I'm involved with our small town chamber of commerce and am involved with a couple of others in the area. One of them really works together fantastically and we share the work, etc... My small town chamber that I serve as a director on the board for is a mess! No organization and everyone backstabs. Especially the president.
Yesterday we had a meeting and I brought up the subject of 1)organizing; 2)deligating responsibility; and 3)working together with the 7 (!!) other committees we have in our tiny town and share the load. In turn, help the community be a better place to work and live in. This will give the other businesses reason to join. There are a couple of other graphics people in town and I've contacted both of them and they aren't interested in helping out until they see results. That's fine.
Is it worth it? I wish the community would work together as well as all of you Letterheads do here on the website! I feel like it can't happen and when I hear everyone talking behind everyone's back, etc... it makes me sick!! Dave is ready to KILL me. It is a serious waste of time. I'm so mad at myself for not learning this lesson already - it's been happening for the entire 5 years I've been involved.
Anyone else ever have this dissappointment? I probably brought it on myself. I want create a newsletter and try to get all of the businesses to work together, etc... clean up the town, etc.... The borough manager knows of all kinds of ways to do this downtown revitialization that all the towns are doing around here but isn't enforcing it. It would generate work for our town - everything from painting, blacktopping to signs, etc...
I noticed the entry yesterday about books people have read. Maybe I better read that one someone mentioned on focus - like on my designs and stuff I love - like reading this site more often.
Just curious. Love this site!!!
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Summit Signs
Sellersville, PA
summitsigns@erols.com
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Kevin Landry
KnL Signs
Halifax NS
This dramatically illustrates the attitude of far too many communities, and I don't know the cure... I've been in my community for 22 years, volunteered in countless ways, for the Chamber of Commerce, the schools, you name it... and it never changes. No good deed ever goes unpunished...
I give up.
LE
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LazyEdna
in RL known as Sara Straw
from southern Utah
5 National Parks within 3 hours drive
Red Rock Heaven
That said, if its important to you - do it. Be the example.
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Warning: A well designed sign may cause fatigue due to increased business.
http://members.tripod.com/taylor_graphics
walldog@nc.rr.com
Bert goes to Portland to hear Norman Thomas give a speech, and when he comes home he starts preaching Socialism to his neighbor, Lester. "Under Socialism we'd share everything" explains Bert, so Lester wants more details.
"So what you're saying, Bert, is that if you had two farms, you'd give me one?"
"That's right, Lester. If I had two farms, I'd give you one."
"And if you had two tractors, you'd give me one?"
"Ayuh, if I had two tractors, I'd give you one."
"What about hogs, Bert? If you had two hogs, would you give me one?" at which point Bert gets testy and says, "Dammit, Lester, you're trying to trick me! You know darn well I have two hogs!"
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"A wise man concerns himself with the truth, not with what people believe." - Aristotle
When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro. - Raoul Duke (Hunter S. Thompson)
Cam
Finest Kind Signs
256 S. Broad St.
Pawcatuck, Ct. 06379
"Award winning Signs since 1988"
Hang in there, time has a way about changing things all by itself.
Need more advice, e-mail me towjamn@aol.com
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Ken Morse
Jamn Graphics
Santa Cruz, CA
Our last meeting, on Tues, was really heated and I just let it out. It got hot. It all started out great and everyone was so receptive. I brought the whole subject up. We discussed plans for a meeting for our chamber to set by-laws, goals, organization, deligating responsibility, etc... Then the next meeting was going to be with all of the parties in the town and have a rep from each describe what their goals were, etc... organize and deligate responsibility more between all of the members and so on. (1/2 of the same people serve on several of the different group's board of directors - too many cooks?) Then finally have a public meeting to describe to the businesses what our goals are of our town, etc... (I'm confusing myself now)
It only took the certain few who got very defensive and I let them know how I felt. I felt badly afterwards (worse: unprofessional) but today when I spoke to the other members they actually said that we needed this and sometimes it takes conflict to turn it around. I was holding this in for years.
I hope it works out. I've had a few ideas for the news letter - sounds like fun - as long as I have help. I'm excited but am not allowing myself to get too involved. Looking forward to see where we're at next year at this time.
Thanks again!!
Diane
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Summit Signs
Sellersville, PA
summitsigns@erols.com
We still want to be (and are) very involved in our community but have taken a radically different approach. And some of the projects have been quite large.
