December 2017
Whitefish Mountain Resort Opens Dec 7!
KALISPELL CHAMBER NEWSLETTER CALENDAR OF EVENTS DEC 6
Flathead Area Young Professionals Year End Networking 5:30pm - Rival’s Sports Bar
DEC 8
Kalispell Ford Grand Opening 4:00-7:00pm - 2000 Rose Crossing
CHAMBER BRIEFS Kalispell Ford Grand Opening Dec 8
Join us in celebrating the Grand Opening of the new Kalispell Ford dealership on December 8th, from 4-7 pm. Food and refreshments will be served. Ribbon cutting at 5:00 pm. Ford kindly requests your registration for their planning purposes. To register to attend, click here.
2018 Economic Outlook Seminar
8:30-10:00am - Kalispell Chamber
The 2018 University of Montana Economic Outlook Seminar is in Kalispell on February 6th, at the Hilton Garden Inn, 8am-1pm. This year’s keynote The Future of Higher Education in Montana, will be presented by Bob Nystuen, vice chair of the Montana University Board of Regents. He is president at Glacier Bank in Kalispell and a resident of Lakeside. Higher education is a future-oriented business, educating and preparing the leaders of tomorrow. But what is the future for colleges and universities themselves? In an economy that increasingly rewards knowledge and expertise, the need to cultivate and grow a competitive, skilled, and educated workforce is more vital than ever. Yet the way we do this and the way we pay for it has come under the microscope in recent years. This year’s Economic Outlook Seminar examines the question of how Montana’s higher education system returns value to all of us who live and work here. Click here to register for this event.
DEC 25
Kalispell City Council to take up City Airport, Downtown Plan at Meeting Tonight, 12/4
DEC 9
Kalispell Christmas Parade 5:00pm - Main Street, Kalispell
DEC 21
Thinking Thursday: Financial Success Planning
Christmas
Offices Closed
DEC 30-31
Flathead Skijoring
Hosted at Rebecca Farm
JAN 1
New Year’s Day Offices Closed
JAN 10-11
Business Days at the Capitol Helena, MT
JAN 16
Luncheon: Kalispell Business Agenda 11:45am-1:00pm, Red Lion Hotel
The Council will take up Resolution 5848 – Airport Lease Agreement at their meeting tonight. The Chamber strongly supports continued operations of City Airport and the approval of the lease agreement with the airport users. In his letter to City Council, Chamber President Joe Unterreiner said “Airports are an essential public facility. Numerous Kalispell enterprises use it in their regular course of business to manage their operations around the state and region and create more jobs in Kalispell.” Also on the agenda is Resolution 5846 to adopt, revise, or reject the Downtown Plan. The Chamber supports the overall vision of the plan, encouraging a high priority on downtown housing and parking, and urging caution on the reconfiguration of Main Street and overly onerous design standards. Click here for a full copy of the Chamber’s letter to City Hall. The meeting is at 7:00pm at City Hall.
Skijoring at Rebecca Farm December 30-31
Skijoring will be the first non-summer event to be held at Rebecca Farm, one of the top equine eventing facilities in the nation. This exciting sport combines skiing and horseback riding, as the team of three (skier, horse, and rider) compete for speed and accuracy over an obstacle course about 100 yards long. Admission to skijoring is free, so grab the family, put on your warm winter clothes, and head to Rebecca Farm to close out 2017. To volunteer, enter as a competitor, or learn more information about the event, click here.
Business Days at the Capitol – Jan. 10-11
Montana Chamber of Commerce Business Days at the Capitol brings together business leaders and government officials to talk face-to-face and participate in a variety of educational and networking events. This is a terrific opportunity to speak directly with elected officials and to learn about the current business climate in Montana. Business Days at the Capitol includes a Lawmaker Appreciation Reception and Dinner, providing sponsors and business leaders with a networking opportunity. Other highlights include legislative leadership discussing top legislative priorities–both during the session and the interim–and seminars on emerging issues. Click here to register.
CONVENTION & VISITOR BUREAU NEWS Montana Pond Hockey Classic Sixty teams have already signed up for the KCVB’s annual Montana Pond Hockey Classic at Foy’s Lake, January 19 – 21. The 2017 tournament attracted 73 teams and 500 players and brought $842,803 into the local economy during the quiet month of January. This year’s event promises to be even bigger. SPONSOR Our Pond Hockey sponsors help us put rinks on the ice, heat in the tents, beer in the mugs, music in the air, and fans on the sidelines. They provide much-needed support in the form of financial contributions, in-kind donations, advertising, event amenities, and more. Montana Pond Hockey Classic is grateful to our sponsors and partners for their part in making this free, public event possible. If you’d like to get your business in front of more than 500 hockey players and their fans, join Tamarack Brewing Company, Kalispell Toyota, Moose’s Saloon, Hilton Garden Inn, and others as an event sponsor. Contact Vonnie at 758-2809 or vonnie@discoverkalispell.com. VOLUNTEER Volunteer rink monitors, score runners, time-keepers, hospitality helpers, and more are needed. See the assignments available and sign up here.
