April Voice 2017

NORTHERN ILLINOIS OPTICAL 20/20 FUTURE PAGE 5

VOTE TUESDAY

APRIL 4

The Voice is online at rockfordchamber.com

MONEY FOR SPRING CREEK ROAD MULTIUSE PATH

Educational initiatives come from all areas

By Barbara Connors The Rockford area is taking great strides in educating people at all levels, from new partnerships and training to support workforce needs, to communitywide initiatives to ready primary and secondary students for the workforce of the future.

Here’s some recent announcement from Rockford Chamber members.

New Organization Promotes Girls’ Self Worth KFACT, a nonprofit youth development and holistic mentoring organization

serving at-risk, underserved 200 female junior and senior high school students from Rockford Public Schools, learned it’s one of two grant recipients of Club Blue in 2017. The plan is to create a girls lounge to gather, work on college applications and gain access to more resources for success.

Organization founder Shamika Williams hosts weekly prevention education groups focused on topics such as self-esteem, self-worth, and college and career readiness. Lady All Stars mentoring, with more than 100 girls, has resulted in a 98 percent retention rate, 100 percent high school graduation rate, and 92 percent of girls moving on to postsecondary education. Visit www.k-fact.org.

YouthBuild Rockford Completes Fifth Home Comprehensive Community Solutions and YouthBuild Rockford completed its fifth single-family home, located at 531 South Ave., Rockford. Rockford Housing Authority donated five homes two years ago to expand decent, affordable housing and to provide training to YouthBuild students, who have rehabilitated them.

Three were sold to low-income families,

April 2017 | Volume 30 | No. 4

Sandie Soldwisch, Ph.D., APN, president of Saint Anthony College of Nursing, signs a partnership with Dr. Kazuko Nin, nursing director, Koyoto (Japan) University. The Japanese educators will learn more about the role of clinical nurse leader, a new concept for their country. SACN has similar partnerships through the Global Nursing Initiative with the Japanese Red Cross International College of Nursing in Kyushu, Japan and the University of Tsukuba in Ibaraki, Japan. the fourth is for sale, and the fifth put on the market in March. Construction trainees have completed 54 units of affordable housing overall.

Nineteen Residents Matched in Illinois March 17 was the big day when University of Illinois College of Medicine Rockford students learned where they would spend the next three to seven years of their medical training. After several years of hard work in Rockford, the Continued on page 14

ROCPAC endorses McNamara for mayor

Visit us online at: rockfordchamber.com ■ online registration ■ keynote speaker video clips ■ event photos ■ list of Chamber events Questions? 815-987-8100

Join the Chamber’s LinkedIn Group

into the Mayor’s Office.”

Mr. McNamara is running on a platform of The Rockford Chamber addressing crime and safety, Political Action Committee neighborhoods, economic (ROCPAC) issued an endevelopment, and education. dorsement in support of Tom In each of these categories McNamara’s candidacy for he outlined some of his the next Mayor of Rockford.

Tom McNamara plans to ROCPAC. An item The upcoming general election includes of particular importance was his focus on the ballot the four candidates seek- on improving the relationship with the ing to be Mayor. After attending sever- business community on city services such al candidate forums and having private as zoning and permitting requirements, as interviews with each of the candidates, well as turnaround times.

ROCPAC ultimately felt that Tom McThe other Mayoral candidates inNamara was the best choice for Mayor. terviewed were Rudy Valdez (Indepen“We believe that Tom McNamara’s dent); Ronnie Manns (Independent), vision, energy, and ideas for the future of and Brian Leggero (Republican).

Rockford ultimately carried the day for Voters are encouraged to vote through ROCPAC,” said Einar Forsman, Secretary early voting or on election day April 4th of ROCPAC, “We also have had time to and support Tom McNamara for Mayor. observe him as an alderman and see ROCPAC is an independently funded someone who worked closely with other political action committee. No member dues City aldermen and had a camaraderie of the Rockford Chamber of Commerce go to with them that we think can carry forward support the activities of ROCPAC.

The Rockford City Council approved $100,000 for the design and analysis of the Spring Creek Road Multi-Use Path to connect the Sinnissippi Path on the west with the Spring Brook on-street path to the east.

Last year, when details of a new construction project along Spring Creek Road involving the Rock River Water Reclamation District and the City of Rockford were revealed, and did not include plans for the Spring Creek Path, more than 1,300 citizens signed a petition. From that groundswell, the I Bike Rockford (ibikerockford@gmail.com) group formed to further the cycling culture in the community. Goals for the path are to fulfill a critical east/west connection for people who choose to travel without an automobile, and tie residents west of the Rock River to locations east such as Rock Valley College, the Perryville Path and Rock Cut State Park.

MARK YOUR CALENDAR!

Business Growth LUNCHEON

April 20 The Mauh-Nah-Tee-See Club For more info, see page 26

SPONSORED BY

EDGE TAX CREDIT PROGRAM AGREEMENTS NOW ONLINE

The Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity has agreed to publish EDGE tax credit incentive agreements online, for better government and transparency for taxpayers and businesses. The Illinois tax credit program provides incentives for companies to relocate to Illinois or expand their operations within the state — rather than moving to a competing location out of state.

Several recent reforms to the EDGE program have included awarding incentives to companies for jobs creation, only allowing one EDGE agreement per project site, and requiring all companies to maintain a statewide employment baseline for the duration of the agreement. The DCEO no longer supports special EDGE agreements, which guaranteed incentives to companies even when they engaged in significant layoffs.

Visit www.illinois.gov/dceo (click ExpandRelocate, Incentives).

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April 2017

theVoice rockfordchamber.com

Chairman’s Perspective VIEWPOINT

Rockford Leadership Alliance here to help small businesses As a self-proclaimed cheerleader for Rockford, my engagement with the Rockford Chamber of Commerce seems to be the logical extension of my passion.

At every turn, I see new ways that the needs and interests of our diverse business community are addressed by our chamber. With a consistent drive to better serve, I see the studies, programming and advocacy of the chamber evolving to address the unique make-up of our business community.

When we think of business and begin to name names we often start with the same list of large employers. But we may not be aware that businesses with fewer than 500 employees comprise 99 percent of all firms in the United States, with a considerable number having less than 50 people. Our local community has historically followed this pattern, which is a clear part of our shared business history and success. These businesses have contributed more than half of the new private sector jobs in the past two decades.

With this history and economic power behind our business community, the chamber continues to find meaningful ways to focus on this vital part of who we are. This in no way diminishes the value of the larger employers within our community, sustaining large segments of employment and commerce while helping create a healthy environment that can sustain a wider healthy base for growth.

One chamber initiative that is addressing the needs of both small and large employers is the Rockford Leadership Alliance (RLA).

Through a broad scope of learning opportunities, the Leadership Alliance provides training and perhaps more importantly interactions between peers working on issues that affect any business. We’ve heard plenty of positive feedback about the RLA: How it’s helped members engage with other members; How the topics on leadership have assisted our members to grow individually, and helped their

companies think out of the box when it comes to leadership issues.

Now the question is, how can we take that next step to further ensure success?

Through RLA, local professionals, at all levels, have the opportunity to participate in a series of workshops and luncheons designed to inspire trust and leadership in all of us.

In addition, the Chamber, on behalf of the employers need to secure qualified workers, has helped clarify the needs of employers that could be addressed by our local educational system. The result has been heightened engagement, with shared agreement and clearer expectations.

