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JANUARY 2013

SERVING THE ROANOKE/BLACKSBURG/ NEW RIVER VALLEY REGION

CRC at a quarter century

A former cow pasture has become an innovation machine.

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CONTENTS SERVING THE ROANOKE/BLACKSBURG/ NEW RIVER VALLEY REGION

January 2013

FEATURES COVER STORY

CRC at a quarter century

The Corporate Research Center didn’t turn out at all like its planners intended. And that may be a good thing. by Sandra Brown Kelly

TECHNOLOGY Making adjustments Lodging Technology makes money by helping businesses save energy

by Joan Tupponce

HEALTHCARE ‘Smiles from the heart’ Dentists join volunteers to provide free dental services to 235 people in one day. by Rich Ellis

EDUCATION More than a buzz word? STEM education is a key to success for businesses and their employees.

by Donna Alvis Banks

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INTERVIEW

No blues at the symphony

M 31

Executive director says fundraising effort has left it debt-free. by Jenny Kincaid Boone

22 E

ROANOKE NEXT

Stuck on Roanoke

John Park uses social media to help young professionals connect with Roanoke. by Rebekah Manley

LIFESTYLES

Beer for locavores Craft brewers are sprouting around the New River and Roanoke valleys. by Sam Dean

JANUARY 2013

32 33 36

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FROM THE EDITOR

Trips to Roanoke may turn visitor into a new resident

t was the day before the Nov. 6 election and Vice President Joe Biden, U.S. Sen. Mark Warner and then- Senate candidate Tim Kaine dropped by Benny Marconi’s for some pizza. Maybe “dropped by” isn’t the right term. When your motorcade includes 21 vehicles — not counting the motorcycles roaring ahead — and a few police cars blocking intersections as you pass, it’s not exactly a spur-ofthe-moment trip. But the trio of politicians stopped, and they hauled about a half-dozen of Benny Marconi’s giant pies to hungry campaign workers. Biden and company paused to talk, shake hands and pose for pictures with the folks at the Campbell Avenue pizzeria and the crowd that gathered outside. In that crowd was Ellen Anderson, an Atlanta resident who was visiting Roanoke. “I may move to Roanoke,” she said, fresh from her few seconds with the vice president. Was she caught up in the excitement generated by the pre-election attention the Roanoke region received or was she serious? When the vice president’s motorcade pulled away, Anderson walked to the coffee shop across the street, where she engaged in a conversation with a young man who’d spent some time in Brazil. He’d lived in Roanoke for just a month and a half but had already fallen in love with the place. Anderson seemed to take the encounter as another cosmic endorsement of her pending relocation to Roanoke. She worked in college admissions for a while but eventually went into the family business. Her father and uncles were ministers. She became a hospital chaplain. It was a great vocation, Anderson said. “Strangers taking care of strangers,” she said. “That’s when I feel most alive.” Anderson moved to Atlanta to be with her parents. When they died, she realized she could live just about anywhere she wanted to. Both of her parents had roots in Virginia, and she’d been part of the University of Virginia’s second class to include women. So she looked around the commonwealth. Northern Virginia offered job prospects but not a satisfying lifestyle, Anderson said. She considered Richmond but decided it was “a little Atlanta.” “I’ve lived with that,” Anderson said. “Why would I choose to do that again?” So she considered Roanoke. The mountains and the lifestyle were pluses. She visited. She liked the area but couldn’t find a place outside of town that suited her. Then she read about the growth in downtown living and the redevelopment that has turned downtown into a place that’s still lively when the workday ends. Anderson liked the idea of having people around and the idea of having the market and other attractions a short walk from her living room. “I’d never consider living in downtown Atlanta,” Anderson said. That may be why it took so long for her to think about living in downtown Roanoke. She was thinking about it pretty hard that day. The pre-election trip was her third exploration of the Star City. She had leads on a few downtown condos that sounded promising. She didn’t seem to be deciding whether she was moving to Roanoke. She was deciding where to live in Roanoke.“I feel like it would be a good place to start a new chapter in my life,” she said. All the economic development and tourism promoters in both valleys couldn’t come up with a better advertisement.

JANUARY 2013

SERVING THE ROANOKE/BLACKSBURG/ NEW RIVER VALLEY REGION Vol. 2

JANUARY 2013

President & Publisher Roanoke Business Editor Contributing Writers

Bernard A. Niemeier Tim Thornton Donna Alvis Banks Sam Dean Rich Ellis Sandra Brown Kelly Rebekah Manley Joan Tupponce

Art Director Contributing Photographers

Adrienne R. Watson Sam Dean Alisa Moody

Production Manager Circulation Manager Accounting Manager Advertising Sales

No. 1

Kevin L. Dick Karen Chenault Sunny Ogburn Lynn Williams Hunter Bendall

CONTACT: EDITORIAL: (540) 520-2399 ADVERTISING: (540) 597-2499 210 S. Jefferson Street, Roanoke, VA 24011-1702 We welcome your feedback. Email Letters to the Editor to Tim Thornton at tthornton@roanoke-business.com

VIRGINIA BUSINESS PUBLICATIONS LLC A portfolio company of Virginia Capital Partners LLC Frederick L. Russell Jr., chairman

on the cover Virginia Tech Corporate Research Center Montgomery County Photo courtesy Virginia Tech

“ In the hospitality business, anything can happen.”

As an employment lawyer with a focus on the restaurant, hotel, and hospitality industry, Paul Klockenbrink has seen it all. Running a restaurant or a national hotel franchise involves complex legal issues — wage and hour laws, state and federal regulatory compliance, and vendor contracts, as well as discrimination, immigration, and premises liability issues. “I get to ﬁnd creative solutions that help make the business more successful. That’s what makes what I do so fascinating and challenging.”

Gentry Locke 10 Franklin Road SE Roanoke, VA 24011 540.983.9300 Toll-free: 866.983.0866 gentrylocke.com

COVER STORY

CRC at a quarter century The Corporate Research Center didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t turn out at all like its planners intended. And that may be a good thing. by Sandra Brown Kelly

JANUARY 2013

Photo credit

Photo Phot P Ph ho hot h oto cr ot c credit red edi e edit diitt dit d

ROANOKE BUSINESS

cover story

ike racks stand near each building in the Virginia Tech Corporate Research Center (CRC). There’s also a fitness center, a child-care facility and a restaurant. The 2,600 people who work on the campus can even arrange to have their dry cleaning picked up. After 25 years, CRC has its mojo and thrives as an internationally known nurturer of new businesses. Although no definitive studies have been done, there is little doubt of the substantial impact the research park has had on economic development in the Montgomery County area. Since the first tenant arrived in 1988, CRC has grown to 29 buildings — when one fills, the park builds another. It also has doubled its acreage. Still, it took a few years to determine the most successful direction for the park. “What we did not get right was what we thought initially would happen in our park, that major corporations would have small labs there doing research,” says 8

JANUARY 2013

Ray Smoot, one of the Virginia Tech Foundation executives who helped make CRC a reality. “That didn’t happen. What we failed to see at that point were all these small startup companies that would be involved.” In the early 1980s, when research parks began to pop up, Virginia Tech officials decided it was a good time to develop its research program and commercialize technology coming out of the university. One of the early steps to accomplish this was taken by the foundation, which paid $839,000 to buy 120 acres adjacent to the Tech campus. “We jumped in a modest way,” says Smoot, who at the time was the foundation’s secretary-treasurer. He later became CEO, a position from which he recently retired, although he still keeps an office at the foundation. High-tech complexes were becoming the rage. Silicon Valley, with its emphasis on technology and engineering, was bustling in Northern California, and the Research Triangle Park in Durham, N.C., was under way. Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, N.Y., had laid the groundwork for its Research Technology Park. Each had a different idea of what to do. Photo courtesy Virginia Tech

cover story Park linked to foundation In 1985, the Virginia Tech Corporate Research Center (CRC) was created as a private, wholly owned subsidiary of the foundation, which chipped in an initial commitment of $4.2 million. CRC was aligned with the foundation because rules governing what state institutions could do would have made the development unwieldy. “Even to lease a 5-acre piece of property back then, you had to send the request to Richmond and get it back six months later,” Smoot says. Virginia Tech Intellectual Properties, the technology licensing entity for Virginia Tech, was set up at the same time as CRC. A $600,000

Economic Development Administration grant covered about half of the infrastructure for the first building at the park. “We were off and running,” Smoot says. Tech’s interest and emphasis was more closely aligned with the technology development happening in Silicon Valley than with the North Carolina park, which was initially structured to attract offices of major large corporations. “We didn’t want that,” Smoot recalls. A major part of CRC’s mission is to work with Virginia Tech to expand research and educational opportunities at the 28,836-student university and to help transfer technology to the private sec-

tor. Tech performs about $450 million a year in research and has a goal to do $540 million. Visionary Technology in Library Solutions (VTLS), which became the park’s first corporate tenant in March 1988, exactly fulfills the technology transfer mission. VTLS was founded by Vinod Chachra, who holds a doctorate in industrial engineering and operations research from Tech. He had served the university in a variety of positions and designed the software that became Virginia Tech Library System and eventually VTLS. Chachra’s company now provides automation systems to more than 900 libraries throughout the world.

Doug Juanarena calls the CRC “the landing strip for people who created ideas with Virginia Tech research.”

Photo courtesy Virginia Tech

ROANOKE BUSINESS

cover story Virginia Tech graduate Joe Meredith dreamed of returning to Blacksburg. When he did, it was to convince others to believe in the dream that became CRC.

