chamber was very active in its opposition to the Health Care Reforms due to the effect it will have on em ployer’s ability to pay for it.

Split Roll Taxes: This issue would upend Prop 13 by allowing property tax in creases for commercial buildings. We won a victory on our fight with this as it did not pass last month. How ever, we think it will return next year with a different name and number.

Washington DC and Sacramento lobbying trips: The Simi Valley Chamber participated in the US Chamber’s Advocacy Fly-In pro-gram where seven chamber members and staff met with US Chamber Representatives, Congressman Buck McKeon and Congresswoman Julia Brownley, to discuss issues facing California Businesses.

Also in May, the Simi Valley Chamber participated in the California Chamber’s Business Briefing, where we won an award for our business advocacy efforts. We met with Assemblyman Scott Wilk and Senator Fran Pavely about business issues affecting our chamber members.

Networking Activities:

Breakfasts: Monthly networking breakfasts have seen record attendance. The live sound bite commercials and introduction of the new members make for a lively and informative breakfast.

Ribbon Cuttings: We have had over 30 Ribbon Cutting ceremo- nies so far this year. Members have celebrated anniversaries, milestones, new partnerships, and of course Grand Openings. This has been a great opportunity for members to network with one another while attending the ribbon cutting for a business.

Ambassadors: Chamber Ambassadors are there to help greet new members and prospects at all networking events. They are also mentoring new chamber members and helping them to get their business involved and active.

Other Projects:

Simi Valley Chamber of Commerce Workforce Alliance: The Simi Valley Chamber of Commerce is launching a new Work force Foundation and is in the process of completing the 501 C3 paper work to launch in the last quarter of 2014.

Re-Accreditation: The Simi Valley Chamber’s 25 year Reaccredi- tation application will be due at the end of 2014. Meetings are in process and the various groups are evaluating all aspects of the Simi Valley Chamber programs, governance, finances, communi- cations.

The United States has had an Export-Import

Bank for 80 years. Unless Congress re-

authorizes the bank by September 30, its charter

will expire.

Last year the Bank, which operates at no cost to

taxpayers, supported $37 billion in exports

which sustained more than 200,000 American

jobs. Small and medium sized businesses ac-

counted for ninety percent of the Bank’s transac-

tions.

The Bank’s loan guarantees for exports will dis-

appear if the Bank charter expires. Because oth-

er nations much more aggressively support their

exporters, U.S. exporters will be at a severe glob-

al trade disadvantage without re-authorization.

California is the second largest exporting state

in the country. In the last two years, the Bank

supported over $85 million in exports just from

our Congressional District. If the Bank dis-

solves, California in general, and our Congres-

sional District in particular, will lose sales and

jobs at a time when we should be boosting ex-

ports to grow our economy. Congressman

McKeon stands behind re-authorization and will

support the Bank when a vote comes to the floor.

Business community support for re-

authorization is over-whelming. The U.S. Cham-

ber of Commerce teamed up with the National

Association of Manufacturers to urge Congress to

re-authorize the Export-Import Bank. Together,

these two organizations have submitted a letter

of support for re-authorization to Congress that

is endorsed by over 800 businesses, associations

and Chambers (including

the Simi Valley Chamber

of Commerce).

We will keep you posted as

re-authorization comes up

for a vote.

By Marybeth Jacobsen

Chamber Urges Congress to Support Export-Import Bank

Alcoa Fastening Systems in Simi Valley, CA was host to Simi Valley Chamber of Com-merce’s first Manufacturer’s Roundtable. The event assem-bled key players from busi-ness, education and govern-ment to initiate a discussion on workforce development, the mantra of the Chamber’s newly forming Workforce Edu-cation Coalition.

Representatives from large and small businesses including Alcoa, Boeing, Chevron, Meg-gitt, AeroVironment, Vanderhorst Bros., Jaxx Elec-tronics, Kinamed, Udash, Mal-abar, Interscan, and Wattz On entered into conversation with educators from the Ven-tura County Office of Educa-tion and College of the Can-yons and Government repre-sentatives for State Assembly-man Jeff Gorell, Ventura Coun-ty Supervisor Peter Foy and the City of Simi Valley’s Asst. City Manager, Brian Gabler.

Jack Stewart, President of the California Manufacturing and Technology Association (CMTA) and longtime advo-cate of career tech education for the development of a skilled workforce was the Key-note Speaker for the Roundtable and shared his perspectives on the critical shortage of technically skilled workers and college educated engineers and how business and educators can work to-gether to fill these shortages. Stewart said “we need to change the perception that exists of factories being a dirty and low wage environment. The fact is, just the opposite. Today’s manufacturing envi-ronments are clean and staffed with a well paid work-force with good benefits. However, that workforce is aging and needs to have the current workforce gaps filled with people graduating High School and College.”