As the chamber continues to address the needs of employers, it is moving the focus of its Public Education Council from local schools to the broader scope of workforce development. This slightly different focus allows for a broader scope of review and possible direction.

Every employer will potentially benefit from this work.

Richard Zumwalt Rockford Chamber Board Chairman

Finally, and perhaps the most exciting direction for smaller employers, is the development of a Small Business Development Center in Rockford.

This resource, which is returning to Rockford through the efforts of the chamber, is specifically designed to aid smaller business as they develop winning strategies and create meaningful business plans. The development center, through the work of its director and others, will be available to assist and guide our small business partners as they strive to make their business successful and our community stronger.

Rockford is blessed with countless people who accept the challenge to begin or enhance their small business. I celebrate these people who make Rockford an even better place to work and live. Please know that your chamber is always here to help.

Rick Zumwalt is chairman of the Rockford Chamber of Commerce board of directors.

theVoice rockfordchamber.com

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April 2017

Chamber selects SBDC director

Revival of Small Business Development Center

As of March 20, aspiring “Bo is an experienced entrepreneurs and small businessman as well as business owners in the a professional corporate Rockford area will have trainer that I believe will access to a variety of bring tremendous value to services, thanks to a getting our SBDC started partnership between the and serving small business Rockford Chamber and the clients in the region,” said Illinois DCEO to operate a Einar Forsman, president/ Small Business Development Bo Boger, CEO of the Rockford Center (SBDC).

SBDC/Rockford Chamber Chamber.

Harold “Bo” Boger has “My exhilaration and inspiration are been chosen to lead as SBDC director galvanized by the Rockford Chamber for the Illinois SBDC at the Rockford of Commerce and NIU’s dedication to Chamber of Commerce. For the past three years, Boger has served as bringing the SBDC back to our region,” VP of special projects and outreach, Boger said. “Thankfully, Einar Forsman, including oversight of the SBDC, the chamber board and everyone at PTAC and ITC. His training experience NIU joined together in making this includes leadership development, venture a reality. We can join, with our sales, team-building, strategic planning resilient community, to build, grow and collaboration. and develop all types of productive Boger has more than 20 years of businesses throughout northern Illinois. private sector experience, including I am humbled by this magnificent working at North American Tool, commitment, and prepared to diligently Franklin Display and other private achieve results.” businesses in sales, operations,

‘One-Stop Shop for Entrepreneurs’

Services for Small Businesses

The Rockford Chamber was approved for funding to operate the Illinois Small Business Development Center at the Rockford Chamber of Commerce as a combination of State of Illinois DCEO SBDC program grants, Rockford Chamber funding, and support from NIURockford and local lending institutions.

“We are very excited to bring this much-needed service back to the Rockford area,” Forsman said. “Small businesses are the backbone of any local economy and having a resource in Rockford to help new and existing businesses will be an important service to our community.”

There is no charge for SBDC services, which are available to Chamber members and non-members. The Illinois SBDC in Rockford will operate out of NIU EIGERlab, located at NIU-Rockford, 8500 E. State St. The SBDC also will maintain an office at the Chamber’s downtown location.

Rena Cotsones, associate vice president, outreach, engagement and regional development for NIU, shared in the chamber’s support to return an SBDC to the region: “NIU-Rockford and the NIU EIGERlab team will work closely with the Illinois SBDC at the Chamber to integrate business development, innovation and outreach activities in a mutually beneficial manner. We look forward to being a onestop shop for entrepreneurs.”

Illinois Small Business Development Centers are located throughout the state and provide information, confidential business guidance, training and other resources to start-up and existing small businesses.

Services include:

procurement and business negotiations.

Contact Bo at SBDC@rockford chamber.com.

Let your Voice be heard The Rockford Chamber of Commerce ­welcomes and encourages submissions for The VOICE of the Rockford Business Community.

Deadline is the 15th of the month preceding publication. Send news releases and other ­ items of interest to the business community to: The VOICE Rockford Chamber of Commerce 308 W. State St., Ste. 190 Rockford, IL 61101

For information about advertising contact Customer Service at 815-987-8100.

The VOICE of the Rockford Business Community (USPS 784-120). ISSN number 1086-0630, is published monthly by the Rockford Chamber of Commerce, 308 W. State St., Ste. 190, Rockford, Illinois 61101.

Periodicals postage paid at Rockford, Ill. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to: The VOICE of the Rockford Business Community, 308 W. State St., Ste. 190, Rockford, IL 61101.

■■ One-on-one business advice and management assistance.

■■ Assistance with the development of business plans.

■■ Help with accessing market information, and the development of marketing plans.

■■ Assistance with accessing business financing programs.

■■ Assistance with financial analysis and planning.

■■ Access to business education and training opportunities.

■■ Specialized services in technology, innovation and entrepreneurial development.

SBDCs help entrepreneurs realize the dream of business ownership and help existing businesses remain competitive in a complex, ever-changing global marketplace. They are hosted by leading universities and state economic development agencies, and funded in part through a partnership with the Small Business Administration (SBA).

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April 2017

theVoice rockfordchamber.com

Tabatha Endres-Cruz KNIB

Keeping the community clean Let’s make every day ‘Earth Day!’

By Tabatha Endres-Cruz, KNIB Spring makes us think of gardening and lawn maintenance. But first, we must clear our parking lots, yards, streets, vacant neighboring lots and roadsides of the plastic bags and other debris accumulated over the fall and winter. According to 2015 research by Keep America Beautiful (KAB), hands-down the most frequently littered item is cigarette butts and related tobacco product packaging. Next is food remnants, wrappers and containers.

These unsightly items will get tangled in or slow down mowers and other groundskeeping tools.

Why is it important to keep up with litter and modify the human behavior that perpetuates it? Of businesses surveyed in a Florida study, 98 percent said the presence of litter has a negative effect on the business, and 78 percent said they thought there was a connection between litter and crime. Consumers are likely to judge the success of a business by its appearance as much as by the number of patrons.

In a 2009 National Visible Litter Survey conducted for KAB, 36 percent of business development officials said that litter impacts a decision to locate to a community. It also reported 55 percent of realtors think that litter reduced property values by about nine percent.

There also is the safety factor. Removal of litter eliminates trip and fall hazards, and other injuries to customers or staff. You’ve likely seen pictures of animals trapped in plastic six-pack rings or pests attracted by fast-food packaging. Abandoned tires, buckets and other containers may collect water and become breeding grounds for mosquitos and potentially spread disease or groundwater pollutants.

Beautify Your Business A Guide to Reducing and Managing Litter, a joint effort of KAB, the National Restaurant Association and the Foodservice Packaging Institute, can be found at http://bit.ly/2czSA4A. It suggests these four tips to ensure that customers or employees avoid littering: 1. Make proper disposal convenient and accessible. Provide sufficient trash, ash and recycling receptacles inside and outside your establishment.

2. Ensure consistent and ongoing cleanup. Littered environments attract more litter, so keep your establishment clean and litter-free.

3. Use landscaping and maintenance

Phil Baerenwald and Rick Guzzardo at 23rd Street and 5th Avenue were two of the J.L. Clark employees who participated in the 2016 Great American Cleanup in Rockford. to promote a sense of personal responsibility. Making an effort to “beautify” your establishment results in lower rates of littering behavior.

4. Make the most of motivational messaging. Encourage customers to properly dispose of litter through direct engagement or on-package messaging.

