Chamber Weekly

"The Cottage Grove Area Chamber of Commerce is organized to promote the economy and business environment of the Cottage Grove area so its citizens and businesses will prosper."

We encourage you to support our Chamber member businesses and local economy and “Shop Chamber Members first”!

Many thanks for supporting our best concert season yet!

We have concluded our 2017 Season of Concerts in the Park and believe this was our most successful season ever! Len Blackstone from Windermere Commercial Real Estate and Jon Kloor from Northwest Natural Gas came in early as our Season Sponsors which set us off to a fantastic start. We completely sold out of our Supporting Sponsorships which ensured a successful season of music in the park and the Cottage Grove Safeway store even helped out with ice and water bottles to keep the bands and volunteers cool and hydrated each week. Cameron Reiten and K. Michael Roberts from KNND AM1400 did a great job with the sound and every single band provided a unique entertainment experience for the hundreds of people who were in the audience each week. We added new vendors and even had to expand electrical capacity in the park to keep up with higher demands. Nine different community organizations were able to earn money for a great cause through the 50/50 drawings in exchange for helping with set-up and take-down each week and none of them earned less than $100 for a few hours of work.

Families of all demographics could be seen playing, dancing, interacting with each other, making new friends and just enjoying each other’s company in one of the best outdoor venues that Oregon has to offer. We are extremely proud to serve Cottage Grove and we could not have done it without the help of the following people and organizations: The Stewart Family, the City of Cottage Grove, the Bohemia Foundation, Len Blackstone – Windermere Commercial Real Estate, Northwest Natural Gas, Jack Sprats Restaurant, Walmart – Cottage Grove, Lane Electric, Pacific Yurts, Cascade Home Center, Matt Bjorn – State Farm Insurance, South Lane County Fire & Rescue, Territorial Seed Company, Pacific Power, Middlefield Oaks, Emerald People’s Utility District, the Cottage Grove Sentinel, Banner Bank, RV Corral, Lane Community College, McDonald’s – Cottage Grove, the Cottage Grove Safeway, Parent Partnership, Cottage Grove Aqualions, Cottage Grove High School Cheerleaders, Cottage Grove Faith Center, Bohemia Sunrisers Kiwanis, Family Relief Nursery, Cottage Grove High School Spanish Club, Cottage Grove Brewers Guild, the Chamber Greeters, KNND AM1400 and the Cottage Grove Police Department. All of you have contributed to the success of Cottage Grove.

CALLING ALL Cottage Grove Chamber of Commerce
SUPPORTERS OF COTTAGE GROVE HIGH SCHOOL!
South Lane School District invites you to come to a fun volunteer event! Help our students on their path to High School Graduation and future success. School & community volunteers are needed to help knock on the door of every Cottage Grove high freshman family to invite them to the upcoming “9^th grade parent night”.
Meet at the Cottage Grove High School, 1375 S. River Road at 9:30am on Saturday, Sept 16.

Get coffee, treats, and your simple instructions & materials
Go out with a buddy for 60-90 minutes
Done!

MAKE A DIFFERENCE! Questions/RSVP: Kim Scrima kim.scrima@slane.k12.or.us or Joy Marshall 541-912-2921 jmarshall@stand.org

New Members in August
We welcome you and thank you for supporting the Cottage Grove Area Chamber of Commerce and our mission to promote the economy and business environment of the Cottage Grove area so its citizens and businesses will prosper

Diane & Donald Angermayer
Eugene, OR
Individual Chamber Supporters

Dave & Morre’ Hoffman
Eugene, OR
Individual Chamber Supporters

Karl & Sue Wieseke
Eugene, OR
Individual Chamber Supporters

Meet the newest member of our staff!

We are excited to announce that Jessica Baker has joined the Chamber Team as our Membership Development Coordinator. Jessica still serves as the Foundation Relations Specialist for the Cottage Grove Community Hospital Foundation and will work for the Chamber of Commerce as a part time contractor. Her goal is to meet with businesses in the Cottage Grove area and grow the Chamber’s overall membership. Jessica brings a lot of experience in developing relationships with the business community and we know she’ll be a great asset for the Cottage Grove Chamber of Commerce.

