Dear Members:
As you read this, I am in Phoenix this week playing in the Men’s Senior Baseball League World Series, but my absence isn’t going to stop the Chamber from doing business as usual.
Elmhurst Community Directory
More than 18,000 copies of the 2011-12 Elmhurst Community Directory will be direct mailed this week to Elmhurst residents and businesses. Our Directory includes a Community Info section, Buyer’s Guide and alphabetical listing of Chamber members.
This year’s publication features a foldout cover promoting the Chamber’s Got It! in Elmhurst campaign done in partnership with the City of Elmhurst.. The Got It! logo appear prominently on the front cover, while the two-sided foldout page has a street map of Elmhurst on the front side and a letter from Elmhurst Mayor Peter P. “Pete” DiCianni III on the reverse side.
Got It! in Elmhurst
The Chamber worked hard in October to get our Our Got It! in Elmhurst message out to residents and businesses alike via a variety of avenues that included print and web advertising, event marketing, promotional signage and product giveaways.
Aside from the Directory, a Got It! post-it note appeared on the cover of the October 7 issue of the Elmhurst Press, a mix of display ads have appeared in the Elmhurst Independent, web ads have been uploaded to ElmhurstPatch.com’s home, business and shopping pages and Elmhurst residents received a two-sided informational door hanger on October 25.
The Chamber also is in the process of distributing 2,500 eco-friendly tote bags to residents and 3,000 static-cling decals to businesses, each featuring the Got It! text box, plus 1,000 lapel pins of our smart phone-styled logo. If you would like any of these items for your business or home, please contact the Chamber office by phone or e-mail.
We handed out 500 totes apiece at Elmhurst City Centre’s BOO-tiful Saturday on October 29 and York & Vallette Business Association’s Fall Fest on October 8, and another 200 totes at Community Bank of Elmhurst’s Document Shred Day on October 22. Business people have taken 200 totes at Chamber events, and residents have picked up 300 totes at Elmhurst City Hall and 100 totes at the Elmhurst Public Library.
So look for Got It! to pop up all around Elmhurst in November and December—and possibly into 2012.
You can help spread the message, too, with a simple Got It! text to your family and friends when shopping or dining in Elmhurst.
Business-To-Business Expo
Thanks to all of you who participated in “A Passport to Success,” the multi-chamber Business-To-Business Expo sponsored in part by Harris Bank, AT&T and SIGN*A*RAMA, at the Diplomat West Banquet Halls on October 26.
Fifty businesspeople from the Elmhurst, Addison, Bensenville and Villa Park chambers took part in new and well-received Speed Networking program prior to the Expo.
Direct Mail Presentation
The Chamber will host “Every Door Direct Mail Retail” presentations by the U.S. Postal Service on Wednesday, November 2, at 8 a.m. and 1 p.m. Click HERE to register.
The new regulations saved the Chamber $2,000 in postage to mail the Community Directory, dropping the per piece cost from nearly 24 cents down to 14.2 cents.
Membership Breakfast
Elmhurst Memorial Healthcare will sponsor the monthly Membership Breakfast at the new Elmhurst Memorial Hospital campus (155 East Brush Hill Road) on Friday, November 4, from 8 to 9 a.m. Click HERE to register.
Some 80 people have already registered and that was before news broke of EMHC’s merger talks with Northwestern Memorial Hospital.
The Kiwanis Club of Elmhurst, for which I also serve as President, will present EMHC with a check for $10,000 for the second annual installment of a three-year, $30,000 pledge to sponsor the new hospital’s Neo-Natal Waiting Room. While I’ll miss the photo op, my signature is on the check.
Business After Hours
In celebration of their 20th Anniversary in business, Patrick T. Sheehan & Associates, Attorneys at Law (314 North York Street) will sponsor the monthly Business After Hours on Thursday, November 17, from 5 to 7 p.m. Click HERE to register.
Director Elections
The Teller Committee on October 28 counted ballots and certified the results in the Chamber’s annual Board of Directors elections. The following candidates were elected to serve three-year terms starting this month: Bob Herlien (allied Waster Services), Bill Korbel (Elmhurst Press), Julie Miller (Patrick T. Sheehan & Associates), Joe Muchow (E.L. Foust Co., Inc.), Chelle O’Connell (Chicagoland Group), Joyce Slone (Slone Commercial) and Jennifer Speaker (SMB Advantage Group). The new Directors will be installed at the November 8 Board meeting at Community Bank of Elmhurst.