It’s the on-going job of each of us to protect our businesses by periodically investing a few hours to dissuade and combat litter. We need to educate our children, friends and neighbors about the importance of keeping our community healthy by keeping it clean. It will help Rockford put its best face forward as we strive to be a top 25 community.

Every fall, KNIB volunteers conduct a Community Appearance Survey in Rockford. Teams evaluate the litter at specific intersections along a prescribed route. Results are compared to previous years to note improvements or deterioration. Areas with the highest density of litter are targeted for cleanup the next spring. Overall, the city takes pride in its appearance, as noted by the judges of the America in Bloom contest.

Yet, there are always areas that need help.

Keep Northern Illinois Beautiful is observing Earth Day, Saturday, April 22, by coordinating its 30th annual Great American CleanupTM anti-litter community service day. Businesses and individuals are encouraged to pre-register for tongs, bags and safety equipment at knib.org. There are 17 convenient sites to pick up supplies from 8 to 9 a.m. Garbage bags filled and placed along the berm of residential streets and county highways (back at least 15 feet from intersections) will be retrieved by the end of the month under special arrangement with local haulers and county public works.

Businesses may make their dumpsters available.

For more on how your business can help keep our region clean, contact me at 815-637-1343 or Tabatha@knib.org.

Tabatha Endres-Cruz is executive director of Keep Northern Illinois Beautiful.

The views expressed are those of Endres-Cruz’s and do not necessarily reflect those of the Rockford Chamber of Commerce.

theVoice rockfordchamber.com

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April 2017

Member Profile PROFILE

Northern Illinois Optical celebrates 68 years Family business in downtown Rockford

Northern Illinois Optical attributes much of its growth to its 14-person staff – many of who have been with the company for years.

By Paul Anthony Arco The day after the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor, Earl Fulling enlisted in the Army Air Corps, where he flew B-52 bombers. When he returned from WWII, Fulling began working in the optical industry, at Riggs Optical. In 1949, Fulling started as a wholesale dealer, driving around Illinois selling frames and lenses to independent optometrists, while also filling prescription glasses for local customers.

That same year, Earl founded Northern Illinois Optical (NIO), a local business that has called Rockford home for 68 years. NIO offers eye exams, contact lens dispensing and training, extensive contact lens stock and overnight ordering capabilities. The store also sells a wide range of frames and lenses, as well as safety glasses for local

manufacturing companies.

Earl passed away in 2015, but his memory carries on through the business he built. “Earl treated his patients like family, he was generous, involved in the community, and he supported many local charities,” said Sheri De Rosso, director of accounting. “Earl did not treat Northern Illinois Optical as just his job; to him this was his home.”

In 1971 Earl’s son, Michael, joined his father as president of NIO. Michael has expanded the business by adding a contact lens clinic and in 1980 the family added optometrists to offer eye examinations. Eleven years later, Dr. Kenneth Minarik joined the optometry staff and still remains practicing at NIO. The 14-person staff — many of whom have been with the company for years —

CherryVale Mall introduces Youth Escort Policy

Teens to be accompanied by adult during limited mall hours CherryVale Mall has put into action a new Youth Escort Policy: All mall visitors under 18 must be accompanied by a parent or guardian 21 years of age or older on Friday and Saturday evenings after 4 p.m. The policy can be implemented at any other day and time at the discretion of management, as deemed necessary.

“Through feedback from our community, including shoppers and retailers that have voiced concern about inappropriate behavior, we have designed a policy that will allow CherryVale Mall to address unsupervised youth issues and provide all our shoppers with a pleasant experience,” said General Manager Mark Peterson.

The policy comes as a result of a number of disturbances by unsupervised youth hanging out at CherryVale Mall, who have created an uncomfortable atmosphere for mall visitors and an increasing security challenge.

“Teens and pre-teens are welcome to shop at the mall,” Peterson said. “We are only asking that our youth customers shop with a parent or guardian who is 21 years of age or older during a limited number of hours.”

Teens employed at the mall will be allowed to work after 4 p.m., on Friday and Saturday evenings, or at any time the policy is in effect. CherryVale Mall will issue identification to teens under 18 years of age for ease of access to work during these times.

“CherryVale Mall strives to remain a center of commerce in the community that brings quality stores and shoppers together,” Peterson said.

For the full Youth Escort Policy, visit ShopCherryValeMall.com.

have been a part of NIO growth. “Michael has taken what his father created, honed and regenerated it and has continued his father’s tradition of treating everyone like family and supporting the community. Our staff is proudly dedicated and focused on offering the best to our patients. We work as a team and our patients notice that.”

Industry Changes There have been many changes within the optical industry. For example, there is new technology in exam equipment, edging machines and electronic record keeping.

Lenses are manufactured to be lighter, thinner and are available with numerous protective coatings and in various materials.

Contact lenses can be custom made to correct an array of visual disorders. “The eyeglass industry has evolved from being a visual aid in correcting visual acuities to a sought-after fashion accessory supporting the latest trends and style with eyewear,” said De Rosso.

NIO has maintained an impressive base of repeat customers, which now includes their children and grandchildren. Thanks to the store’s location in downtown Rockford and close proximity to the City

Market, De Rosso has noticed an increase in younger customers too.

“The improvements and growth of new business in the downtown area have been a positive addition,” she said. “Every day, we’re seeing new patients, including a growing base of young professionals. We are always updating our selection of frames with the newest styles and we will customorder any frame that a patient wants.”

NIO has received numerous awards from contact lens companies, the Better Business Bureau and from various organizations for its philanthropic efforts – supporting everything from youth baseball to student scholarships.

“One of the reasons I am thrilled about working at NIO is that we truly care about our patients,” said De Rosso.

“We have an opportunity to help grow and be an active part of the future at Northern Illinois Optical.”

NORTHERN ILLINOIS OPTICAL INC.

Michael Fulling, owner 121 N. Madison St. 61107 815-963-3454 www.northernillinoisoptical.com

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April 2017

theVoice rockfordchamber.com

IGNITE

Young Professionals

IGNITE Cup is back!

Creating lasting bonds

Kim Thielbar IGNITE

IGNITE Cup 2017 For the fourth season of IGNITE Cup, we’re bringing back some old favorites, like the downtown scavenger hunt Summer will be here before you know it -- don’t be fooled by the March snowfall. You know what summer means, yes, you guessed it, another season of IGNITE Cup! For those who do not know, IGNITE Cup is a summerlong competition where teams of 10 young professionals compete against each other in activities around town to battle it out for the title of IGNITE Cup Champions.

where

teams

race

around

downtown searching out their next clue so they can be the first team to reach the finish line. We are also trying some new activities and events this year. We are partnering with the YMCA for Canoe Battleship, where team members paddle canoes around the Y’s pool, trying to flood the canoes of other teams. Win or lose, it’s going to be entertaining for participants and spectators alike.

For our “closing ceremonies,” we

An important part of retaining young professionals is getting them engaged with other young professionals and showing them all the fun and entertaining things that are going on in the area.

In addition to the different fun activities, teams also earn bonus points by posting pictures of themselves and their teammates enjoying all that the Rockford area has to offer. (Check out IGNITE’s Facebook page to see everything the teams are up to all summer!). The winning team gets possession of the coveted IGNITE Cup trophy, engraved with their team name, gold medals for all teammates, and endless pride and bragging rights (seriously, the winners of the first season are still bragging about it).

One of the goals of IGNITE is to help attract and retain young professionals to the area. While some of this is done through professional development and growth opportunities for young professionals in the area, an important part of retaining young professionals is getting them engaged with other young professionals and showing them all the fun and entertaining things that are going on in the area.

