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Chamber Hosts Annual Nonprofit Showcase Event
‘We’re All Fighting the Same Fight’Chamber Hosts Annual Nonprofit Showcase EventBy IAN MUNRODaily News-Record 1/24/20 MASSANETTA SPRINGS — Nearly three dozen nonprofits and 85 guests mingled at Massanetta Springs Conference Center on Thursday for the annual Harrisonburg- Rockingham Chamber of Commerce nonprofit showcase.“It’s good to network and get ideas from other people,” said Jeff Wilhelm, the new director of Hope Distributed, a nonprofit that gives out 700,000 pounds of food a year and helps roughly
Sports Complex Holds Grand Opening
GAME ONSports Complex Holds Grand OpeningBy LAINE GRIFFINDaily News-Record 1/20/20 Former NBA player Ralph Sampson was just as excited as the hundreds of children and their families to be at the Horizons Edge Sports Campus grand opening Saturday.“I saw this start from nothing and turn to something, and it’s been fun to watch this building grow and now see all these families here and excited to have this available to their kids,” Sampson said of the 90,000-square-foot building.Horizons Edge, located at
Road Almost Not Taken
Road Almost Not TakenCaptain-Turned-Poet Writes Biography For Famed WordsmithBy KATHLEEN SHAWDaily News-Record 1/14/20 McGaheysville poet J. Scott Price dedicated his youth to pursuing a lifetime of military service, saw that dream go down the drain from a back injury and turned to writing after his discharge.Today, he is finishing a manuscript of his poetry and collecting information as the official biographer of Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award winning poet William Meredith.Had you asked Price
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Chamber Of Commerce Recognizes Local Business Leaders
By IAN MUNRODaily News-Record 1/9/20 When the media production company Beau Baker, Jon Hollif and Andy Vanhook worked for closed in 2011, they decided to found Appeal Production.Nearly a decade later, the trio have expanded their video production business and won the 2019 Harrisonburg-Rockingham Chamber of Commerce Entrepreneur of the Year award.“We’ve grown every year,” Vanhook said. “And I think we’ve grown more involved with the community every year.”Four other local business figures took home awards
Arc Celebrates Arrival Of Vans With Ribbon Cutting Ceremony
By IAN MUNRODaily News-Record 12/13/19 Lena Faye Stewart, 65, of Staunton loves going to dollar stores to buy make-up, but she can’t drive herself.Instead, she rides the Arc of Harrisonburg and Rockingham vans when she comes to the center located at the Lucy F. Simms Continuing Education Center in Harrisonburg.“When they say where do you want to go, I say Dollar General,” she said with a laugh.And on Thursday, the local Arc celebrated the arrival of its newest vehicles with a ribbon cutting for the pair
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Valley Legislators Prepare For Upcoming Session
By JESSICA WETZLERDaily News-Record 12/5/19 With Democrats controlling the General Assembly when it convenes next month, Valley lawmakers discussed topics of interest as the new minority during Tuesday’s pre-legislative breakfast at James Madison University.Hosted by the Harrisonburg-Rockingham Chamber of Commerce, the annual event featured a look into the upcoming session by Sen. Emmett Hanger, R-Mount Solon, Del. Tony Wilt, R-Broadway, and Delegate-elect Chris Runion, R-Bridgewater.“We live in
Officials Talk I-81 Projects, Funding
By IAN MUNRODaily News-Record 10/5/19 HARRISONBURG — With Interstate 81 improvements already underway, the Virginia Department of Transportation lead for the I-81 work, Dave Covington, joined Del. Tony Wilt, R-Broadway, a member of the Interstate 81 committee, for a Daily News- Record podcast Friday to discuss funding and what to expect on the roadway in coming months. ProjectsSome examples of improvements include enhancement to safety service patrols, along with flashing chevron signs in Botetourt,
State Chamber Partners with Local & Regional Chambers to Launch 2019 Election Center
The Chambers of Commerce Roundtable unveils their 2019 Election Center to highlight where candidates stand on issues impacting Virginia’s business community. RICHMOND, VIRGINIA – Today, the Chambers of Commerce Roundtable released their 2019 Election Center, an informational resource for Virginia’s business community to learn where candidates for the General Assembly stand on economic issues. The Chambers of Commerce Roundtable, a partnership between the state chamber and local and regional
