Don’t Just Be a Member… PARTICIPATE!

from 919 Magazine Mar/Apr 2020 Morrisville RTP Cary

What's happening in each zone of 919 Magazine? Plenty!

New Board Chair Frankel Seeks More Involvement

919 Magazine Photos by Donovan Barnes

When Rod Frankel – the 2020 Chair of the Morrisville Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors – stood up to deliver his message at the recent 29th Annual Meeting, he had a strong message for the members of the local business organization.

“The important part of membership is to participate,” he stressed to members and guests, including many local officials and civic representatives. “Just being a member isn’t sufficient. It’s important to become more involved.”

Frankel (of Frankel Staffing Partners) made his comments to the group that represents more than 300 local companies with 28,000 employees after the Chamber honored three individuals and organizations:

Small Business of the Year: Athletic Lab, a sports performance and fitness training facility, and Dr. Mike Young.

Steward of the Year: Credit Suisse, for its aggressive efforts to encourage community and volunteer involvement among its employees.

Ambassador of the Year: Mark Clark of The Digital Office (recognized for the third year in a row).

Frankel recognized and thanked the Chamber staff for their contributions and hard work for the organization, including Member Services Manager Bri Butler, Communications Manager Abigail Garza, Operations Manager Shaba Jones, Membership Development Manager Sarah Moore, and President Sarah Gaskill, who gave an emotional speech on her planned departure to join the private sector.

‘JUST BEING A MEMBER ISN’T SUFFICIENT. IT’S IMPORTANT TO BECOME MORE INVOLVED.’ ~ ROD FRANKEL 2020 CHAIR, MORRISVILLE CHAMBER BOARD

Immediate Past Board Chair Carla Matilla of Credit Suisse provided the audience with many Chamber highlights for 2019, including: Launching an immersive, hands-on field trip experience for area high school students, which included visits to FUJIFILM Diosynth Biotechnologies and WakeMed Cary.

Revamping the “Sharpen Your Skills” workshop series by refocusing the content on leadership and sales development – resulting in five consecutive sold out events.

Experiencing tremendous growth and community support at the annual East Meets West Festival, an event that celebrates Morrisville’s diversity (4,000 attendees and 75 community volunteers).

Hosting more than 50 events throughout the year, providing networking, marketing and professional development opportunities to members and the local business community.

Attending 16 ribbon-cutting and member milestone events.

Lesa Melvin of Creative Vision introduced Keynote Speaker Scott Levitan, President and CEO of the Research Triangle Foundation of North Carolina, who spoke extensively about many RTP topics – including the continued growth at The Frontier and the emergence of the new HUB RTP.

“The new Hub RTP urban district is a game changer in the Research Triangle,” Levitan told attendees. “It will be magnet for business and talent and similar in size compared to nearby downtown centers”

**On left: Scott Levitan, President/CEO Research Triangle Foundation of NC with guests and 919 Magazine Publisher SB Sarver (Far right)**

The first phase of the mixed-use development will be adjacent to the Frontier RTP startup campus, which lies on the west side of Hub RTP, he said, adding that the campus recently announced Boxyard ”