IGNITE Cup is a great way to do that. Competitors can get to know other young professionals in a laid-back atmosphere, creating bonds that extend beyond the competition, while at the same time, experiencing some of the best things Rockford has to offer.

are heading out to Nygren Wetlands, where we will enjoy bonfires, hayrides and a cookout before we crown the next

Ignite

Cup

Champions.

In

addition to the competitive events, we are also partnering with IGNITE’s INVOLVE committee to bring some more charitable aspects to this year’s competition.

This year’s IGNITE Cup will kick-off on April 20, so there is still time to sign up! If you are a young professional, round up some friends and sign up a team. Want to meet some new people? Register as an individual or small group, and you’ll be placed on a team with future friends. Don’t want to participate in the games this year? Encourage your favorite young professional to participate. Better yet, have your business or organization sponsor a team or an event!

For

more

information

about

IGNITE Cup or to sign up a team or as an individual, visit us at our Facebook page or at igniterockford. com. Also, be on the lookout for other upcoming IGNITE events, such as regular volunteer opportunities, our monthly Lunch with a Leader, and our “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?” series.

We look forward to another exciting IGNITE Cup season and cannot wait to see which team will come out on top this year!

IGNITE Cup 2017 is proudly presented by Rock River Valley Blood Center.

Kim Thielbar and Emily Hardy are co-chairs of IGNITE REACH.

theVoice rockfordchamber.com

April 2017

Vinni Cavallaro Torrisi’s guide to help senior citizens move from a large family home into a more suitable-sized living environment earned her the Dale Falconer, “Spirit of Entrepreneurship Award” at last year’s FastPitch competition.

Senior living, no longer a stint at the shady pines FastPitch award winner takes life experience; makes a business

By Sherry Pritz, NIU EIGERlab If you’re a fan of The Golden Girls, you may remember the ongoing reference to Sophia’s dreaded nursing home, “Shady Pines.” Vinni Cavallaro Torrisi, the creator and owner of a business dedicated to helping seniors transition from large to smaller living spaces, says that things are different today: “The options that senior adults have today is nothing like the ‘Shady Pines’ of yesteryear.”

Vinni’s trademarked, educational downsizing process, including her 44page workbook, NowSizing, Making Room for Life! guides senior citizens and their family members on accomplishing the difficult task of moving from a large family home into a more suitablesized living environment. In 2013, the NowSizing™ guidebook won an international Mature Online Marketing Business Award.

Entrepreneurs often start businesses because of a personal goal. They produce a product or service that makes a difference. Vinni’s passion for creating NowSizing™ is due to her loving relationship with her mother. The more time she spent with her mom, age 85, she understood the psychology behind “saving the good china for later,” and the difficulties experienced by seniors being gently forced from their homes and familiar surroundings.

Her goal is to assist seniors and help them understand that they are moving memories, not things. In many cases, older adults equate the distress of a later life move with the emotional stress of losing their spouse. In 1991, the symptoms associated with the stress of seniors moving was officially identified as Relocation Stress Syndrome.

“Spirit of Entrepreneurship Award” Winner Because of Vinni’s passion, she was chosen as the 2016 FastPitch Competition winner of the Dale Falconer, “Spirit of Entrepreneurship Award.” The Falconer Award recognizes a FastPitch

participant who passionately goes above and beyond. While there often is a healthy debate about who should win this award, FastPitch leaders and judges were quick to agree that Vinni should take the honor last year.

“Developing a personal relationship with the NowSizing client is essential to the successful and dignified relocation of that older adult,” Vinni explained.

“Working with NIU EIGERlab in conjunction with the ‘FastPitch,’ competition helped me to succinctly define and convey this message, which is experiential in nature, into a tangible message, with strong deliverables. The Rockford area is so fortunate to have NIU EIGERlab as a go-to incubator resource for business.”

One of the many tools in Vinni’s toolkit is providing her clients with a 2D rendering of their new space, illustrating how their personal belongings will fit. “If my clients have input and can visualize the space before leaving their homes, it significantly reduces their anxiety, which helps both my clients and their family members,” she said.

“With this global economy, my client’s children or closest relatives often live either out of state or even outside the U.S. These tools can be shared long-distance, which assists in less overall stress. We show our clients that independence is not dictated by life space, but rather by lifestyle.”

Many of Vinni’s clients keep in touch with her long after their business relationship has been concluded, a testament to the value she is providing, and the sensitivity and respect she shows during the downsizing process. To learn more about Vinni and her services, visit www.NowSizing.com.

Sherry Pritz is marketing & events coordinator/ business development at NIU EIGERlab Innovation Network.

The views expressed are those of Pritz’s and do not necessarily represent those of the Rockford Chamber of Commerce.

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April 2017

theVoice rockfordchamber.com

Tournaments, events help keep economy humming

Many high-profile events slated for this year The value of tourism to a community can sometimes be hard to grasp if you are just looking at the big picture. I mean that it’s easy to get caught up in the numbers – many of which are large-scale, such as the $350 million visitors spent in Winnebago County in 2015, or the 7.6 million people that attended our sites, attractions and events that same year.

The community-wide impact is certainly represented in numbers like these. However, it’s tourism on the smaller scale that really showcases the impact on the community. Take for instance the U.S. Synchronized Skating Championships held at the BMO Harris Bank Center in February. Bringing in teams from throughout the United States, we had the opportunity to showcase our wonderful community to thousands of visitors.

And, we definitely did put our best foot forward … Check out this great review from the Starlights Synchronized Skating Club from Skokie, Ill.: “Thank you Go Rockford. The 2017 U.S. Synchronized Skating Championships was successful because of you. Your whole team supported us from the time we started planning the event through the event itself.

The city of Rockford welcomed the skaters and their families with open arms, and a very large pair of skates! Your restaurants and hotels made all of the skaters feel welcome and special. Everywhere you looked, we were the talk of the town. We couldn’t have done it without you, and we hope we have an opportunity to host another event in Rockford.”

Even more important than the glowing review might be the fact that our hotels, restaurants and retail establishments got a nice shot in the arm during the slow winter months. The District Bar & Grill downtown reported having fulfilled more than 700 reservations the week of the event from participants, and another downtown business said that the Friday and Saturday of the event saw sales equal to what they usually see in the entire month of February.

And it wasn’t just downtown business; Lucha Cantina also reported having one of its busiest weekends in the past year.

So it’s the impact of each tournament over the course of the year that leads us to these mega-watt numbers that fuel our economy. Better yet, these megawatt numbers lead to more jobs as our hospitality industry continues to grow with more than 2,800 jobs directly related to the tourism industry in Rockford!

So What’s Next for Rockford?

John Groh Rockford Area Convention & Visitors Bureau

announced several high-profile, highattendance tournaments and conferences that are coming to our region this year.

Here’s a quick sample of what we can look forward to in 2017:

Amateur Athletic Union Midwest Regional Gymnastics Championships May 5 to 7 at UW Health Sports Factory Attendance: 400 to 500 athletes traveling from across the region, and 1,500 total visitors expected.

Economic Impact: Estimated 485 room nights; $87,300 in economic impact.

Premier SuperCopa Championships June 9 to 12, at Mercyhealth Sportscore Two Attendance: 92 boys teams, 64 girls teams; U9 to U12 for both genders, national tournament (invitation only) and 6,000 total visitors expected.

Economic Impact: Estimated 10,000 room nights; $1.8 million.