Faces of the Flathead
Falling in love with the Flathead - an insight from our visitor blog
Any season you visit the Flathead will be one to remember, but you’ll soon find that it’s the people who really make this corner of Montana so extraordinary. In the first edition of our Faces of the Flathead series, we introduced you to a few of the locals who make the visitor experience authentic and exceptional with their Western hospitality and entrepreneurial spirit. With temperatures dropping, we introduce you to a few more folks you’ll likely meet on the snow or over a beer and who will have you falling in love with winter in the Flathead. Click here to read!
Introduce Your Business to International Tour Operators.
Sign up for the International Roundup. There are only three spots left! The KCVB is bringing the International Round-Up (IRU) to the Flathead Valley April 9-11, 2018 at the Red Lion Hotel to give lodging facilities, guest ranches, museums, guides, activity providers, and others a chance to introduce their businesses to nearly 50 international and domestic tour operators from more than 10 countries. IRU is attended by tour operators that specialize in Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wyoming and handle travel arrangements for individuals to large groups. Sign up here!
Leadership Flathead The Class of 2018 experienced a thought-provoking day centered around Business, Innovation, and Technology on November 3rd. From a hands-on strategic planning exercise led by Tagen Vine (Kalispell Regional Healthcare Foundation) to tours of Nomad and SmartLam, this day highlighted the opportunities in our Valley. The session day also highlighted a panel that featured “green” businesses as a new look at ideas that have come to fruition within our community. It is exciting to know we have such motivated, forward-thinking leaders that are developing new technology and expanded workforce opportunities for all of us. Special thanks to Valley Bank for providing additional funding for this session day.
FEATURED MEMBER
At Homewood Suites in Kalispell, located in the Hutton Ranch Plaza, you’ll walk in the front doors and be greeted by laughter coming from somewhere in the rustic, Montana-themed foyer.
HOMEWOOD SUITES BY HILTON
“This is easily one of the best places in the valley to work,” said Dawn Hendrickson, the hotel’s newly promoted General Manager. “Our tightknit group here likes to have fun every day, the employees love their jobs, and I absolutely think that our work atmosphere is absolutely the driver of our high levels of guest satisfaction.”
DAWN HENDRICKSON
Guest satisfaction is a top priority for Dawn and the entire staff at Homewood Suites. In fact, the hotel recently won a number of awards among all Hilton Worldwide Hotels that reflected the top marks guests gave, overall cleanliness, and other factors. “Employee buy-in within an organization is critical to the success of a business,” Dawn says. She accomplishes that by creating an inspiring work environment where employees feel like they belong and can make a difference. Employees of Homewood Suites can be found hosting and participating in Red Cross Blood drives, gathering toiletries to donate to local wildfire victims, bringing in food for the food banks, and coming up with fun competitions between each other. Click here to read more!
Thinking Thursday: Financial Success Planning Thursday, December 21 | 8:30-10:00am Kalispell Chamber Board Room
Michael Kelley, Financial Advisor with Northwestern Mutual, will be presenting the importance of financial planning and how you can structure a custom financial plan that caters to your specific needs. He will be working through simplistic investment and planning strategies for all income/asset levels to help you get in the game of financial planning as we head into the new year. Space is limited. Please click here to register.
HOST A THINKING THURSDAY SEMINAR IN 2018 Our Thinking Thursday events are a way to serve the Flathead business community with free, educational workshops and seminars that can help them grow their business or grow personally. Topics over the past year have included e-learning, 5 sales strategies, how to have tough conversations, social media on a budget, and more. Do you think you have a topic that would help others in the valley? We’re currently taking applications to fill our 2018 Thinking Thursday calendar. Complete this form or contact our Administrative Assistant, Jordan Grapensteter at info@kalispellchamber.com or (406) 758-2803.
Flathead Area Young Professionals: Year End Networking Event Wednesday, December 6 - 5:30pm Rival’s Sports Bar, Kalispell Flathead Area Young Professionals is hosting their year-end networking event at Rival’s Sports Bar in Kalispell this Wednesday, December 6th starting at 5:30. All young professionals between the ages of 21-40 are invited to attend. There is no cost for this event, however, attendees are encouraged to bring non-perishable food donations which will be delivered to the Flathead Youth Home. Interested in learning more about Flathead Area Young Professionals? Click here.
Milestone Membership Celebrations This December 30+ Years
Flathead Travel Service Best & Westover, P.C. Attorneys at Law Weyerhaeuser Flathead Farm Mutual Insurance Company Rocky Mountain Transportation Inc. D. A. Davidson & Co. Flathead Valley Community College TD&H Engineering Glacier Bank First Interstate Bank Pepsi Cola Bottling Company Community Action Partnership of NWMT Wells Fargo Bank
20 Years
Prestige Assisted Living All Pro Flathead Property Mgmt
15 Years
Building by Jon Summit Preparatory School
New Members
10 Years
Holiday Inn Express Montana Land & Home, Inc.
Berube Physical Therapy
5 Years
Lake Blaine Mountain Resort Thomas Printing
1 Year
Digital Aerial Media Budget Blinds of the Flathead TCG Montana Good Time Guru TL Custom Homes
Thank You to Everyone Who Helped Make our 113th Annual Banquet and Auction a Huge Success!