Eighteen percent of the 150plus companies now at CRC were initiated by faculty or student entrepreneurs, according to CRC reports. Many more offer students opportunities for internships or jobs while in school and career options after graduation. For example, most of the 40 employees at TORC Robotics LLC, founded by Tech graduates Michael Fleming and Chris Terwelp, are Tech graduates. Fleming says the company also runs a co-op program for juniors and seniors with the College of Engineering. CRC provides job opportunities for Tech graduates who want to stay in the area and has attracted Tech alumni who want to return. Doug Juanarena graduated from Tech in the 1970s and spent 10

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25 years starting and selling tech companies in the Newport News area before returning to Blacksburg in 2001. He then co-founded Luna Technologies at the CRC. Luna is now part of Luna Innovations and is no longer at the park. Juanarena later ran Gentek Ventures in the park, assisting young entrepreneurs in raising capital. He now is vice president of Rackspace Hosting in downtown Blacksburg but says he remains a supporter of CRC as an “unofficial angel investor.” “CRC has been the landing strip for people who created ideas with Virginia Tech research,” he says. Companies there also give back by doing some $2 million in annual industry-sponsored research at Virginia Tech.

President a Tech grad Joe Meredith, who became president of CRC in 1993, is another one of those returning grads. Meredith has undergraduate and doctoral degrees from Tech and spent more than 20 years as an executive in shipbuilding before joining CRC. “I had as a life dream to live in Blacksburg,” he says. Meredith’s office just off Tech Center Drive, deep into Phase I of CRC, has windows on three sides providing views of the Virginia Tech Montgomery Executive Airport, which can host private planes. The office also is near Phase II of the park, which is designed for 19 buildings. One has been completed, and another is under construction. In 2009, with the help of a $1.98 million Economic Development Grant and matching funds from the foundation, CRC added 90 acres that had belonged to Virginia Tech. Since Meredith’s arrival, tenants have grown from 16 to more than 150. “In the beginning, I did a lot of standing in this cow pasture to give two-hour dream spiels,” Meredith says. “These days, it is not unusual to receive contacts from outside the country.” Meredith’s duties include more than the direction of CRC. He also answers volumes of email queries and constantly makes presentations, “about 20 a month.” He says he is willing to talk to almost any group. “I love giving alumni presentations because they are so interested.” Sometimes, too, parents of Tech students will come by to learn more about CRC. Meredith does some international travel to promote the park and its resources, but he says CRC does not spend a lot of money on travel. His goal is to make the park “findable.” CRC makes heavy use of the Internet, including tweeting every day to communicate with park residents. Meredith spends as much time recruiting individuals to the park Photo courtesy Virginia Tech

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cover story

VT KnowledgeWorks’ Jim Flowers tells entrepreneurs success requires a market opportunity, mentors, moxie and a little magic.

center, a fitness facility, an on-site cafeteria, a bank and a medical center. And they play together; a family picnic each fall draws about 1,200 people. Workers at CRC have a volleyball league and golf and running groups. Phase II of the park includes plans for soccer and lacrosse fields. Meredith is working on a health-care plan for resident companies. He says the only request he has received that he is unsure he can fill is for a dog park.

KnowledgeWorks programs

as he does wooing companies. CRC can be a good fit for faculty spouses hunting jobs and is a good selling point for attracting faculty. “One of the challenges is creating awareness. People and companies that have the opportunity to come here and see the services and culture — they get it,” Meredith says. Among his chief selling points? The Roanoke Regional Airport is 35 minutes away, the Smart Way Bus links the Roanoke and New River valleys, and the area has a wealth of outdoor opportunities. It helps, too, that the park’s entrance is nine miles from Interstate 81 and less than a mile from U.S. 460. Travelers along 460 toward Virgin12

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ia Tech have a good view of the CRC’s largest tenant, the Edward Via Virginia College of Osteopathic Medicine. The medical school opened in fall 2003 and has grown to 600-plus students. A major attraction of CRC from the beginning was the Internet access. “CRC was fortunate to piggyback in the early years on the Virginia Tech Information System, which provides a highly reliable bandwidth second to none,” Meredith says. He also oversees the service companies that keep the tree-lined campus meticulously groomed. If someone gets locked out of an office, that person calls his office. CRC is so committed to making its tenants comfortable that

its website includes an After Hours tab with contact information for any emergency. “I’ve been to research parks that looked like industrial parks,” says Meredith. “I would argue we are a community. We are trying to be a place that makes everything very convenient. You can have your dry cleaning picked up here.” In the spring, CRC holds a get-together for tenant leaders that includes a formal sit-down dinner for 400 to 500 people for a state of the park address from Meredith. The gathering also serves as a “showcase for other companies that want to talk to the entire park,” he says. CRC tenants have access to a child-care

Once companies become tenants, CRC aims to make life for them as easy as possible. Everyone pays the same rent per square foot, and CRC is flexible about allowing tenants to change offices or to stay where they are and grow. Through VT KnowledgeWorks, a “business accelerator” started by CRC, tenants have access to services that include help with developing a business plan, finding capital and training and hiring employees. CRC’s human resources recruiter heads a group for HR managers to share experiences. Jim Flowers, executive director of VT KnowledgeWorks, had 35 years of experience as an executive and consultant to small technology businesses when he came to work in April 2004. He makes certain the 60 or more entrePhoto courtesy Virginia Tech

I M PA C .

Virginia Tech and the Corporate Research Center are helping business boom.

What happens when 200 acres of land and nearly one million square-feet of ofﬁce space in southwestern Virginia is set up solely to house businesses? Over 140 companies employing more than 2,600 people. That’s what’s happening at the Corporate Research Center just outside of Virginia Tech’s campus. National companies have expanded here and VT Knowledge Works serves as a business accelerator to help launch new products and ideas. Jobs are being created and entrepreneurs are thriving. We call that impact. To learn more, visit www.thisisthefuture.com.

cover story preneurs he is working with at any given time understand four factors. “They don’t guarantee success but if you don’t have them, nothing else happens,” Flowers says. A business owner must have identified a market opportunity — “not something they wish to do. Then they have to have some magic; why would the market choose them?” Flowers says. Building a business also requires mentors and moxie enough to stick with a project “when another person would give up,” he says. VT KnowledgeWorks is a success story itself. Its services are being extended to The Launch Place, the new name of the Southside Business Center in Danville. “We are not opening branches, but we’ll we reaching out to the rest of state to find appropriate places to put our services inside,” Flowers says. For the past three years, Flowers has also run the VT KnowledgeWorks Global Partnership, a program that allows students and faculty from all over the world an opportunity to partner, build networks and meet in Blacksburg and Roanoke. Costs for the Global Partnership are covered by corporate sponsors. Students come in the summer and shadow local businesses in Blacksburg and Roanoke, build networks and begin to initiate their business. The event culminates with student teams competing for a grand prize 14

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Teams of students from the United States and 12 other countries competed for the most recent VT KnowledgeWorks Global Challenge Trophy.

and the VT KnowledgeWorks Global Challenge Trophy. In August, students from the U.S and 12 other countries competed for $25,000. The winners were from the University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada. Their project was a portable medical device that induces controlled hypothermia in cardiac arrest patients and reduces the risk of death. In recognition of the Global Partnership’s success, Flowers received the 2012 Virginia TradePort Innovator of the Year award at the 64th Annual Virginia Conference on World Trade.

Measuring success No study has been done to determine the full economic impact of CRC, but some insight can be gained from a 2009-10 report compiled by the Virginia Tech University Relations Office. At the time of the study, the 2,200 people working at CRC

accounted for about 5.5 percent of the total wage and salary employment in Montgomery County. Forty of the 140 tenants at the time responded to the study, and 23 of those noted that their chief executive officer was a graduate of “one or more” of Virginia Tech’s academic programs. Ten companies were headed by current or former Virginia Tech faculty members, and 12 of the companies had hired Tech students for internships or as part of the university’s co-op program. The study further states that some 20 percent of the CRC’s tenants at that time were faculty or student startups, and a third were started by other local entrepreneurs. Another third were companies that relocated from elsewhere or were branches of companies based outside the area. The rest were public sector tenants. CRC in 2010 was selected as Outstanding Research

Park by the Association of University Research Parks (AURP). When asked about CRC’s future, park President Joe Meredith replied, “We want to be Purdue Park when we grow up.” Purdue Research Park is among the largest employers in Indiana. Its network companies had 4,101 employees in 2010, according to a May 2011 report from Thomas P. Miller and Associates. The research park began in 1961 but did not begin to have a major impact until the 1990s. Purdue Research Park now has four locations. The cumulative economic impacts of investment in the Purdue Research Park network since 1999 on the state as a whole have generated an estimated total output of $585 million and wages of nearly $183 million. The total economic activity attributed to the companies in Purdue’s four regions was more than $1 billion and more than 6,400 jobs. The foundation’s equity in the CRC is about $45 million with an asset value of $175 million, says Smoot, the foundation leader who helped get it started. The foundation gets a return on its investment in two ways: rents from tenants and dividends from CRC. Dividends were $440,000 for fiscal year 2012. CRC has room for expansion on land owned by the university, says Smoot. “But that would be far in the future.” Photo courtesy Virginia Tech

Wishing you a winning 2013!

Find athletics schedules at www.ruhighlanders.com.

TECHNOLOGY

Making adjustments Lodging Technology makes money by helping businesses save energy Lodging Technologies founder William Fizer invented a system that regulates temperature in hotels and dorms.

by Joan Tupponce

usinesses and individuals can save money on electric bills simply by turning the lights off when there is no one in a room. No one knows that better than William Fizer, a Roanoke-area native and founder of Lodging Technology. He invented the GEM System, an infrared, sensor-based energy conservation system used by a variety of hotels and other businesses. Fizer created the system in 1980 while working for American Motor Inns, the largest franchise holder of Holiday Inns at the time. “After the first Arab oil embargo of the 1970s, energy costs went through the roof,” recalls Fizer. As a result, hotels were facing greater energy costs and reduced bookings because of the economy. “I was asked to look at energy costs.”