Elite Clubs National Playoffs June 22 to 27 at Mercyhealth Sportscore Two Attendance: Approximately 240 teams, all-girls competitive youth leagues, ages 14 to 18, and 10,000 total visitors expected.

Economic Impact: Estimated 14,000 room nights; $2,520,000 EEI (Teams will stay in Rockford and extend into Chicago, Milwaukee and possibly Madison.)

Convention of Jehovah’s Witnesses July 28 to 30, Aug. 4 to 6, Aug. 11 to 13 at BMO Harris Bank Center Attendance: This big win for the Rockford region will draw approximately 15,000 attendees, who are expected to visit from Milwaukee, Madison, Dubuque, Davenport, Kenosha, Racine and more.

Economic Impact: Estimated $589,500; more than 4,500 room nights during the three weekends.

The impact of these events will be a tremendous boost to our local economy this year, and we are thankful that these groups have chosen Rockford. Thanks to great cooperation from our local partners like the Rockford Park District, BMO Harris Bank Center and many others, we are able to continue securing events like these for the region. And, the great customer service our hotels, restaurants and retail businesses show these guests keeps them wanting to come back time and time again.

John Groh is president/CEO of the Rockford Area Convention & Visitor Bureau.

The views expressed are those of Groh’s and do The past few months have been not necessarily represent those of the Rockford very busy for the RACVB as we have Chamber of Commerce.

theVoice rockfordchamber.com

9

April 2017

Rockford University PERSPECTIVE

Training: A process for success Doing it the right way the first time An organization is only as strong as the individuals in that organization — the individuals that “do the work” of the organization.

As baseball season approaches, major league teams are now in spring training. Players are working on their skills in order to make themselves better and prepare for a long season where the ultimate goal is a World Series championship.

Baseball teams, for many years, have understood the need for a well-trained workforce, thus making their teams competitive. As training is an important component for success in baseball, it needs to be an important component for success in other organizations — big or small, profit or non-profit, publically traded or privately held — in order to remain competitive, productive and profitable.

An organization is only as strong as the individuals in that organization — the individuals that “do the work” of the organization. How do companies — big or small, profit or non-profit, publically traded or privately held — gain and maintain a competitive advantage? The key to success is having the right people, in the right places, doing the right things.

Maximizing Performance Strong and successful organizations understand getting the right people is a process and not an accident. Strong organizations result from hiring the best people, training

them thoroughly, having a supportive culture, and then letting those great people perform (without micromanaging them).

Let’s focus on the training aspect of “a process for success,” as this is often the most overlooked area in many organizations. Training does not mean having a new employee “follow Sam around for a few weeks, and you will pick up on what you need to know and what you need to do.”

Shadowing someone is not training! What if Sam is doing things the wrong way? What if Sam is taking shortcuts that negatively impact quality, productivity or profitability?

What if Sam has a negative attitude towards the organization? Now, you have a “trained” employee with bad habits and perhaps a bad attitude.

Training is a process of acquiring knowledge and skills that will maximize performance and minimize mistakes. This process takes time, energy and commitment (organizational commitment and employee commitment) in order to establish a pathway for success.

Trainers can come from within the organization or outside of the organization.

Whether internal or external, the trainers must be competent and trainee focused instead of trainer focused.

The trainer’s main objective should be the trainee’s “education” as it relates to his or her job performance.

Trainers must do their due diligence when it comes to the goals and objectives of the organization in order to properly train and ensure that employees understand their

roles in meeting those objectives.

Training is not a one-time event; it is a process of continual improvement.

Many organizations claim they don’t have time to train. I would counter with: Can they afford an untrained or poorly trained workforce, in other words, do you have so much excess time and resources that you can afford to NOT train?

I think we can agree that most employees want to do a good job for their employers and coworkers.

Many employees don’t do a good job because of poor training. A poorly trained employee is easily frustrated, ineffective and unproductive and a risk to the success of the firm. On the other hand, a well-trained staff member will be more productive, happier and more concerned with the success of their company — a trained staff tends to take ownership for its results.

A trained workforce feels valued the organization invested in them and

their careers.

Stephen G. Kadamian Rockford University

Well-trained employees are more likely to stay with an organization where they feel they are making a difference and are also making positive contributions for their organizations. Properly trained employees will “pull on the rope with you” — go in the direction the organization needs to go in — rather than constantly “push on the rope against you” leading to unwanted results. Training — a process for success — is worth the investment of time, energy and money as it is easier (and more productive) to retain an employee than to recruit one.

Stephen Kadamian, MBA, is an adjunct professor and trainer with Rockford University.

The views expressed are those of Kadamian’s and do not necessarily represent those of the Rockford Chamber of Commerce.

10

April 2017

theVoice rockfordchamber.com

A new model for serving all students Fostering unique gifts and talents And when we say “all students,” we mean all.

Our commitment to help struggling students is matched by our commitment to cultivate students who are demonstrating excellence, high achievement and unique promise.

Our mission in the Rockford Public Schools is to collaboratively engage all students in a world-class education.

And when we say “all students,” we mean all. Our commitment to help struggling students is matched by our commitment to cultivate students who are demonstrating excellence, high achievement and unique promise.

I’m energized by a new model of serving those students that resulted in the successful All-City Elementary Music Festival on Saturday, March 4 at Maria Montessori School.

The festival concept works on so many levels — it not only recognizes, supports and develops student talent, it is a model created, planned and executed by our teachers.

Here’s how it worked: Every music teacher in the Rockford Public Schools had the opportunity to nominate as many as five students for participation in the festival. They could be placed in the Orff (recorder, xylophone or marimba), boomwhacker (percussion) or ukulele ensembles or the children’s choir. The students arrived at Montessori in the morning, participated in four hours of musical workshops, and put on a performance for parents and families at two in the afternoon.

It was a fantastic event that would not have been possible without our district’s elementary music teachers, led by Jen Loomis and Jill Tartaglia of Montessori.

The idea was first discussed in a monthly PLC meeting for the music teachers. PLC stands for professional learning community, and it’s a time for teachers to collaborate, share expertise and best practices. In the case of the festival, the teachers brainstormed a way to meet the needs of children we don’t focus on enough in education: the children with unique gifts and talents.

The successful approach of those teachers has inspired planning for similar events in RPS 205. We can

take the same model and apply it to young artists, young athletes and young writers, for example.

The model fits for highly popular programs such as our Rockford Elementary Basketball Association (REBA) league, which this year had 32 boys/co-ed teams and 21 girls teams.

One-day events could supplement the high-quality experience they are already getting in the league and prepare them for play at the next level.

It’s an ambidextrous approach to developing a great school system: On the one hand, we keep on supporting students who need the support. On the other hand, we maintain a commitment to students who are already doing very well and come up with all kinds of exciting ways in which those students can shine. Outstanding communities — outstanding school systems — do both.

It’s a key strategy for achieving our goal of being a first-choice school district in a Top 25 community.

Going on to Greatness The history of RPS 205 is replete with examples of exceptional students who are the product of more than just chance and good fortune. Their talents have been supported and challenged; their potential has been polished in the Rockford Public Schools.

I’m talking about graduates like Leonard Bell, who was drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals and stirred the audience at this year’s Champions Ball with his exhortation to reach out and help a child as he had been helped.

I’m talking about graduates like Jake Runestad, one of the rare musical talents who can make a living from fulltime composing, who also believes he owes his career to the encouragement he received from Guilford music teacher Rick DeRango.