Our approach now is to look around and see something that really needs doing. Something that we can do in an outstanding way. I then work up a proposal that is first rate and then present it to the necessary authorities. Only I make it easy for them... I promise funding as well. Most times I have pre-raised the monies needed (a good group of friends who also don't especially like meetings) THen in a blitz of activity we pull off the project in a hurry with this same group of friends. I make sure it is fun for everyone and always have donuts and cokes or coffe for everyone involved. For all day projects we often do a potluck lunch as well. It makes it fun.
I found we can do a couple or three projects a year and don't have to attend a single boring meeting. Pretty soon the word gets around and you have more helpers and fundraisers than you need for a project. I even get locals asking when the next project is going to happen as they don't want to miss the fun.
All in all it is way more fun than attending "those meetings" you describe.
Been there done that.... want to have fun when I volunteer!
-dan
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Dan Sawatzky
Sawatzky's Imagination Corporation
Cultus Lake , British Columbia
dan@imaginationcorporation.ca
www.imaginationcorporation.ca www.giggleridge.com
"Isn't it great to do what you love and love what you do!"
Dan even you would have run from this group!
At any rate I no longer belong to the Chamber and never will...oh and I'm not much on their "stinking BINGO either.
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Monte Jumper
SIGNLanguage/Norman.Okla.
If you do find yourself in a position of having to "fight city hall", make damn sure your powder is dry. I used to appear regularly before a Historic District Committee that was led by a particularly pompous and arrogant architect named Herman. He couldn't stand to see a design go through without his input, and would sit in the committee meetings and sketch alterations to designs right on top of submitted proposaals, then bully the committee into making approvals contingent on his changes. I had a client who was an attorney, and asked him if there was any way to legally block Herman's manipulations, and he looked up a copy of the state's General Statutes, which clearly stated that a Historic Committee could vote Up or Down on a proposal, but was specifically forbidden to make approval contingent upon changes demanded by the committe. You'd have loved the look on Herman's face when I read him that statute in open meeting. All his influence over the rest of the committee evaporated; they had no interest in going to court (and looking foolish) over a sign permit!
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"A wise man concerns himself with the truth, not with what people believe." - Aristotle
When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro. - Raoul Duke (Hunter S. Thompson)
Cam
Finest Kind Signs
256 S. Broad St.
Pawcatuck, Ct. 06379
"Award winning Signs since 1988"
The General says, (paraphrased) we all know what we should do. It is a matter of acting on our convictions.
So my advice is, do what you think is right, and you will most likely do the right thing.
Go for it. Vic G
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Victor Georgiou
AnchorBlanks.com
Jack Wills Clipart CD's
Designs Cut to Any Size
Serving the Trade Only
Keeping positive about what you are doing, and promote the positive attitude to everyone that you are involved with will achieve the goals a lot faster.
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Looking back is easy, looking ahead is what it is all about
Ed Cimaglio
Distinctive Design
Ranson, WV
ed@signsbyddesign.com
http://www.katstudio.com
http://www.signsbyddesign.com
I have been involved with Chamber for 10 years in the 2 locations we have lived in since I set up shop. In the past 6 years I have held almost every position available and have also come to the point of considering ... "What the heck am I accomplishing here?".
My very good friend, left arm (my husband is my right arm)and local pharmacist, Dave, and I have worked together for all of those 6 years on various projects. We, too, were often frustrated with the lack of initiative, vision and sharing that many of our members displayed. When Dave and I got to the point of considering "throwing in the towel" we knew it was time to evaluate our presence on the Executive.
We decided, that we WERE doing some good and that although we couldn't fix the world, we could make a difference by focusing on OUR projects and responsibilities. So that is what we did.
Kudos to you and your attempts to "make a difference". I live by those words. The size of the difference doesn't matter... only that you are trying to make it.
Liz
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l.y.designs - signs & graphics
"in all you do, you WILL make a difference"
Liz Yaskowich
Lumsden, Saskatchewan
vlmk.yaskowich@sk.sympatico.ca
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HotLines Joey Madden,45 years in the Classic Art of Pinstriping
$42. a month electric bill here in Grants Pass, Oregon
Big Sale extended to May 31. but thats it!!
http://members.tripod.com/Inflite
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Ken Morse
Jamn Graphics
Santa Cruz, CA