JANUARY 2013

The GEM system detects a person’s infrared body heat as opposed to detecting motion, giving it an edge in the marketplace. “Our system can be used in resort areas with ceiling fans because it doesn’t sense the motion of the fan,” he says. Mike Hardin, vice president of ancillary services at Apple REIT Cos. in Richmond, uses Fizer’s products in hotels the company owns across the U.S. Each month, the hotels’ energy usage and savings are monitored and tracked. “It’s very well-proven and documented that the savings are there,” Hardin says, noting he has met with other companies that have similar products. “GEM is the best inroom coverage and the best overall of the systems we have looked at when it comes to accomplishing what we

want it to do.” Hardin enjoys partnering with Lodging Technology. “Bill and his team are very easy to work with. ... If there are any issues or glitches, they are quick to react and remedy the situation.” Fizer gained his knowledge of electronics in the U.S. Army. “That was my military specialty,” he says. Before joining American Motor Inns, he worked for General Electric. “American Motor Inns, which was sold, released certain patents to me, and I started Lodging Technology in 1984.” While the hospitality industry is Fizer’s primary market, he also sells to schools, colleges and military lodging industries. “We have many multiple-property, multiple-brand, Photos by Sam Dean

repeat customers,” he says. They include Hyatt House and Hyatt Place; Lodging Enterprises Inc., a hotel management and operating company; and Dominion Lodging, which operates hotels throughout Virginia. Fizer is one of the 272 finalists for the Center for Innovative Technology GAP 50 Entrepreneur Awards. The center is a nonprofit organization that helps Virginia entrepreneurs start and grow technology companies. Fizer’s nomination was based in part on his company’s GEM Link Wireless system, which was introduced in 2008. The wireless system resets the temperature when people leave a room. It also can control the lights. “Hotel rooms are usually empty 60 percent of a 24-hour period even when they are rented,” Fizer says. “Classrooms are not all occupied 24 hours a day. The system can take care of nights and weekends if the room is physically unoccupied after a programmable amount of time.” According to Fizer, the U.S. Navy uses the system in lodges — the largest is the 300-room lodge on the Mediterranean in Greece. “We also put that system in 900 dorm rooms on the Erie campus of Penn State,” he says. “We have placed it in almost 2,000 classrooms in three different school districts in Kentucky and Mississippi.” The wireless system, with an average installation price of $275 to $300 per room, can reduce HVAC consumption by 35 to 45 percent. “Energy savings are significant, with a return on investment in the 50 to 60 percent range,” Fizer says. “Hotels that use the product see up to a 42 percent reduction in room energy costs.”

According to Fizer, at least 10 utility companies across the country have evaluated and verified savings related to GEM Link and provide rebates for in-

Fizer sells his products through dealers. “I started with a network of 17 dealers across the U.S., and they called on the hotels,” he says. He is proud that

A worker at Keltech, a Lodging Technology subcontractor, examines finished circuit boards.

Dylan Medor assembles portion of Lodging Technology sensors at offices in Roanoke.

stallation of the wireless system. None, however, are in Virginia. “Utilities are having a hard time keeping up with the increase in demand for electricity, especially on the West Coast,” he says. “Utilities in California have to save energy, and we are one of the preferred products for hotels there.” Don Zeigler, regional director of engineering at Hospitality Ventures in Daytona Beach, Fla., has been using systems from Lodging Technology for many years. “They have saved us quite a bit of money on electricity,” he says.

his products are made in the U.S., with his company using a network of local subcontractors to manufacture the product and print brochures. Altogether, Lodging Technology uses the services of about 15 Virginiabased companies, including these businesses in Roanoke: Keltech of Virginia, Walters Printing and Richard Boyd Photography. He also works with Klann Plastics in Waynesboro, Digital Image Printing in Daleville and South Star Corp. in Elliston. “It’s estimated that as many as 1,500 Virginia employees

have a part in the supply and manufacture of our products at one time or another,” he says. “We don’t do anything overseas.” The company has capitalized on the green lodging movement. For example, it installed the hard-wired GEM System in Give Kids The World Village, a 70-acre nonprofit resort in central Florida. “We are right in the middle of the green lodging movement because air conditioning and heat are the highest energy consumers. When you save one hour of air conditioning and heat, it is equivalent to four to 10 times the savings of lighting. Hotels want to become more green,” Fizer says. Lodging Technology also has installed its GEM Link Wireless system at the Sand Dollar Estate, a luxurious villa rental in the Virgin Islands. “Energy costs in the Caribbean are 44 cents per kilowatt hour compared to 12 to 15 cents per kilowatt hour in the U.S.,” Fizer says. “We anticipate doing a lot of business in the Caribbean.” The company also is pursuing the school and college market. It has a contract through a utility company to provide systems for two dormitories at the University of Texas at El Paso “They came to us originally,” Fizer says of the schools that use his products. “We didn’t pursue them. They came through word of mouth, the Internet and magazine ads.” The company’s green technology has put the company on track to have its best year ever, Fizer says. “It is easier and quicker to reduce consumption on existing air conditioning and heating than to develop new appliances,” he says. “You get an immediate response.”

ROANOKE BUSINESS

HEALTH CARE

â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Smiles from the

Dentists join volunteers to provide free services to 235 people in one day by Rich Ellis

JANUARY 2013

Photo by Alisa Moody

heart’ Though the Family Dental Clinic of the NRV regularly provides free dental care, the clinic’s waiting list held hundreds of people who were months away from appointments.

riday isn’t a busy day for many dentists, but one Friday last September, nine New River Valley dentists worked nearly 12 hours to deliver more than $194,000 worth of dental services to 235 needy patients. And they did it for free. The first Free Adult Dental Care Day was the brainchild of Shawsville dentist William Armour. The Philadelphia native came to the New River Valley by way of the University of Texas in 1981, thanks, in

part, to the Shawsville Ruritan Club’s efforts to recruit health-care providers. Armour was reading a publication of the ADA (American Dental Association) when he came across an article about dentists in Vermont who dedicated a day to providing free dental care to patients. Armour showed the article to Joe Thompson, president of the Dental Aid Partners of the NRV — a volunteer organization of citizens and dental professionals providing dental care and education for local residents who can’t afford it. They decided they wanted to ROANOKE BUSINESS

health care organize a similar event for New River Valley patients. The two men took the idea to the New River Valley Dental Study Club, a group of area dentists who meet every other month for continuing education and professional development. The group agreed it was a project worth pursuing. After some preliminary research, including a phone call to the organizers of the Vermont event, the dental care day was on a fast track from idea to reality, picking up its own slogan along the way, “Smiles from the Heart.” The Family Dental Clinic of the NRV — part of the Free Clinic of the NRV in Christiansburg — provides dental services for New River Valley residents who don’t have dental insurance or can’t afford dental care. Armour, one of the clinic’s volunteer dentists, knew firsthand that 400 to 500 local adults were on an approximate six-month waiting list. When a patient is suffering from tooth pain, six hours — let alone six months — spent waiting for treatment can feel like an eternity. The volunteer dentists aimed to whittle down the waiting list by treating as many patients as possible in one day. During the past five years, Roanoke’s Mission of Mercy has provided more than 5,000 adults with free dental services valued at more than $4 million through weekend-long events in the Roanoke Civic Center. The NRV dentists chose to treat patients in dental offices. “Working in your own office is so much easier,” Armour explains. “For example, some dentists are left handed and have their office set up that way. When you’re working in your own kitchen, so to speak, you can be so much more 20

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Family Dental Clinic staffers Cymric Keith-Yarbrough and Jennifer Litton were part of the push that served 235 patients in one day.

productive.” Increased productivity and convenience weren’t the only reasons for delivering the dental care at offices. Cost was a primary concern. Because there weren’t any facility charges, the NRV’s “Smiles from the Heart” was orchestrated with a cash outlay of just $2,700, compared with approximately $87,000 for Roanoke’s Mission of Mercy events. That savings wouldn’t have been possible, however, without a volunteer network of 29 dentists, 29 dental assistants, 28 hygienists, 34 dental office assistants and 16 lay volunteers. Together, they delivered more than 823 hours of work. At the end of the day, the NRV dental community saw 235 patients, performed 123 simple extractions, 144 surgical extractions, 164 fillings, six root canals, 107 adult prophylaxis and 121 X-rays, fluoride treatments and exams. The behind-the-scenes work that made the day a success began in February and included organizing patients’ medical histories. Because the Family Dental Clinic of the NRV had the patients on their waiting list, each patient partici-

pating in the Free Adult Dental Care Day came to the dentist’s office prepared with a medical history and dental charts, as well as the necessary consent forms already filled out. This level of organization — knowing the type of treatment each patient needed and having a list of patients to call in case of any cancellations — helped the volunteers maximize the number of patients treated. “Each dentist chose what they wanted to do, whether it was fillings or extractions — which a lot of these people needed — or root canals,” Armour says. “Each dentist gave a list, and we matched patients to the list.” Volunteers also helped transport patients to appointments and even delivered breakfast and lunch to the volunteers. In addition to the volunteers, The NRV Dental Study Club, The Free Clinic of the NRV, Dental Aid Partners of the NRV, Family Dental Clinic of the NRV, the Retired and Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP), the NRV Health District, Delta Dental, LewisGale Hospital at Pulaski and the Shawsville Ruritan Club helped make the event a success. Armour and his team already are planning for a second Free Adult Dental Care Day next September. “It was a learning event because if you’re asking for grants, you have to get [requests] in a year ahead of time,” Armour says. “We’re going to do it again, and we’ll be able to see more patients.” Feedback from the event has been overwhelmingly positive. Armour says patients expressed their gratitude, and some cried, because they were so thankful for the treatment. The dentists from Vermont — who now have several years of a similar event behind them — called to congratulate the NRV dentists on their success. Photo by Alisa Moody

EDUCATION

More than a buzz word?

STEM education is a key to success for businesses and their employees by Donna Alvis Banks

STEM.

It’s the acronymic buzzword in education these days. Standing for Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics, the term was coined in 2001 by the National Science Foundation’s Judith Ramaley. Envisioned as a revolutionary approach, it was supposed to transform America’s classrooms by incorporating technology and engineering in the curriculum.

