November 2007
Volume 7, No. 5

Eleven years ago, the Virginia Municipal  League (VML) added a new category to their statewide achievement awards program. The President’s Award was developed to encourage the ideals of entrepreneurial government through the delivery of improved services to its citizens. Roanoke County received the award for TEK Camp 2006 which is a collaborative project with Hollins University. The purpose is to identify youth with technical potential at an early age, enhance their skills training in the secondary school system and have the graduate enter into an entry level job that has a sustainable career path. The President’s Award is the most prestigious award granted by the VML statewide on an annual basis. For more on this article, click here.

Roanoke County Department of Economic Development www.yesroanoke.com

Left to Right: Joe McNamara, Board Chairman; Richard Alvarez, VP, Hollins University; Elmer Hodge, County Administrator; Nancy Gray, President Hollins University; Richard Flora, Board Vice Chairman; Mike Altizer, Board Member; and Butch Church, Board Member.

The week of October 8-12th, Atlas Cold Storage held its Third Annual Roanoke Altas Employee Safety Fair. Activities ranged from blood pressure and cholesterol screenings from Primary Care Associates to Seat Belt Awareness to a Drunk Driving Simulator with the Roanoke County Police Department. Jeff Bush, Atlas Risk Manager, related that the company strives to increase their community partnering each year for the safety fair. A focal point of the week was the Mock Disaster Drill conducted in conjunction with Fort Lewis Fire & Rescue and originally slated to include Carilion’s Lifeguard 10. The Mock Disaster Drill also included Emergency Response Team Training. The company also hosts a barbeque for each shift during the week.

Atlas Cold Storage www.atlascold.com 

Roanoke County hosted the Advisory Board of the Small Business Development Center (SBDC) at Hollins University on October 10th. The program was in advance of the E-Waste Recycling Event being hosted by the university October 10th-13th and the event’s major sponsor is Apple Computer. The purpose of the event is to identify the hazards of improper recycling and safe alternatives to dumping or incinerating electronic waste from businesses or private residences. Hollins University, Roanoke County and the Regional Chamber’s SBDC are publicizing this event through the SBDC in the hope of providing assistance to small business in the region. For more on this article, click here.

Roanoke Regional Chamber of Commerce
Small Business Development Center
www.rrsbdc.org

HOLLINS UNIVERSITY'S
E-WASTE RECYCLING EVENT

On October 10-13, 2007, Hollins University became the epicenter of the E-Waste Recycling Campaign in the state. The goal was to collect 200 tons of e-waste, it is estimated that the statewide initiative to encourage Virginians to recycle their old electronic devices resulted in the collection of an estimated 655,000 pounds of e-waste at Hollins and three other universities. The other institutions participating in the event were Virginia Tech, Old Dominion University, and the University of Richmond with a volunteer contingent at Hampden-Sydney College. For more on this article, click here.

Hollins University www.hollins.edu

This event was supported in part by a small grant from Keltech, Inc.

---

JOBS INVESTMENT PROGRAM
REACHES OUT TO SWaMs

 

In an effort to support the success of small, woman and minority-owned (SWaM) businesses in the Commonwealth, Virginia Jobs Investment Program (VJIP) of the Virginia Department of Business Assistance (VDBA) is targeting these companies to offer the program’s training, recruiting and funding resources at no cost. To read more, click here.

For more information on the Virginia Department of Assistance and the Virginia Jobs Investment Program, visit www.vdba.virginia.gov.

---

VALHALLA VINEYARD & HIDDEN VALLEY HIGH
PARTICIPATE IN E-SHIP EXPO

On October 5th, an entrepreneurial business and management workshop was held at the Roanoke Civic Center to help cultivate the business of arts and culture in the Roanoke Valley. This practical hands-on program featured lectures and exercises covering key elements of business practice featuring presentations by successful practitioners and workshop sponsors on topics such as Growing your Business/Marketing Strategy, Starting & Operating a Tourism Venture, and Financing/Managing Assets.

Debra Vascik, Winemaker for Valhalla Vineyards, served as one of four guest speakers for the Success Stories presentation segment. The presentation was geared to start-up entrepreneurs and followed by a question and answer session with the audience. In attendance were approximately twenty advanced marketing students and their teachers and counselors from Hidden Valley High School who are beginning a program of study on how to start and operate a new business.

Valhalla Vineyards www.valhallawines.com
Hidden Valley High School www.rcs.k12.va.us/hvhs

---

ROANOKE REGIONAL SMALL BUSINESS AWARDS

October 3, 2006

COMPANY	CATEGORY	AWARD CLASSIFICATION
Bruce Cody	Small Business Advocate	Award Nominee
Pure Spa	Micro-Business	Award Nominee
Huntington Learning Center	Business-to-Business Services	Award Nominee
Spa VA Premiere Day Spa	Business-to-Business Services	Award Nominee
Leisure Publishing	Business-to-Business Services	Award Winner
Architectural Wood	Manufacturing	Award Nominee
Keltech, Inc.	Manufacturing	Award Nominee
M & W Fire Apparatus	Manufacturing	Award Nominee
Davidsons	Legacy Award	Award Winner
Community High School	Not-for-Profit Arts & Culture	Award Nominee
Depaul Family Services	NFP, Health & Human Services	Award Nominee
Good Samaritan Hospice	NFP, Health & Human Services	Award Nominee

The Roanoke Regional Chamber of Commerce and Roanoke Regional Small Business Development Center held the 21st Annual Small Business Awards dinner on October 2nd at The Hotel Roanoke & Conference Center. The annual awards showcase the accomplishments of the small business sector which is composed of 99 percent of the area's business community.

Roanoke Regional Chamber of Commerce
Small Business Development Center
www.rrsbdc.org

To subscribe or unsubscribe to this newsletter, please click here. Your email address will not be shared with others. Your comments and feedback are appreciated.