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College Leaders Address Business Community
By MEGAN WILLIAMSDaily News-Record 8/13/19 HARRISONBURG — The four presidents of area colleges and universities met and spoke at the Spotswood Country Club on Monday during the Harrisonburg- Rockingham Chamber of Commerce meeting.The annual meeting is the unofficial start of the new school year for Presidents Jonathan Alger, from James Madison University; John Downey, from Blue Ridge Community College; David Bushman, from Bridgewater College; and Susan Huxman, from Eastern Mennonite University.The
I-81 Committee To Host Its First Meeting Next Week
By JESSICA WETZLERDaily News-Record 8/9/19 HARRISONBURG — It has been more than two months since legislation took effect creating the Interstate 81 Advisory Committee, and by Tuesday afternoon the group will have its first meeting.Per invitation by the Virginia Department of Transportation, the Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation and the Office of Intermodal Planning and Investment, the public can attend the committee’s first meeting to be held at 2 p.m. Tuesday in Lexington.The meeting
Business Issues Addressed At Summit
Ag, Broadband, I-81, Workforce DiscussedBy IAN MUNRODaily News-Record 8/9/19 WEYERS CAVE — Local business owners, regional elected officials, and Valley economic development professionals gathered for the seventh annual Valley Business Summit on Thursday at the Robert E. Plecker Workforce Center at Blue Ridge Community College in Weyers Cave.Bettina Ring, the secretary of agriculture and forestry for Virginia, gave the keynote presentation during the event’s opening ceremony, touching on subjects such as
Fairgrounds Celebrates New Horticulture Building
By JESSICA WETZLERDaily News-Record 8/8/19 HARRISONBURG — The Rockingham County Fair is one of the largest gatherings within the county and on Wednesday, the newest feature was officially ready to go.More than 60 people braved the morning thunderstorms to attend the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Horticulture building at the fairgrounds.With the help of the community and a willingness to get the job done, Fair General Manager Rebecca Holloway welcomed attendees to the “little country store” that would
Report: Virginia Best State For Business
By IAN MUNRODaily News-Record 7/11/19 HARRISONBURG — On Wednesday, Virginia was named the top state for business in America by CNBC, a news business outlet, for the first time since 2011.Good showings on business ranking lists contribute to economic development, said Frank Tamberrino, president and CEO of the Harrisonburg-Rockingham Chamber of Commerce.Companies go through what’s called a site selection process when deciding where to conduct business, be it manufacturing, logistics, services, etc., based
Report: Widening I-81 Project A ‘Boondoggle’
Local Politicians Disagree With ConclusionsBy IAN MUNRODaily News-Record 6/22/19 HARRISONBURG — The upcoming $ 2.2 billion in improvements on Interstate 81 were included in a report called “Highway Boondoggles 5” put forward by think- tanks Frontier Group and the U.S. Public Interest Research Group. “The term boondoggle and why we decided to apply it to this sort of highway project is it’s something that is wasteful,” said Matt Casale, one of the report’s authors and transportation campaign director for
WARNER & KAINE REQUEST FUNDING FOR I-81 UPGRADES
~ More than one-third of all trucks that drive through Virginia travel on I-81, which suffers from traffic delays and more than 2,000 crashes annually ~ WASHINGTON – U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA) today requested additional funding for vital improvements to Interstate 81 (I-81) that would enhance safety and reduce traffic congestion. In a pair of letters to the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works (EPW) and the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), the
Business Leaders Learn About Workforce Diversity Opportunities
By IAN MUNRODaily News-Record 6/6/19 HARRISONBURG — Dozens of business leaders learned about the tax grants and incentives available to those who hire a diverse workforce at a Harrisonburg- Rockingham Chamber of Commerce event at the Lucy F. Simms Continuing Education Center on Wednesday afternoon.The first-of-its-kind chamber event, “Diversity in Business: Diversify Your Workforce to Strengthen Your Business,” featured various speakers who touched on a number of topics, including staffing, diversity and