The idea caught fire, stoked by government and industry leaders who see STEM education as the foundation needed to help the U.S. lead the pack in world competitiveness and innovation. The newest addition to the initiative is STEM-H, the “H” representing health — a field with a pressing need for trained scientific and technologic workers. 22

JANUARY 2013

While Americans’ beliefs are often enigmatic (recent Pew polls have shown that less than half of the population believe in evolution and only 28 percent consider global warming a priority), it’s clear that we embrace technology. A 2010 poll by the research center had technology companies topping America’s popularity list with a 68 percent positive rating,

right below small businesses at 71 percent. Banks, large corporations, the news media and the entertainment industry scored in the 20s and low 30s. So, are we embracing STEM education as fervently? Is it a reality or just more politically correct hot air? It is, indeed, hot air for youngsters armed with tissue paper, glue

Virginia Tech’s John Wells and his students help Montgomery County students get their hands on science. “It’s in the doing,” he says, “that a good educator can teach things that motivate students.”

sticks and hand-held hair dryers discovering how lift, drag, buoyancy and temperature affect balloon flight. Building hotair balloons, constructing cities using Lego blocks and assembling robot prototypes are some of the STEM-related projects designed to steer K-12 Photo by Alisa Moody

students toward science and technology careers. If STEM education seems like extravagant playtime to critics, they might be wise to ponder Albert Einstein’s pronouncement: “Play is the highest form of research.” John Wells, who heads Virginia Tech’s In-

tegrative STEM Education graduate program, insists, “It’s in the doing that a good educator can teach things that motivate students.” Wells and his students collaborate with Montgomery County Schools in several outreach programs, including the national Technol-

ogy Student Association at Blacksburg Middle School and the STEM Club at Auburn High School. Noting that the National Assessment of Educational Progress (a congressionally mandated project) is developing its first-ever technology and

ROANOKE BUSINESS

education engineering literacy assessment, Wells said he believes “Montgomery County and Virginia at large are doing a great job of addressing the national standards.” “The kinds of things the students do are not contrived. They are real grand challenges,” Wells says. “Our goal is to develop future integrative STEM education leaders.” If you ask Rick Weaver, Montgomery County Schools’ supervisor of career and technical education, those leaders are needed. Pointing to “math and science phobias,” Weaver said he believes, “There are a significant number of kids who still have fear of math and the sciences. “The governor has asked to increase STEM academies,” Weaver says, noting that he recently submitted a proposal for a STEM academy in Montgomery County. The Governor’s STEM Academy at the Burton Center for Arts and Technology opened in Roanoke County in September with 200 students in grades

Montgomery County Schools’ Rick Weaver says many students have “math and science phobias.”

9-12. Principal Jason Suhr says his school “is able to offer a unique opportunity that you might not see in other schools.” STEM classes in a “super-block system” provide three hours of class time as opposed to the one and a half

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JANUARY 2013

hours the school used to offer, a key to success, according to Suhr. “We aren’t spending a lot of time shutting down and setting up.” Kathy Beard, Roanoke County Schools’ Career and Technical Education coordinator, describes STEM as a priority at all schools. Career Pathways, an academic and career plan, begins in sixth grade for Roanoke County students, a year later for those in Montgomery County. “Technology is just going so fast,” Beard notes. “We’re preparing our students for jobs that don’t even exist yet.” Indeed, a 2011 Microsoft Corp. survey found that the U.S. will have more than 1.2 million STEM-related job openings by 2018. Unfortunately, there will be a significant shortage of qualified people to fill them. “I never hear students in the STEM programs say they’re having a problem finding jobs,” says New River Community College’s Peter Anderson, grant administrator for business and technology. The college in Dublin has a separate STEM center focusing on information technology, computer aided drafting and design, game technology and other specialties at Christiansburg’s New River Valley Mall. Preparing students for STEMrelated occupations can’t happen fast enough, insists Derick Maggard, executive director of the RoanokeBlacksburg Technology Council. “As our region becomes more innovative, entrepreneurial and technology-focused, the importance of STEM education for our young people is vital,” Maggard says. “The investment has to be made now. The longer we wait, the further behind we are. We need people creating innovative technologies now. We need doctors and nurses now. We need engineers now.” Henry Bass concurs. The chairman of the council’s STEM committee, he is also president of Automation Creations Inc. at Blacksburg’s Corporate Research Center, where Bass sees a need for a strong pool of applicants in midlevel fields such Photo by Alisa Moody

education

Students participating in the VT Atmospheric Teaching Experiment prepare for a high-altitude balloon launch.

as machinery, welding and health care, as well as demands for collegeeducated applicants in fields such as software development. “I know of at least three companies in the area who say they can never get enough [qualified workers],” Bass says. A father of two teenage sons, Bass believes parents and society at large must promote STEM, noting that the Boy Scouts of America now offers 48 STEM-related merit badges. That’s what Susan Magliaro, head of Virginia Tech’s STEM Outreach Initiative, likes to see. “If we can get the general public, including students, to at least value STEM, then we are going a long way,” she says. “To actually get folks to want to do STEM for the rest of their lives as a career, we as a culture need to promote it, support it and celebrate it.” For Maggard, the responsibility begins at home. “I think as a father of young children, it’s important for me to practice the principles of STEM,” he said. “Instead of getting my children a toy, I want them to have a Lego robot.” Photo courtesy Virginia Tech

ROANOKE BUSINESS

INTERVIEW:

Beth Pline, Executive Director, Roanoke Symphony Orchestra

No blues at the symphony Executive director says fundraising effort has left it debt-free Pline, who has worked for the United Way and was chief operating officer at the Girl Scouts of the Virginia Skyline Council, has extensive experience in nonprofit management. In an interview with Roanoke Business, she discussed the symphony’s financial challenges and successes.

“One of our mantras,” Executive Director Beth Pline says of the RSO, “was that we didn’t have to do it the same way, just because that’s the way we’ve always done it.”

by Jenny Kincaid Boone

he past several years haven’t been show stoppers for nonprofit arts organizations. Nationwide, many have struggled to stay afloat after taking financial hits — a result of dwindling grant money and a tough economy that has stunted consumer spending and donations. But one Roanoke arts nonprofit is in a unique position; it is debt-free. The 60-year-old Roanoke Symphony Orchestra, which calls itself the largest professional orchestra in Virginia west of Rich-

JANUARY 2013

mond, launched a fundraising campaign in May. Its goal was to raise $250,000 to avoid finishing the 2011-12 fiscal year in the red. By Oct. 1, the organization had brought in about $295,000, more than enough to pay its debt. The orchestra’s tax filings for fiscal 201011 show that expenses were higher than revenues by $57,915. The organization, which has 10 full-time employees, attracted 13,712 individual ticket buyers during the fiscal year. Beth Pline, the symphony’s executive director, has seen the organization through ups and downs since taking the helm in 2007.

Roanoke Business: In what ways did the recession impact the Roanoke Symphony Orchestra, and how did the organization respond? Beth Pline: One of our mantras was that we didn’t have to do it the same way, just because that’s the way we’ve always done it. As soon as we saw that [the economy] was beginning to crumble, we began to immediately take steps to secure … our place and to make sure that we would be able to continue during the hard times. The first thing we did immediately was that we reduced our staff by two and a half employees. We didn’t quit doing a lot of things. We just did them more efficiently and in a way that we hoped resonated better with the community. A lot of it is basic common sense — a lot of dialogue, a lot of honesty with board members, with musicians, with staff and with the community. By last spring, for example, we had been holding our own, and it finally caught up with us. We asked the community to help us, and in an amazing three months, the community stepped up and helped us with the $250,000 that we needed to put us in a place where we would have cash reserves again. RB: What is the story behind this latest fundraising effort, called the Crescendo Campaign? Pline: Our cash flow has a rise and fall to it, like most businesses. Generally by late winter, early spring, we usually use our line of credit to help us with the cash flow. Then, the cash flow picks back up again in May and June, and we are able to pay off our line of credit. This year, what happened was that it became apparent that we may not be able to pay off that line of credit. We were close to that finish line, and we just thought it was time that we let the public know that we were in good shape overall, but we weren’t going to be able to pay off this debt. It was real important to us that we not operate in debt. The response was amazing. Photo by Sam Dean

We actually raised more than that [the $250,000 goal] … It was enough that it has made this fall and putting on our concerts a lot easier. RB: The symphony finished this past fiscal year debtfree. Other than the Crescendo Campaign, what else did the symphony do to reach this goal? Pline: We are operating this year on what we call an extremely austere budget to get us in the right place to start out for our 60th anniversary year next year. And at the same time, we’ve learned so much from this experience and that’s, I think, a real important thing for businesses, to learn from their experiences. We’ve cut back certainly, but we are coming out with some new exciting programming that we think will better serve the community going forward. RB: In March, the Roanoke Symphony will move its offices from the Jefferson Center to the former Shenandoah Hotel in downtown Roanoke that Center in the Square owns. With this move, the symphony will become a member organization of Center. Why did the RSO decide to relocate? Pline: Part of it was we had a very energetic board discussion about, “Are we in the right place at the right time?” And there was a thought that we needed to capitalize on the energy that we’re seeing in the downtown area, that we have so much to offer to that energy. Having us where people can see us would, I believe, contribute to that. They came out of their board retreat over a year ago, saying, “We need to consider this.” So, I think the timing was right, the situations were right, and we can’t wait to get there. RB: What financial benefits will this new location provide? Pline: We were able to get an agreement, as a partner in Center in the Square, for a significantly