I’m talking about graduates like Marcel and Kevin Wilson, two of the members of our Fine Arts Hall of Fame who have danced on Broadway as well as with Madonna, Beyonce and Janet Jackson.

Who knows? Maybe by facilitating events like the All-City Elementary Music Festival, we will see the next Leonard. Or Jake. Or Marcel and Kevin.

In any case, we owe it to promising young talents like them to try.

Dr. Ehren Jarrett is superintendent of Rockford Public Schools.

The views expressed are those of Dr. Jarrett’s and do not necessarily represent those of the Rockford Chamber of Commerce.

theVoice rockfordchamber.com

11

April 2017

From planning to action to habit Turning potential into a reality “In every block of marble I see a statue …

I have only to hew away the rough walls to reveal it.”

— Michelangelo As human beings, we find that our own lives often resist change even more rigidly than marble, and we chip away at it with much less skill than Michelangelo. Although most people claim that change is just a part of life, in reality all humans are predisposed to stay the same. Change is painful. From our earliest introduction as a newborn to a harsh new world, we look at change as being an uncomfortable and stressful intrusion.

A problem arises when something in our life challenges us to change.

Perhaps we have no choice -- like the clumsy adolescent who awoke to find jeans transformed to capris overnight.

However, many times we may choose to change. We recognize a problem or need and begin to focus on how to release the “potential” change. Most theories on change can be summarized by three basic phases: “Thinking about it,” “Starting it,” “Keeping it going.”

Three Phases of Change Most people and groups spend incredible amounts of time and energy “thinking about it.” This is the phase where we complain about everything that is wrong. We identify problems, talk about what caused the problems, discuss what keeps the problems going, and whose fault the problems are. On a good day, this is when productive discussion around problem solving

Contrary to popular opinion, people do not hate taking action. People often take action but are rarely prepared for the discomfort that comes with it. happens. Whether it is in boardrooms, therapy, PTA meetings, town halls or church basements, this phase wraps up when people create a plan to change.

There are incredible resources and entire companies dedicated to helping people and organizations plan to change. Planning is good. We have all heard the saying “failure to plan is a plan to fail.”

However a plan alone is not enough.

Phase two is action. This is where plan becomes behavior. This is the big push, the kickoff, the cutting of the ribbon. This is where the excitement that built during planning gets its sendoff. Many organizations stand on the pier and wave goodbye to their beautiful plan as it sets sail for the horizon. There is a great sense of accomplishment that “the plan” has finally been put into action with an anticipation of results now palpable.

Contrary to popular opinion, people do not hate taking action. People often take action but are rarely prepared for the discomfort that comes with it. They hope the sendoff generates enough momentum to carry the plan to its

destination, but when it hits turbulent waters, they are often quick to classify this as evidence that change will not happen.

This group has long lists of actions it can rattle off as “we tried that but it didn’t work.”

The “keep it going” phase typically gets the least attention, yet is the phase that separates those who do change, from those who don’t. Good plans and action steps are important, but both things without dogged determination and repetition are destined to come up short. Unlike that block of marble whose discarded chips immediately fall uselessly to the wayside with one strike of the chisel, people have not changed until new habits have formed. New habits are formed in this critical phase.

Most change fails not during “thinking about it” or “taking action,” but in “keeping it going.”

Transforming Action into Habit There are three elements that people need in place to see action become habit.

1. Repetitive exposure to the new activity. Try developing any new habit but only practice one time per month.

How long would it take to change? Most change needs daily practice for months in order to trigger our adaptation process to build new habits.

2. A record of what changed.

Without a record of where we have been, we run the risk of overestimating how far we’ve come or underestimating

the distance we’ve covered.

Change takes Matt McDonald time, and if we The Anser Group lose track of the progress we easily quit too early because we are discouraged or overly optimistic.

Adapting to change is a process, not a moment in time.

3. Someone to remind you. Life gets busy. When it does, we go back to doing things the way we always have.

When my kids were potty-training I had to remind them to use the toilet constantly or else they would revert to old habits that no one wanted to deal with. This is no different. Change is unfamiliar, uncomfortable and difficult. We are tempted to take the easy route time and again. To do this alone is recipe for failure. Who will you have reminding you?

People have an incredible capacity for adapting to almost anything. With an appropriate distribution of energy through the phases and relentless execution of these three elements, humans can sculpt and reveal the beautiful potential that resides within each one of us.

Matt McDonald is managing partner & leadership coach, The Anser Group.

The views expressed are those of McDonald’s and do not necessarily represent those of the Rockford Chamber of Commerce.

Leadership Development news is sponsored by Comcast Business.

12

April 2017

Illinois university startups surge to record levels

Switch to Office 2016

Illinois has experienced a surge in entrepreneurial activity at its universities, according to the Illinois Science and Technology Coalition (ISTC), which released its Winter 2017 Illinois Innovation Index on March 8.

Illinois universities were credited not only with producing some of the strongest STEM talent in the nation, but also in spurring innovation and economic development by cultivating innovative thinkers.

Resources offered to develop and deploy their ideas included university incubation centers, university-supported funding and innovative curriculum.

Northern Illinois University was credited in the report as one of the universities that offers students an education in business that focuses on launching new ventures and fostering innovation and social impact. Its new entrepreneurship and social responsibility program provides students with hands-on entrepreneurship experience, internships and access to an extensive alumni network.

The program was named a finalist in the Excellence in Entrepreneurship Education Awards by the International Council for Small Business in 2016.

I can’t even imagine what it would be like to run a business without the use of computers.

We take for granted all the efficient operations and complex calculations that computers perform at the click of a few buttons. Along with computers making our workday more productive and organized, we are reminded annually of new software updates and the latest version releases.

As a business owner or manager, the decision to upgrade your system will need to be made at the appropriate time. Procrastination in making your decision is understandable due to the financial investment and training time required for your employees.

Microsoft Office 2016 has many new and improved features. The following reasons can help with your decision-making process.

KEY REPORT FINDINGS ■■ Illinois universities produced more than 800 startups from 2012 to 2016, nearly 100 percent more than 2009 to 2013.

■■ Approximately 76 percent of startups founded from 2012

to 2016 are still active or were acquired, and 81 percent of those, nearly 500 companies, remain in Illinois — the highest level recorded since the survey began.

■■ Capital raised by university startups also surged in 2016, with nearly $630 million in funding raised from 2012 to 2016, compared with $345 million from 2011 to 2015.

Of the companies that were founded in Illinois and received funding, almost 8 in 10 are still in Illinois.

■■ The national I-Corps program, which continues to grow in Illinois, is catalyzing the formation of startups and connecting them to vital early stage funding. I-Corps startups are more than seven times more likely to receive Small Business Innovation Research and Small Business Technology Transfer funding than other startups.

■■ Illinois universities are leaders nationally in several tech transfer metrics, such as disclosures and patents, but growth in these areas has lagged behind the national average in recent years.

■■ New data provided by PitchBook shows that alumni from Illinois universities started more than 1,100 companies and raised more than $9 billion in funding over the past five years. Alumni founders came from diverse fields, with no one field accounting for more than 10 percent of all founders.

Source: Illinois Innovation Index, www.illinoisinnovation.com/ innovation-index

theVoice rockfordchamber.com

Increase productivity

New Features Sending, receiving and replying to e-mails can consume a good portion of your work day if not managed properly. The Clutter feature in Outlook 2016 has the capability of distinguishing the difference between important and unimportant emails, so time won’t be wasted while concentrating on the emails that matter. The less urgent emails are moved to a Clutter folder and can be viewed at your convenience.