If you would like any information about the benefits of Chamber Membership, please contact our office and Jessica will be happy to meet with you. 541-942-2411

Member Benefit Highlight – Chamber Membership Directory
It’s time to prepare for the production of our 2018 Chamber Membership Directory. Letters asking you to review the information we have on file is in the mail so PLEASE REVIEW your letter, make any corrections, and return to our office. In addition, the directory is another one of the ways we promote our member businesses. As a chamber member you receive a free listing in our directory and have the opportunity to purchase advertising. Travis will be contacting you to discuss a variety of ways you can promote your business through the directory.

For those of you who have thought about membership, and wish to be in next year’s directory, the deadline for new members to be included in the directory is November 13. So now is the time to move ahead with your plans to join the Chamber. Participate in chamber membership and watch your marketing dollars stretch. To those of you who are already members, we thank you and hope you enjoy this great chamber benefit! Please contact Travis at the chamber office regarding your intent to join so that we do not miss including your business in the 2018 publication.

Business plan competition will award $10,000 in start-up cash
A chamber member entrepreneur in Cottage Grove is offering $10,000 to help fund the creation of new businesses and new jobs in the Cottage Grove Area. Harold Frazier, owner of New Breed Seed Company wanted a way to give back to the community in a way that would create new jobs and encourage entrepreneurship. “At first, I was just going to put an ad in the newspaper offering $10,000 to the best business plan that was submitted,” said Frazier. “I decided to talk to the Chamber of Commerce and see if maybe there was a better way.”

After meeting with Travis Palmer, Executive Director of the Cottage Grove Area Chamber of Commerce, they decided to bring in a few more strategic partners. “I arranged a quick meeting with our local economic development partners and we all felt like this was something that RAIN Eugene could help us with and make sure we get it right the first time,” said Palmer. “A competition like this has been on our wish-list for years but without a source for the prize money, the idea would have just sat on a shelf indefinitely. With RAIN involved, we are confident that we can host a successful business plan competition and set an example for others to follow.”

RAIN stands for Regional Accelerator & Innovation Network and their website describes them as an organization that, “connects entrepreneurs, mentors and investors together to create a network of talented and dedicated individuals who support the startup community in the Eugene-Springfield area.” Micah Elconin represents RAIN-Eugene on this project and is the Mentor in Residence. "We are excited to support this contest and connect with Cottage Grove entrepreneurs. Our staff is available to provide free mentorship to those participating. All businesses at any scale are encouraged to participate!" Rain Eugene will host open mentor hours for anyone interested on Wednesday, September 20^th from 10am to 1pm at The Healing Matrix in Cottage Grove.

Submissions are due on September 25^th and will go to a panel of judges to determine which plans are the most promising. The $10,000 will be divided into 1^st, 2^nd, and 3^rd place awards of $6,000, $3,000 and $1,000 respectively and winners will get to present their plans at an event to be held in Cottage Grove on October 25^th. For more information on how to enter the Cottage Grove Business Challenge, readers are encouraged to visit the website: cottagegrovebusinesschallenge.com
Contact
To learn more about The Cottage Grove Business Challenge, please contact:
Micah Elconin
Lane Food and Beverage Sector Strategist | Mentor in Residence, RAIN Eugene
(805) 451-0289
educatedvegetable@gmail.com
www.raineugene.org
or
Travis Palmer
Executive Director, Cottage Grove Area Chamber of Commerce
541-942-2411 – office
541-632-2491 – cell
Travis@cgchamber.com
www.cgchamber.com

Chamber Member
Business Offerings

IT’S NEVER TOO LATE!
South Lane County Fire & Rescue wants to remind everyone that your current FIREMED Membership expired on June 30th. If you haven’t yet renewed, or want to join with a new membership, don’t delay! Visit www.Southlanefire.org or call 541-942-4493 today!

Do you have something you'd like to promote? Post it here! $20 per ad/week or Buy 3 get one FREE! Non Profit discounts also available. Call the C.G. Chamber at (541) 942-2411 or email info@cgchamber.com for more details. Thank you for supporting our Member Businesses. Support the businesses that support the community and Shop Chamber Members First!

Chamber and Free
Community Activities

For details on the events below visit our website calendar at www.cgchamber.com
(chamber events in bold)

September
11    Regular City Council Meeting
12   Cycle Oregon arrives at Dorena Lake
16   Chamber Night at the Speedway
18    Promotions Committee
19    Third Tuesday Poetry Night at Axe & Fiddle, hosted by Kalapuya Books
20    Chamber Board Lunch
21    Greeters Committee Meeting
21    Business After Hours – South Lane County Fire & Rescue
23    Village Uncorked
25    Regular City Council Meeting
29    Art Walk