reduced rent. So we’re there on a five-year lease for right now and hoping for a much longer period of time to be located down there. RB: This year the symphony introduced a new $9 monthly subscription for symphony concert patrons. In what way does this subscription help the symphony and ease costs for the community? Pline: What we wanted to do, first and foremost, was to remove financial barriers to people coming to attend the symphony, and a $9 a month membership and unlimited number of concerts has really sold very well. It gives us a chance to market to a new segment of our community that previously thought that they couldn’t afford it. It’s a model that consumers today actually understand. It’s like a Netflix model — you pay so much a month. Financially, it spreads out the cash flow across the 12-month period for us, from the business point of view, rather than get all of the ticket money in at one time, which you do with a subscription. And the convenience of it, it breaks down the season concept of how we’ve always sold our concerts, and it becomes more of a year-round experience for our consumer. It was the brilliance of our marketing director, Rodney Overstreet. What’s great is that other orchestras are now calling him and asking him for advice on how to set it up at their orchestras. Really, it’s been a big hit, and an exciting idea across the nation, because many of the orchestras across the U.S. are struggling financially in much worse conditions than we are. RB: The symphony renewed conductor David Wiley’s contract for the next three years.Tell us about this decision. Pline: We did a recent market study, and we had over 1,000 people respond to it. Overall the people that responded … said that they really believed that having a conductor that lived in

this community and was a viable part of the community, and was David Wiley, was key to the success of our organization. And so, the board took that feedback and asked David if he wanted to renew for another three years, and he was willing. I think that the board looks strategically at its executive management, and it wants to know they’re going to be there for a period of time that allows for growth. RB: What are the symphony’s financial goals for the next year? Pline: Certainly, our goal and clearly articulated by our board is that we have cash reserves in the bank at the end of this fiscal year. We head into our 60th anniversary in July, and we want to be able to have money in the bank to make spontaneous changes and to be more responsive to things that the community asks of us. You can’t do that when you don’t have money in the bank. It holds you back, and it holds you down.That’s the goal for me and the staff and the rest of the board to end this year with a cash reserve and enter our 60th anniversary year with innovative programming. We’re looking at different places to be performing. We will of course stay with performances at the Salem and Roanoke Civic Centers and the [Jefferson] Center, but we want to also try out some things in the community and give people greater access with different days and times and venues. We are expanding our offerings for workshops and classes. We’re going to begin to offer classes for young children there on site. We have educational studio space there where our own musicians, if they want to do instruction when they’re here in town for children and youth, that they have access to our facilities, and they don’t have to pay for that studio space. RB: What specific steps will the symphony take to make sure that there are cash reserves in the bank next year? Pline: That past [Crescendo]

campaign really contributed to it. The others are, again, that we have a very austere budget this year. We’re doing concerts in some different ways to help us to save money and the musicians agree to it for this year. That will help us to keep money in the bank through the difficult times of cash flow and when we get to the end of the year have that money left over. RB: How exactly will you do concerts differently? Pline: There are formulas for how you perform certain works. It generally means to have X number of musicians and that those musicians have X number of rehearsals. When we were looking at this year as a whole, we met with key members of our musicians’ advisory group, and we talked about what can we do this year to help us save some money and what would the musicians agree to do. They agreed to work on some concerts that offered us more choices for saving money. So we had consensus across all of our constituencies that we all were working toward the same goal. Our concerts aren’t costing us as much this year and that allows us to save money. RB: Overall, what is a key to the symphony’s relatively stable financial state, compared with other symphonies or arts organizations? Pline: I would say that our board, our staff and our musicians, we didn’t wait for the bad news to hit. We got ahead of it, and we did the things that were necessary to remain financially viable. [There were] cutbacks, yes, but the status quo wasn’t going to cut it anymore. What’s true all these years later, after the financial crash, is that we could no longer continue doing things the way we’ve always done them, and everybody embraced that. We became responsive because we focused on how do we continue to serve the community in a way that works for them, versus the way it had always worked for us.

ROANOKE BUSINESS

LIFESTYLES

Beer for locavores Craft brewers are sprouting around the New River and Roanoke valleys by Sam Dean

JANUARY 2013

Photos by Sam Dean

lifestyles

reweries are fermenting in Southwest Virginia faster than bar stools fill at happy hour. After a few false starts in the 1990s, the past decade has seen an explosion of breweries and brewpubs opening in the Roanoke and New River valleys. There’s the Roanoke Railhouse Brewery and Big Daddy’s Brewing Co. in Roanoke and The River Co. Restaurant and Brewery and Bull & Bones Brewhaus in the New River Valley. Three more are set to open soon — Sunken City Brewing Co. at Smith Mountain Lake, Parkway Brewing Co. in Salem and Flying Mouse in Daleville. Yet even with such rapid growth, 2011 was the first year brewery numbers reached preProhibition numbers nationally, according to the Brewers Association, a national trade group for craft brewers. When the 21st Amendment repealed prohibition in 1933, only a few breweries remained from the more than 1,900 in the late 1880s. For the next 30 years, American brewing was limited to “pale lager beers vaguely of the pilsner style but lighter in body, notably lacking hop character, and generally bland in palate. They do not all taste exactly the same, but the differences between them are often of minor consequence,” according to British beer writer Michael Jackson, who is cited in the history of craft brewing for the Brewers Association. That changed in the 1960s when Fritz Maytag used part of the Maytag fortune to buy Anchor Brewing in San Francisco. There, he started producing more flavorful beer, kicking off the craft beer movement and growth in beer consumption overall. “People grew taste buds again,” says Mike Pensinger, chief brewer at the River Co., a brewery and restaurant perched

Steve Davidson calls Roanoke “virgin territory” for craft brewers.

on a steep cliff overlooking the New River across from Radford University. Like many brewers, Pensinger started as a home brewer. Then he began working for several breweries in Hampton Roads . He now brews nine standard beers for the River Co. as well as seasonal offerings, with enticing names like Peachicot Blonde Ale and Dumpster Dog Porter. Pensinger enjoys the creativity afforded by the myriad brewing options. “There are infinite brewing combinations,” he says, “and beer is easier to pair with food than wine. Plus, because it’s beer, no one will look down their nose if you don’t pair it right.” “It’s a great value,” says Steve Davidson, owner of The Roanoke Railhouse Brewery in Roanoke, who equates value to dollars spent on the quality of experience. “If you’re at a bar and already paying a few dollars for a beer, paying 50 cents more for a quality beer is a better value.”

But appreciation of that value has been late in coming here compared with cities such as Asheville, N.C., not to mention the West Coast and Rocky Mountains where the craft beer industry is well established. In Asheville alone, there are at least 15 breweries and brewpubs compared with fewer than half that number in the Roanoke area. That’s good news to brewers like Davidson. “Roanoke is virgin territory,” he says. “In the past 60 days in Roanoke, the number of tap handles has probably doubled with the opening of restaurants like Beamer’s and the Wasena City Tap Room.” That growth potential wasn’t lost on Mike Snyder, a former employee of Davidson’s, who is opening Parkway Brewing Co. in Salem and plans to start production of 1,500 to 2,000 barrels of tap and bottled beer in December. (One barrel equals 31 U.S. gallons). “I’m proud to be at least a small part of bringing craft beers to Roanoke,” says Davidson. “A rising tide floats all boats.” One brewer likens the profession to a brotherhood. Frank Moeller of Flying Mouse Brewery says, “From Smith Mountain Lake to here in Daleville, everybody has got their own thing going, but it’s more of a brotherhood.” By May, Moeller plans to start production in an 18,000-square-foot facility in Daleville, a location chosen because of its proximity to the Appalachian Trail, the TransAmerica bike trail, as well as Interstate 81. Us vs. them “It’s more of an us versus them fraternity where we try to create fresh, local craft beers with little-to-no marketing budget and compete against the big guys who spend millions advertising on every football and baseball game,” says Davidson. ROANOKE BUSINESS

lifestyles

The River Companyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Mike Pensinger is among the army of brewers proving that American beers donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t have to be watery and flavorless.

That mindset seems to be working: While overall U.S. beer sales were down an estimated 1.3 percent by volume in 2011, craft brewing volume was up to 11,468,152

barrels from 10,133,571 in 2010; sales were up 15 percent for a total retail dollar value in 2011 of an estimated $8.7 billion, according to the Brewers Association.

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JANUARY 2013

The Virginia General Assembly did its part to help the burgeoning industry by passing Senate Bill 604, which took effect on July 1. The new law makes it possible for breweries to sell and offer samples of beer on premises without having to operate an on-site restaurant. With tremendous growth in the industry, supporters saw it as a jobs bill they could promote in an economy with few bright spots. Nationally, the craft brew industry supplies an estimated 103,585 jobs, including the serving staffs in brewpubs. Distribution methods are impacting growth as well. For years craft brewers have used only bottles for distribution, but in addition to the on-site options afforded by the new law, many are turning to cans as a cheaper, greener alternative to costly bottling. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Most of the time, the cheapest thing in a packaged bottle of beer is the beer,â&#x20AC;? says Davidson, who is considering at least a partial switch to cans. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Cans keep beer fresher, are more portable and are 85 percent recyclable.â&#x20AC;? But if itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s the freshest beer youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re looking for, Davidson recommends draft, of course, right from the brewery if possible. Half-gallon jugs called growlers, which can be filled with a favorite beer and taken home for consumption in the front porch rocking chair, backyard hammock or favorite recliner, make enjoying the freshest beer easy. Much like the local food movement, craft brewing is creating jobs and local sourcing for many products. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve heard many people say that this area is 15 years behind other parts of the country,â&#x20AC;? says Parkway Brewing Co.â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Mike Snyder, â&#x20AC;&#x153;but things are really starting to explode here.â&#x20AC;? Moeller agrees. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s up to the brewers to keep the quality high, so that we can continue to grow our share of the market,â&#x20AC;? he says. â&#x20AC;&#x153;If we can do that, I think the Roanoke area will be a mecca for craft beer production on the East Coast.â&#x20AC;? Photo by Sam Dean

John Park, associate finanical adviser, Ameriprise Financial Services Inc.