Smart Lookup is a new context menu option providing quicker and easier accessibility to a broader range of information about a word or phrase. Not only will you be provided more details about the word or phrase, but it also will include related Wikipedia entries.

Finding the new location of features and functions in any new version can be very frustrating and a time waster. Office 2016 has a great solution referred to as the Tell Me option. This option provides a simple way to find anything and everything. At the right of the menu bar is a light bulb icon with a text box where you can type what you need help with, or are struggling to locate.

Productivity will be increased with the ability to do Real-Time Collaboration or

Co-Authoring. For example, the coauthoring feature in Word and PowerPoint allows more than one user to Bernie Luecke RVC BPI work on a document or presentation at the same time. Microsoft Word also has the ability to see what others are changing in the document during real-time.

Microsoft has merged Sway into the Office 2016 suite. OneNote, Word and PowerPoint elements are combined through Sway, creating a simpler, more efficient way of creating presentations that are more creative and engaging.

Training for New Software If you are interested in taking advantage of Microsoft Office Suite 2016 and need help with training your employees, the Business and Professional Institute can assist. The curriculum can be customized to meet your specific business operations, along with the on-site training capabilities through the use of portable laptops.

College Credit. If you train your employees in the complete Office 2016 Suite and complete the required instruction time with a passing grade, your employees will be awarded three Rock Valley College credits that can be applied to a degreed discipline.

If you have questions or would like more information regarding training for your employees, contact Bernie Luecke at 815-9212067 or B.Luecke@RockValleyCollege.edu.

Bernie Luecke is director at the Business & Professional Institute at Rock Valley College.

The views expressed are those of Luecke’s and do not necessarily represent those of the Rockford Chamber of Commerce.

Note: Information in the article was obtained from Forbes contributor, Tony Bradley, tech article Sept.

23, 2015, “5 Reasons To Make The Switch To Office 2016.”

theVoice rockfordchamber.com

Talent Management: Acquiring / Growing Talent

April 2017

Guest Perspective INSIGHT

Guest Perspective INSIGHT

Attracting, retaining top talent amid labor shortages

What’s your ‘Employee Value Proposition?’

As unemployment numbers continue to fall, the talent market is tightening at a rapid pace. The labor participation rate is a key metric, as it reflects the number of people who are interested in participating in the workforce. The current rate is 62.9 percent, which is hovering near a 37-year low. The Manufacturing Institute says six out of 10 positions remain unfilled due to the talent shortage, and 82 percent of executives believe the skills gap will impact their ability to meet customer demand.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the ratio of unemployed persons per job opening was 1.4 in December of 2016. Job openings have trended upward since their series low in July 2009, and have surpassed the prerecession peak in April of 2007. In December 2016, there were 5.5 million job openings.

The unemployment rate for Rockford as of last report stood at 6.4 percent, and although higher than the national average of 4.7 percent, still was at its lowest level since 2007.

Companies in the Midwest are continuing to feel the labor shortage, according to the latest report from QPS Employment Group. Sixty three percent of companies surveyed have open positions that are not being filled due to lack of skilled candidates. Of those, 70 percent have one to five openings, 19 percent have six to 10, six percent have 11 to 15, and five percent have more than 15 openings. In the first quarter of 2017, 53 percent of those surveyed were expecting to increase their hiring levels.

Employers need to acknowledge the labor shortage is here, and therefore, they need to rethink some of their business methods.

Your Competitive Advantage In order to make the most of this shallow labor pool and retain current workers, companies need to know where they stand against other employers in their market. When job seekers have the choice between two positions, they often choose the one with the higher wage. Employers need to evaluate their pay and benefits package to make sure that they are staying competitive.

They should also measure how their equipment, technology and software stack up compared to others in the market.

The old way for hiring was where companies had their pick of candidates, and it was on the job seeker to sell their

13

Education: The key to Rockford’s future Tammy Malachowski QPS Employment Group

abilities. In this current labor market, companies now have to be the ones selling themselves. Job seekers are asking “what’s in it for me?”

Hiring managers have to be able to describe what sets their company apart.

In meetings with business leaders and hiring managers, QPS representatives always encourage them to think about the “EVP” – the employee value proposition. These are the reasons star employees want to work for your company over other organizations.

They can include things like company history, benefits, career advancement, performance recognition and work/life balance programs.

Companies should also evaluate their skill requirements. Are the skills required truly necessary for the job? Can the more basic skills be taught? Background check policies also should be reviewed to ensure hiring managers understand why the policies exist and why they preclude individuals from doing their jobs.

EEOC states, for example, that criminal background convictions should only be considered if the conviction is substantially related to the job being performed. If there is an offense, reevaluate the time frame in which the infraction occurred and handle each check on a case-by-case basis.

Finally, we need to encourage our educational system to push alternatives to the four-year college degree. In the old days, college was just for the elite. Then college became more mainstream, and kids were expected to go to a four-year university. Manufacturing made our country, and it is coming back strong.

Young adults need to understand they can make a great living with these middle class jobs, and college really isn’t for everyone.

We are experiencing one of the tightest labor markets in history, and there is no clear end in sight. In order to stay competitive, employers need to know how they stack up in comparison to other employers and sell themselves to job seekers. Companies should adjust their requirements when possible and celebrate as a company all of the great things they have to offer. What is your company’s EVP? Tammy Malachowski, CSP, is customer relations manager at QPS Employment Group.

The views expressed are those of Malachowski’s and do not necessarily represent those of the Rockford Chamber of Commerce.

Developing a city of innovation Rockford has long been a city built on a foundation of manufacturing – specifically in heavy machinery and specialty tools. We were a flourishing industrial city at the turn of the 20th century and at one point in its history, Rockford was the 94th largest city in the nation. This was all made possible by our booming industry and thriving labor force. It was also during this time that Rockford was one of the world’s leading manufacturers of metal fasteners and screws – earning the affectionate nickname, “Screw City.”

However, along with many other cities and states in the Rust Belt, Rockford’s manufacturing jobs started to leave for overseas in the 1970s. Unemployment from the loss of manufacturing affected much of the country throughout the early 80s, with Rockford being no exception.

Although we’ve experienced tough times in the past, our city’s story doesn’t end there. Far from it. Despite the trials we’ve faced as a city, Rockford still ranks as the tenth largest metropolitan area in the United States for fastener production.

We’ve seen a huge leap forward into the aerospace industry, with companies like Woodward Governor and UTC Aerospace Systems pumping billions of dollars into the economy and providing thousands with jobs.

But how do we build on this newfound progress and develop our city’s talents even further as we set our eyes toward the future?

We must adapt our skills to take on an ever-evolving, 21st century industry landscape.

This can only mean one thing: education, education, education.

Opportunities in Engineering One of the most lucrative opportunities for our city lies within engineering and manufacturing.

Engineers are always in demand and can train to fulfill a number of important services in nearly any industry.

Agriculture, biomedicine, construction, transportation, utility industries, and of course, manufacturing industries all are supported by engineers. Without their help, we wouldn’t see nearly as much innovation, and the types of jobs that become available would progress no further.

Skilled manufacturers are the backbone of the production labor force.

With the proper training and education, someone out of high school can learn the necessary skills to obtain a well-paying job and contribute to an industry in a

Brent Johnson Ringland-Johnson Construction

meaningful way. Both manufacturers and engineers are essential in today’s economy.