Jim Vigdor, Operations Manager at Alcoa Fastening Systems and Vice Chairmen of Legislative Ad-vocacy Forum for the Chamber noted “Mr. Stewart’s comments were supported by the HR Man-agers, Presidents and CEO’s who indicated they have a very diffi-cult time finding skilled workers for their available positions. Edu-cators indicated that they are struggling to discover the busi-ness needs to develop acceptable Certification programs in schools. Further the educators indicated that the legislatively mandated coursework admissions require-ments for the UC and CSU sys-tems precludes students from attending these technical skilled based career track courses as they are not included in college admission requirements.”

Roundtable members indicated that bolstering intern programs suggesting government legislative incentives to not only support businesses that offer internships to students but give the capability to those companies who other-wise would not be able to offer internships.

The Roundtable created a very dynamic conversation to address a growing issue already having a negative impact on business and the Chamber intends to continue this program and move the dia-logue into actions to resolve this critical business need.

the dialogue into actions to re-solve this critical business need.

Chamber Gathers Major Manufacturers to Simi Valley

FRIDAY, AUGUST 8TH 7:00 a.m. Networking—7:30 a.m. Meeting

Sponsor : Simi Valley Days Grand Vista Hotel, 999 Enchanted Way, Simi Valley

Members: Advance-$18.00

(At Door $20.00)

Non-Member: $20.00

RSVP by Noon on Wednesday, July 9

to get on the HOT SHEET!

At the July 2014 Networking Breakfast, Tom Saulnier of Hand in Hand Mobile Massage was recognized as Ambassador of the Quarter for the second quarter of 2014. Tom has served on the Ambassador Team for many years and has been an asset to the team attending numerous events, assisting with the TMD and the shredding events and has mentored several new members this last quarter. He sets the standard on the quality of mentoring…

Congratulations Tom!

Representatives from the Freed Clinic of Simi Valley Board of Directors pose with 2014 Chamber Board Chair, Dan Jaeger, at the July 2014 Networking Breakfast.

The mission of the Free Clinic of Simi Valley is to provide med-ical care, counseling, dental and legal assistance to individuals and families, regardless of their ability to pay.

http://simichamber.org/chamber-news-events/chamber-calendar?task=view_event&event_id=152

http://simichamber.org/chamber-news-events/chamber-calendar?task=view_event&event_id=151

http://simichamber.org/about-chamber/programs/travel-with-the-chamber

Major Community Events for August 2014: Visit the individual websites for more information

August 2 Fairy Tales in the Park - Rancho Simi Community Park Amphitheater www.rsrpd.org August 2 National Night Out - 4:00 PM - 8:00 PM Your Neighborhood www.simivalley.org August 7 Big Band Dinner & Dance-Music of the 20’s, 30’s & 40’s Reagan Library - www.reaganfoundation.org/events August 11 Dog Days of Summer Golf Classic/Simi Valley Police Foundation - 9:00 AM www.svpf.org August 14 The 4th Annual Little Black Dress Fashion Show 6:00 PM One of the Girls www.oneofthegirls.us August 16 Music In The Park—Rancho Simi Madera park - 6PM Lynryd Skynrd Tribute - www.rsrpd.org August 27 Simi Valley Hospital Foundation Golf Classic - Moorpark Country Club - simivalleyhospital.com/foundation August 23 A Tribute to the Eagles - The Long Run Band Reagan Library - www.reaganfoundation.org/events

The Simi Valley Chamber of Commerce 40 W. Cochran Street, #100

Simi Valley, CA 93065 805-526-3900

www.simivalleychamber.org

August 2014 Chamber Events: Visit www.simichamber.org or call 805-526-3900 for event details

Tues. August 5 SCORE Seminar-Technology to Support Your Business - www.ventura.score.org Fri., August 8 Networking Breakfast 7:00 AM—Grand Vista Hotel

Fri., August 8 Shredding Event 1:00 PM-4:00 PM– Chamber Parking Lot Fri., August 8 Ribbon Cutting at The MINT Fashion Exchange 12:00 Noon -themintfashionexchange.com Wed., August 20 YPN Mixer at MB2 Raceway 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM Fri., August 22 Safety & Emergency Preparedness Panel 8:00 AM-9:30 AM- Courtyard by Marriott

Fri., August 29 YPN Cash Mob Lunch at 118 Café 12:00 Noon

Add your event to the Chamber Community

Events Calendar at www.simichamber.org/events

It’s FREE & it’s EASY!

Visiting Angels, 1791 Erringer Rd., # 201 celebrated their Grand

Opening with a ribbon cutting on July 16.

Comfy Dental, 1357 E. Los Angeles Ave., #1 celebrated their Grand

Opening with a ribbon cutting on July 17.

$5 or Less Bookstore, 2880-A Cochran Street celebrated the Grand Opening of their new location with a

ribbon cutting on July 25.

Visiting Angels - 805-522-9900 Comfy Dental - 805-433-9117 $5 or Less Bookstore - 805-584-8979