Next ROANOKE

Stuck on Roanoke

John Park uses social media to help young professionals connect with Roanoke by Rebekah Manley

or John H. Park’s 34th birthday, someone posted this message on his Facebook page: “Happy Birthday, you glue of people!” As the force behind Roanoke’s cash mobs, Monday FunDay! and the annual Derby Party fundraiser, Park doesn’t do much without intentionally connecting. An associate financial adviser with the Ameriprise Financial Services practice of Lee Brooks since 2004, this Northern Virginian made Roanoke his home after graduating from Virginia Tech in the winter of 2003. “Personally,” he says, “I just want to be known as someone who loves his community and will do things to help it.” One of the things Park has introduced in Roanoke is cash mobs. Cash mobs are similar to flash mobs ― groups who gather at a designated place, engage in some kind of performance, then disperse. But instead of dance moves, cash mobs bring money to spend at designated locations. “I think I made a sale a minute, for 35 minutes, nonstop,” said John Reburn, owner of Appalachia Press, the site of Roanoke’s first cash mob. “It covered some expenses and most of all helped me see that the community did care that I was here, doing what I do and bringing something completely different to the retail landscape.”

Photo by Sam Dean

In addition to Appalachia Press, Park’s mobs have struck Northwest Hardware, Tinnell’s Finer Foods, B&D Comics, Too Many Books and Two P’s in a Pod. The Facebook group has more than 700 people, and each mob ranges from 40 to 100 shoppers. As the force behind Monday Fun-Day!, Park gathers a group of young professionals bimonthly to socialize and boost sales at local restaurants. With about 800 people and counting in the Facebook group, 50 to 70 people attend each event. Park also plans the annual Derby Party fundraiser, which is going into its third year this spring. Each year lavish hats and mint juleps have raised more than $3,000 for Unbridled Change, an equine assisted therapy facility in Boones Mill. “We encourage people to come dressed up as they might attend the Kentucky Derby,” he says. These events require planning and a personable approach. Sharon Aker loves watching her extroverted fiancé in action. “He has a genuine interest in people. He really listens, takes in everything that is being said, and he will remember it all,” she says. Understandably, their social calendar is full. “We are always on the run,” says Aker.

Roanoke Business: How did you hear about cash mobs? Park: I was at work one day and received an email about cash mobs from my buddy Matt … I pushed it to the back burner as I had other things going on at the time … An hour later I received an email from another friend asking me if I had heard of cash mobs … It was like divine intervention. It was a sign that I needed to put one together. RB:What did you do to bring cash mobs to Roanoke? Park: We started a committee, hashed out some basic guidelines, started a Facebook group and figured out where we wanted to start with the first cash mob. RB: What’s the story behind Monday Fun-Day!? Park: Monday Fun-Day! started as just a group of friends who met during the week for drinks and food in 2009. Somehow, we met four or five consecutive Mondays and a friend said, “Hey, it’s Monday Fun-Day!” Then we began to meet regularly, started a Facebook group and spread the word. RB: Have there been any Monday Fun-Day! romances? Park: There have been a few. I was actually in a wedding this past May where a couple met at Mon-

day Fun-Day! RB: How do local businesses respond to Monday Fun-Day!? Park: Local restaurants and bars love it, as typically Monday is not a very busy night for them. Many places reach out to me to bring the group there. It is also a great way for people to hear about new places and check them out. Some businesses will even volunteer to open on a Monday for us as there are many places that are not open on Mondays. RB: What else can you share about the Derby Party? Park: In past years, we’ve had over 150 attend the event. We gather before the race, and then we all watch the race together. We didn’t do any betting since it is not allowed but have played games in the past that help to raise money for Unbridled Change. We get local businesses to donate funds and/ or silent auction items that attendees can bid on. We also have a gift bag for the attendees. RB: What would you tell a person who just moved to Roanoke? Park: There are many fun things to do in this town, but you may need to take a little time to seek them out.

ROANOKE BUSINESS

Asheville is often held up as the place Roanoke should aspire to be. The other city on the Blue Ridge Parkway, Asheville got the park’s headquarters and is such a tourist-popular town, the minor league ball team (which plays in one of the top 10 minor league ballparks in the country, according to Livability.com) is called the Tourists. In the last two years, Outside magazine and American Rivers called Asheville one of America’s best river towns. An online poll has named Asheville Beer City for four years running. “Good Morning America” featured the city in a series on the most beautiful places in America. American Style magazine named it the country’s top small city for art. Yoga Journal included Asheville on its list of "10 Fantastically Yoga-Friendly Towns.” There are arguments to be made that the Roanoke and New River Valleys can compete with Asheville in all sorts of ways. But there’s at least one way the valleys beat Asheville hands down – cost of living. Everything, it seems, is cheaper here. And we have yoga, too.

t could be worse. Unempl oy m ent a mong countries that use the Euro was a record 11.7 percent in October, If you move from Blacksburg to Asheville up 0.9 of a percentage point from September. InGroceries Greece and will Spain, cost the rate topped 25 percent. Compared to Housing will cost that, the unemployment rate around here looks prettyUtilities good. will cost Unemployment in the United States willincost droppedTransportation below 8 percent the fall, which is better than it had been for a Health will cost while, but not nearly as good as anyone hopes it will be. The national rate ticked a tenth of a point higher in October If you move from Roanoke to Asheville than it was in September, but that might be a good thing. Some people who had Groceries will cost dropped out of the workforce decided they might findHousing work after all, so the will cost Location

pool of potential workers grew. Virginia has been doing better than the nation. In October, the Old Dominion was tied with Kansas and New Hampshire for the country’s 10th-best unemployment 13.053%rate, 5.7 percent. More The Roanoke and New River valleys did just 7.036 More a bit better. The Roanoke metropolitan area was17.091 at 5.5 percent. TheMore BlacksburgChristiansburg-Radford metropolitan Less area was 0.613 a tick higher, 5.6 percent. The nation’s best rate was 3.1 percent, in 3.274 Nevada hadMore North Dakota. the nation’s highest unemployment rate, 11.5 percent. Those rates are seasonally adjusted. The Bureau of Labor Statistics also puts out unadjusted numbers. Here’s what those 11.572% More looked like for Virginia, the nation, and the Roanoke valleys. 9.967and New River More

Utilities will cost

16.720

October 2011

Transportation will cost United States Health will cost Source:Virginia The Council for Community and Economic Research

3.625 8.5 10.627 6.0

JANUARY 2013

Net Change

7.5

-1.0

-0.9

6.4

Botetourt County

5.2

5.0

Blacksburg

Roanoke 10.1 Asheville

Craig County Composite (100%) Floyd County Grocery (13.31%) Franklin County Housing Giles(29.27%) County

95.2

92.6

90.4

91.6

93.8

Montgomery Utilities (10.22%) County Pulaski County Transportation (9.86%) Radford Health (4.23%) Roanoke County Miscellaneous Roanoke (33.11%)

7.6

5.4

91.3

6.3 102.2 6.3 6.4100.4

5.6

94.2

94.5

6.2 110.3

5.4

-0.8 100

97.8

93.8

6.1

5.7

100.8

94.1

97.3

93.1

101.6

6.4

-0.2

National -2.5 average

-0.9 100 -1.3 100 -0.9 100 -0.8

Salem

7.3

-0.6

7.3

Section 1: Index Values Category (percent Covington weight)

5.4

Alleghany County

Unemployment rates, not seasonally adjusted. Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics

October 2012(P)

5.0

7.5 104.1 5.2 7.6100.8

6.6

-0.4 100 -0.6 100 -0.4 100-1.0

6.3

5.5

-0.8

97.2

6.9 4.8

Roanoke Regional Chamber of Commerce | SPONSORED CONTENT

Roanoke Regional Chamber recognizes Chamber Champions and event sponsors CHAMBER CHAMPIONS BB&T Brown Edwards Blue Ridge Copier Cox Business

Gentry Locke Rakes & Moore Grow Inc. LifeWorks REHAB (Medical Facilities of America)

Lumos Networks rev.net Spilman Thomas & Battle, PLLC Trane

Tread Corporation Wells Fargo Woods Rogers Attorneys at Law Pepsi Bottling Group

Note: Chamber Champions are members who support the Roanoke Regional Chamber through year-round sponsorships in exchange for year-round recognition.

EVENT SPONSORS 26th Annual Small Business Awards Dinner Cox Business First Citizens Bank Gentry Locke Rakes & Moore City of Roanoke County of Roanoke Sir Speedy Printing & Marketing Services xpedx

Oktoberfest: A Business After Hours Event Hidden Valley Country Club Policymakers Luncheon with Dr. Jeffrey M. Lacker Appalachian Power First Citizens Bank Lanford Brothers Co.

2012 Annual State of the County Address Appalachian Power Carilion Clinic Cox First Citizens Bank Gentry Locke Rakes & Moore Hall Associates RGC Resources, Inc.

Member news & recognitions Laurie Mrva of Achieve Success has been awarded the designation of certified business coach Mrva by the Resource Associates Coaching Academy. The board of directors of the Arts Council of the Blue Ridge has reorganized it as an all-volunteer organization. Because of the challenging financial situation, the board regretfully made the decision to release the current staff while funding opportunities are pursued. The board believes that the work of the Arts Council is critically important to the community, so the organization will continue to function as a volunteer group using the skills of its existing board members. The board has appointed Vern Danielsen, a current board member, to serve as the interim executive director of the council. Other Arts Council board members include: Wayne Strickland, president; Terry O’Shaughnessy, vice president; Kim Smith Ferguson, treasurer; and directors Scott

Crawford, Frank Flippin, Bill Morris, Amy Moorefield, Stephen Pendergrass and Christopher Walters. Bank of Botetourt has announced that H. Watts Steger III has been named president-elect of The Steger Graduate School of Banking at Louisiana State University. Steger, chairman and CEO of Botetourt Bankshares Inc., was elected at a meeting of the school’s Board of Trustees Oct. 12. Three area teachers were among the 20 outstanding teachers who remain in the running for the prestigious 2013 McGlothlin Awards for Teaching Excellence. Among the largest teaching prizes in the U.S., the two McGlothlin Award winners receive $25,000 each, while four runners-up receive $1,000 each. The semi-finalists next move through two more evaluation levels, with winners announced at the annual McGlothlin Celebration of Teaching at Radford University in April 2013. The area 2013 McGlothlin Award

semi-finalist in the elementary category is Tracey Nielsen, Virginia Heights Elementary, Roanoke City Schools. The two area semi-finalists in the secondary category are Beth Cook, Salem High School; and Judith Painter, Andrew Lewis Middle School, which are both part of Salem City Schools. A number of regional businesses were recently honored by the Blue Ridge PRSA at the group’s 10th annual Summit Awards Gala. The Summit Awards are an annual recognition of the best in public relations and communications efforts by professional public relations practitioners in Southwest Virginia. The following were honored: Access Advertising & PR, silver, audio-visual long format, average budget; silver, audio-visual short format, average budget; gold, public relations campaign, average budget; and special events, average budget; Advance Auto Parts, gold, annual report, average budget; silver, community partnerships, average budget; silver, internal communications, modest budget; silver, media relations; silver, public rela-

tions campaign, average budget; and gold, special events, modest budget; American Red Cross, Lee Clark, CEO, 2012 Compass Award; Anstey Hodge Advertising Group, silver, magazine, average budget; Appalachian Power, gold, issues and crisis management, super derecho storm; silver, audiovisual short format, average budget; gold, special events, average budget; Jen K. Ward, Blue Filly Productions, gold, Lin Chaff Award for Creativity – modest budget; Botetourt County Horseman’s Association Awareness Campaign, silver, public relations campaign – modest budget; City of Roanoke, gold, public relations campaign, modest budget; National College, silver, Lin Chaff Award for Creativity, modest budget; Neathawk Dubuque & Packett, silver, annual report, average budget; gold, community partnerships, modest budget; gold, green efforts, modest budget; gold, audio-visual long format, average budget; gold, audio-visual, short format, average budget; gold, internal communications, modest budget; sil-

ROANOKE BUSINESS

SPONSORED CONTENT | Roanoke Regional Chamber of Commerce ver, internal communications, average budget; gold, Lin Chaff Award for Creativity, average budget; silver, Lin Chaff Award for Creativity, average budget; silver, print publications, average budget; silver, print publications, modest budget; gold, social media, moderate budget; silver, special events, average budget; 2012 Summit Award – Best in Show, Green Efforts – Modest Budget, Save A Ton; and 2012 Summit Awards – Best in Show, audio-visual short format, average budget, AnMed Health is Successfully “Out of Sync” project; Radford University, Lauren Miller, silver, student portfolio; Roanoke County, gold, audio-visual long format, modest budget; Roanoke County Public Schools, gold, annual report, modest budget; silver, community partnerships, modest budget; silver, audio-visual long format, modest budget; and silver, social media, modest budget; Roanoke County Public Information, silver, annual report, modest budget; Roanoke County Parks, Recreation & Tourism, gold, print publications, modest budget; Roanoke Valley Television RVTV-3, gold, website development, modest budget; and Virginia Department of Transportation, silver, green efforts, average category.

Darby

Beers

Goodlatte

Tier 2 ranking for commercial litigation, corporate law and public finance law. Additionally, three attorneys from Glenn Feldmann Darby & Goodlatte were recently included in this year’s 2013 rankings of Best Lawyers, one of the oldest and most respected peer-review publications. The recipients were: Harwell M. Darby Jr., corporate law and public finance law; Maryellen F. Goodlatte, real estate law and real estate litigation; and Paul G. Beers, labor and employment litigation and commercial litigation.

Feldmann

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tractors Group Self Insurance Association (VACO). This is the third time in four years that MB Contractors has been recognized with the award, receiving bronze in 2009 and gold in 2011. VACO presents their safety awards recognizing the highest level of safety at the general member meeting each October. Awards are based on the comprehensive safety program, loss ratios and experience modification factors. National College has named Jeff Wilkinson vice president for the School of Professional Development. In this role, Wilkinson will serve as the chief administraWilkinson tive officer for the school, which focuses on meeting the skill training and certification needs of area businesses, organizations, government agencies and IT professionals. Noah Dellinger has recently joined the staff at the Roanoke Valley Campus of National College as an admissions representative.

Risa Pesapane has been named the new executive director at the Cabell Brand Center. The Carilion Clinic Children’s Hospital has received a donation of $36,252 through the Kohl’s Cares cause merchandise program. The donations were collected from Kohl’s stores located in Roanoke and Lynchburg. The grant will support a new program for the community – Kohl’s Infant Safe Sleep. The new program aims to better educate parents and caregivers of families in need of proper safe sleep and proper safe sleep environments for infants. Carilion Roanoke Memorial Hospital was recently named by Becker’s Hospital Review as having one of the top orthopedic programs in the country. Becker’s Hospital Review compiled a list of 101 hospitals from across the U.S. that demonstrate continual innovation in orthopedic treatments and services and that emphasize patient-centered care and forward-thinking research. The law firm Gentry Locke Rakes & Moore has announced that associate Margaret A. “Megan” Brown has been recognized with the 2012 DePaul Community ReBrown sources Women of Achievement Award in the category of law. Glenn Feldmann Darby & Goodlatte has been named one of the “2013 Best Law Firms” in the Roanoke area by U.S. News Media Group and Best Lawyers. The firm received the highest level, Tier 1, rankings in three practice areas including labor and employment, litigation – real estate litigation, and real estate law. The firm also received a 34 4

JANUARY 2013

Ziogas

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Troland

Glenn Feldmann Darby & Goodlatte also announced that eight of its attorneys are included in this year’s rankings of the 2012 Virginia Legal Elite published by Virginia Business. The recipients are: Mark E. Feldmann for construction law; Harwell M. Darby Jr. for business law; Maryellen F. Goodlatte for real estate/land use law; Robert A. Ziogas for civil litigation; Paul G. Beers for criminal law; David I. Tenzer for intellectual property; Jeremy E. Carroll for labor/employment law; and Charles E. Troland for taxes/estates/trusts/elder law. The law firm Johnson, Ayers & Matthews was honored with a Tier 1 ranking as a “Best Law Firm” in the practice areas of eminent domain and condemnation law, litigation – eminent domain and condemnation, personal injury litigation – defendants, and railroad law for the Roanoke metropolitan area in the 2013 edition of the U.S. News – Best Lawyers magazine. MB Contractors recently received the Silver Safety Award for Outstanding Safety Program in the general contractors’ category from the Virginia Con-

Gauldin

Jessica Gauldin has joined Poe & Cronk Real Estate Group as a commercial and residential sales and leasing services specialist.

Wayne Bowers has been named director of the Roanoke City Department of Economic Development. Bowers has worked in local government since 1973, most recently as city manager in Greenville, N.C. Roanoke City Police Chief Chris Perkins has received the American Legion Law Enforcement Officer of the Year Award by the American Legion Perkins Post 3. Commander Doug Hippenstall and member Jim Werner presented the award to Chief Perkins. Roanoke Mayor David A. Bowers also presented the chief with an award on behalf of the city. The Virginia Department of Education has released the 2012 “On-Time Graduation Rates” for Virginia’s public schools. The graduation rate of Roanoke County Public Schools held steady compared with the previous year, decreasing 0.1 percent to 91.7 percent. Statewide, 88 percent of the students in the class of 2012 gradated on time with a diploma. Roanoke County Public Schools is one of 62 school divisions with an on-time graduation rate exceeding the state average. The Roanoke Valley-Alleghany Regional Commission unveiled a new logo and public relations strategy at its 43rd annual dinner. The RVARC’s new regional public relations strategy is designed to enhance the aware-

Roanoke Regional Chamber of Commerce | SPONSORED CONTENT ness and recognition of its efforts to foster cooperation and collaboration with local governments and partner organizations in the surrounding region. The Science Museum of Western Virginia has hired Derek Kellogg as lead animal-care specialist for the butterfly habitat exhibit, which is expected to be one of the museum’s primary attractions when it re-opens at Center in the Square. Kellogg began work Nov. 12, although the exhibit won’t be open to the public until May 2013. The new two-story butterfly exhibit will occupy nearly 3,000 square feet on the fifth floor in the Science Museum and be home to approximately 300 butterflies at any given time. Spilman Thomas & Battle PLLC recently announced that the firm was ranked as a “Best Law Firm” at the national level for bankruptcy and creditor debtor rights/ insolvency and reorganization law. The “Best Law Firms” list was compiled by the combined efforts of U.S. News & World Report and Best Lawyers. The Roanoke Spilman law office was ranked at the metropolitan level in the following practice areas: banking and finance law; bankruptcy and creditor debtor rights/ insolvency and reorganization law; biotechnology law; commercial litigation; corporate law; employee benefits (ERISA) law; employment law — management; financial services regulation law; labor law — management; public finance law; and trust and estates law. Spilman Thomas & Battle has announced that F.B. Webster Day has been named the Best Lawyers’ 2013 Roanoke Public Finance Law “Lawyer of the Year.” Only a single attorney is recognized as such for each practice area in each community. “Lawyers of the Year” are chosen based on particularly high ratings received during the yearly Best Lawyers peer-review surveys. Jim Flowers of VT KnowledgeWorks was recognized at the 64th Annual Virginia Conference on World Trade. He was the recipient of the Virginia TradePort Innovator of the Year for 2012. The Virginia TradePort recognizes a company or individual that has made a sig-

nificant impact on international trade and business development in and around the Virginia TradePort. John Cusimano, associate treasurer at Virginia Tech, has been named university treasurer. He succeeds Ray Smoot, who retired in July after serving as uniCusimano versity treasurer and chief executive officer of the Virginia Tech Foundation. As university treasurer, Cusimano will provide overall leadership to the investment and cash management and debt management functions of the university. Srinath Ekkad, professor of mechanical engineering in the College of Engineering at Virginia Ekkad Tech, was recently named Commonwealth Professor for Aerospace Propulsion Systems by the Virginia Tech Board of Visitors. Katie Gehrt has joined the Virginia Tech College of Architecture and Urban Studies as commuGehrt nications manager. In this role, she will be responsible for strategic communications for the college, including internal and external communications, media relations and publications. Tracy Hall has joined the University Libraries at Virginia Tech as the instructional services librarHall ian. In this role, she will work to help students understand and navigate library resources. Jeffrey Kirwan, professor emeritus and forestry extension specialist in the College of Natural Kirwan Resources and Environment at Virginia Tech, has been awarded the Virginia Department of Forestry’s highest civilian honor — the Crown Award. Rich Mathieson has joined Virginia Tech as the communications coordinator for the Language

and Culture Institute and Outreach and International Affairs. In this new position, Mathieson will proMathieson vide communications support for the Language and Culture Institute, including putting together a regular newsletter to share the stories of the institute’s students, faculty and staff. Jessi Preussner has been named the new project manager for VT Engage: The Community Preussner Learning Collaborative’s Remember-Serve-Learn Initiative, a grant-funded project through the Corporation for National and Community Service. As project manager, Preussner will coordinate a regional initiative to commemorate the National Sept. 11 Day of Service and Virginia Tech’s Day of Remembrance by commissioning students to volunteer as tutors and mentors for at-risk children and youth, or with emergency response teams. Laura W. Rugless has been named the executive director of equity and access in the Department of Human Resources at Virginia Tech. Prior to joining Virginia Tech, she worked as Rugless the equal employment opportunity and employee relations manager for the Virginia Department of Health. Dilip Shome, professor of finance in the Pamplin College of Business at Virginia Tech, was Shome recently named the Russell V. and Arlene F. Oliver Faculty Fellow in Investment Management Teaching by the Virginia Tech Board of Visitors.

the global auto manufacturer. At the end of the fall term, the students will give a formal presentation to the client summarizing the campaign and results. The Virginia Tech Board of Visitors approved a new undergraduate degree in real estate. The State Council for Higher Education in Virginia will review the program for final approval in early 2013. The university expects the program to launch in fall 2013. The first graduates will be current students who decide to add real estate as a second major or those who have already completed most of the coursework for the major. The degree will transcend traditional college boundaries as a comprehensive, interdisciplinary academic program that will be a partnership among six colleges, including the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, the College of Architecture and Urban Studies, Pamplin College of Business, the College of Engineering, the College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences and the College of Natural Resources and Environment. The Full-Time Fridays program at Virginia Western Community College will accept its second cohort this spring semester, allowing students to earn a college degree while balancing priorities among their work, families and life in general. Full-Time Fridays will give those students the opportunity to earn an associate of science degree in general studies in just two years through on-campus courses on Fridays, coupled with distance (online) learning.

Marketing students from Virginia Tech’s Pamplin College of Business are putting what they learn in class to work on a project for Chevrolet. The students in the marketing communications course taught by Laurel Schirr have created an in-class marketing agency to research, implement and evaluate an integrated marketing campaign for ROANOKE BUSINESS

SPONSORED CONTENT | Roanoke Regional Partnership Roanoke voted best mountain town by Blue Ridge Outdoors Roanoke earned the most votes for Best Mountain Town in a recent poll of Blue Ridge Outdoors readers. The results, announced Nov. 1, ranked Roanoke as the top midsize mountain town, beating out Asheville, N.C.; Morgantown, W.Va.; and Charlottesville, among others. Here’s what the magazine had to say: “The city of Roanoke is perfectly located: In the heart of the valley, with a river running right through town, and adjacent to George Washington and Jefferson National Forests. Not surprisingly, it’s rapidly gaining a reputation as one of the country’s top outdoor destinations.” The magazine considers a range of factors when choosing the best mountain town, but the most important aspect is the people. “That’s the funny thing about outdoor recreation: it takes a commitment from the people to maintain,” the article reads. “Trails need clearing, rivers need cleaning and access needs protecting.” You can see the full article online from Blue Ridge Outdoors or pick up the November issue of the magazine on newsstands.

Roanoke Region cost advantages continue to grow Roanoke is the lowest-cost metropolitan area in Virginia and is among the top 30 metros in the country when it comes to a low cost of living. Costs are about 11 percent lower than the national average, according to the Council for Community and Economic Research’s 3rd Quarter 2012 Cost of Living Index. The region was able to gain significant ground in its cost competitiveness. The index value is 4.7 points lower than this same period in 2011.The area’s competitive advantages seem to lie mainly in lower food, transportation, health-care and housing costs. The region’s cost of living is lower than many competing Southern metro areas including Asheville, N.C.; Greenville, S.C.; Charlotte, N.C.; and Chattanooga, Tenn. Roanoke’s cost of living is among the lowest in the Southeastern United States. “A lower cost structure has always been an advantage for those who live and conduct business in the Roanoke region,” says Beth Doughty, executive director of the Roanoke Regional Partnership. “We’re able to maintain that advantage and even gain ground on our competitors. It’s never been more critical than during these economic times.”

FedEx Ground breaks ground on new distribution center FedEx Ground started construction on a 103,000-square-foot distribution center in late October to meet growing customer demand in the region. The company’s $12.6 million investment is part of a nationwide expansion to boost daily package volume capacity and further enhance the speed and service capabilities of the FedEx Ground network. “The new facility will be able to process 50,000 packages per day, up nearly 30,000 from its current regional facility in Salem. The facility will dispatch 80 trucks daily from the new location. “Our new building will be larger than the existing station now serving the area, allowing us to continue to meet and exceed customer demand in the region,” says Rochelle Martin, FedEx Ground district managing director. “When the new facility opens in fall 2013, positions will transfer from the existing station, and we will add jobs as necessary to support increased demand for service in the area. We are looking forward to expanding in the Roanoke Valley.” FedEx Ground employs 125 people in the Roanoke Valley. The company will transfer 75 jobs from its existing facility once the new FedEx Ground location is completed. The other 50 FedEx Home Delivery jobs will remain at the Salem location. The new distribution center will be at 3435 Chip Drive in the Roanoke Centre for Industry and Technology on U.S. Route 460. It will be built on property once housing a manufacturer of ceramic chip capacitors. Demolition work on the site has been completed 36 6

JANUARY 2013

to enable construction to begin. Since 2005, FedEx Ground has opened 11 new hubs featuring advanced material-handling systems and expanded or relocated more than 500 local facilities. Since 2003, FedEx Ground has improved the transit time in more than two-thirds of its lanes by at least one business day. FedEx Ground delivers more than 61 percent of packages in two days or less and more than 82 percent of packages in three days or less. “The City of Roanoke is proud to host the expansion of FedEx Ground, and we look forward to having this world-renowned brand expand its regional footprint in our city,” says Roanoke Mayor David Bowers. “I commend FedEx Ground for investing in the Roanoke Valley and am encouraged about expected increases in volume, which is an important indicator of economic growth.”

Ply Gem Windows to add 200 jobs in Rocky Mount Ply Gem Windows, a leading manufacturer of window and door products for residential and light commercial construction, recently announced the addition of 200 jobs and a significant capital investment at its Rocky Mount manufacturing facility by the end of 2014, reflecting an improvement in demand for the company’s products. “The company will invest $9 million in the Rocky Mount facility,” says Lynn Morstad, president of Ply Gem Windows. “Through these initiatives, we are looking to bring our job count at the Rocky Mount facility to 1,100 associates by the end of 2014.” New hires will include jobs such as unit assemblers, coordinators, value stream leaders, process owners, process engineers, technicians and IT support. “In addition to job creation, the investment in Rocky Mount is part of our company’s Enterprise Lean initiative, which includes manufacturing improvements such as new extrusion tooling, equipment, products and information technology,” says Morstad. “We are focused on enhancing Ply Gem’s product offering and customer experience to support planned growth from the housing market recovery, as well as improved market share from new customers and products. This expansion demonstrates the confidence we have in associates at the Rocky Mount facility to deliver superior products and service to customers throughout North America.” “Ply Gem Windows has a long and proud history in Rocky Mount, and we’re delighted that Ply Gem has the confidence to add jobs in Rocky Mount and the continued confidence in the quality of our workers,” says Rick Huff, Franklin County administrator. “We look forward to helping Ply Gem grow as the economy improves.” “This continues a string of good economic news for Franklin County,” says David Cundiff, chairman of the Franklin County Board of Supervisors and member of the Virginia Tobacco Indemnification and Community Revitalization Commission. “Companies from throughout the world are hiring and investing here because of the strength of our work force, our low costs of doing business and our great quality of life.” The investment was made possible, in part, by grants from the Virginia Tobacco Indemnification and Community Revitalization Commission, Franklin County and the Town of Rocky Mount. The company also is receiving assistance from the Virginia Jobs Investment Program through the Virginia Department of Business Assistance. The current manufacturing facility was established in 1939 and acquired by Ply Gem in 2004. Over the years, the plant has manufactured products such as storm windows, aluminum windows, and window and doorframes. Today, Ply Gem Windows is a leading manufacturer of vinyl, vinyl-clad, aluminum-clad and wood windows and patio doors for residential and light commercial construction. Ply Gem, the corporate parent of Ply Gem Windows, recorded more than $1 billion in sales in 2011.

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FOR LIFE’S UNEXPECTED MOMENTS

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ROANOKE – 540-772-8670 4035 Electric Road, Suite A DALEVILLE – 540-591-9440 46 Wesley Road CHRISTIANSBURG – 540-382-6000 434 Peppers Ferry Road WESTLAKE – 540-719-1815 13205 Booker T. Washington Highway

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