Luckily, there have been a couple recent educational initiatives that will help develop a base of homegrown engineers and manufacturers.

Rock Valley College recently announced it would begin work on a manufacturing training center on Buckbee Street, transforming a vacant building into an educational center for cold forging manufacturing.

There are nearly 10,000 people employed in metal and plastic production between Winnebago, Boone and Stephenson counties, and that number is only expected to grow over the next 10 years. The training facility will help attract employers to the region looking for a labor force that’s already trained and ready to go to work in their industry. In addition to recruiting more businesses to the region, the training at the Buckbee Street facility will help our citizens earn higher wages, further stimulating the local economy.

In another vocational venture, RVC recently announced a partnership with Northern Illinois University to bring classes to those seeking a degree in engineering to Rockford’s campus.

Instead of enrolling in a costlier state college, our high school graduates can seek out their engineering degrees near their own homes. This again will help to attract businesses to our region and support our economy with higher wage jobs.

I’m also proud to say that RinglandJohnson and the Community Foundation of Northern Illinois have made matching grants to provide $100,000 in scholarships to the RVCNIU Engineering Partnership under the Engineering Our Future program, giving our local students even more opportunity.

The future looks bright for Rockford if we can continue to cultivate our students in these industries. By building an educated workforce, we can continue down the successful path that we’ve witnessed over the last few years. Higher vocational education will lead to an affluent economy, a thriving job market, and ultimately, a labor force that makes our city more prosperous than ever.

Brent Johnson is president & CEO of Ringland-Johnson Construction.

The views expressed are those of Johnson’s and do not necessarily represent those of the Rockford Chamber of Commerce.

14

Educational Avenues

April 2017

theVoice rockfordchamber.com

Top trending words, phrases of 2016 Bigly, Brexit, Non-binary Bigly, Brexit and Non-binary lead the Top Trending Words and Phrases of 2016, according to Global Language Monitor, which tracks word trends of the Englishspeaking world, which numbers more than 1.83 billion speakers.

GLM uses its NarrativeTracker technologies for global Internet and social media analysis of the Internet, blogosphere, top 300,000 print and electronic global media and new social media sources as they emerged.

Top Trending Words of 2016 1. Bigly. Things trending larger … bigly.

2. Brexit. The British exit from the European Union, which provides a new vocabulary for future political breakups: Scotxit, Quebecxit, even, Texit.

3. Non-binary. A legal term for a gender identity between male and female 4. Perhaps the first emoji. The unpronounceable symbol representing the singer formerly known as Prince.

5. Zika. A potential global pandemic with Rio as its epicenter.

6. Gun Culture/Gun Violence.

7. Safe Place. In the United States, places where students can retreat to avoid hearing unpleasant words; in the world, places protected from rape, crucifixion, being sold into slavery, and the like.

8. Heroin and Fentanyl. More deaths from opioids in the United States than gun violence and auto accidents combined.

9. Hooya ha tah iti bin. “Son please don’t smuggle yourself.”

Transliteration of a Somali mother’s plea to her son not to join the refugee flow into Europe.

10. Memory Care. Current euphemism for Alzheimer’s care.

11. Presumptive. Presumptive Republican nominee, presumptive Democratic nominee, presumptive prime minister, etc. In 2016, the word ‘presumptive’ is bigly.

12. Texticate. Facebook, messaging, twitter, email … everything is reduced to text … the textication of the world as we know it.

13. Clintonworld. The private world of Hil and Bill where many of the laws of the political world seem to be suspended. Cf. Steve Job’s ‘reality distortion field’.

14. Trumpism. The emerging political philosophy of the presumptive Republican candidate.

15. Tennessine. New element on the periodic table, with Atomic number 117 and the symbol Ts. Some wags say to honor Bluegrass, more likely the Oak Ridge National Laboratory.

Source: The Global Language Monitor (Dec. 26, 2016)

English surpasses one billion words And the winner is … Web 2.0 Global Language Monitor announced that Web 2.0, a technical term meaning the next generation of World Wide Web products and services, is the 1,000,000th English word or phrase added to the codex. At its current rate, English generates about 14.7 words a day or one every 98 minutes. The 1,000,001st word is Financial Tsunami, the global financial restructuring that seemingly swept out of nowhere, wiping out trillions of dollars of assets, in a matter of months.

Rockford Public Schools receives a $500 Community Arts Access Grant to fund Froberg School’s afterschool instrumental music program for more than 30 fifth graders. The Eswood School Boosters received a $2,000 Community Arts Access Grant from the Rockford Area Arts Council in 2017 to fund half the costs of its art program.

Education/Employment (continued from front page)

students matched to residency programs in 15 specialties and 20 states, including primary care specialties (43 percent in family medicine, internal medicine and pediatrics) and highly competitive specialties such as ophthalmology and orthopaedic surgery. Nineteen 2017 graduates will stay in Illinois, and 64 percent will continue their training in the Midwest.

Math Students Advance to State Finals About 660 students from 29 area high schools competed in the Illinois Council of Teachers of Mathematics High School Regional Mathematics Contest at Rock Valley College in February. The community college is one of 21 regional sites across the state with individuals and teams scoring well and advancing to state finals on May 6 at the University of Illinois.

Students Learn About Groundwater Protection More than 450 fourth and fifth grade students from area schools gained a greater appreciation for groundwater and its affect on their daily lives at the 23rd annual Youth Groundwater Festival at Rock Valley College – Jacobs Center for Science and Math in March.

Area professionals conducted handson activities related to groundwater protection.

Galapagos Gets Funds for New Playground Dr. Pepper Snapple Group and national non-profit KaBOOM! awarded Galapagos Rockford Charter School with a $15,000 Let’s Play Community Construction Grant to install a new playground at its Lower Academy campus for grades kindergarten through fourth.

Robotics Team Advanced to State Competition

Adventure Summer Camp

Rockford Christian High School’s robotics team, The Robotic Lions, advanced to the First Tech Challenge Illinois State Championship in February at Elgin Community College. In Illinois, 36 teams of 250 students, ages 12 to 18, were among 46,000 students around the world to take the 2016/17 FIRST Tech Challenge VELOCITY VORTEX Challenge to build a robot at a size no greater than an 18-inch cube using Android technology and Java programming.

to get kids outside this summer with

University of Illinois Extension aims 4-H Camp for boys and girls, ages 8 to 14, June 12 to 16 at Camp Benson in Mount Carroll, Ill. The camp will include activities such as hiking, archery, rock climbing, arts and crafts, kayaking, survival skills, rappelling, zip lining, swimming and tubing. Visit go.illinois. edu/4HSummerCamp. theVoice

theVoice rockfordchamber.com

Educational Avenues

April 2017

15

Guest Perspective INSIGHT

Giving the gift of time Make a difference in a young person’s life Bridget Krysztopa

be informal, sporadic and over a cup of coffee at Megs.

As leaders in the business community, you have the opportunity to really make a difference in the lives of young adults. You can encourage them, create opportunities for future employment, and share your skills and expertise.

There are some simple and easy ways to connect with teens, by calling local high schools and letting them know you are willing to come and speak to a class or offering an on-site visit and tour of your company for a small group of high school students. We also recommend that you reach out to those organizations that serve the youth of Rockford including: La Voz Latina/YWCA and The Boys and Girls Club. A once-amonth commitment of an hour or two can exponentially make the difference in the life of a teen.

As a Rockford Chamber of Commerce member, how about inviting a teen to the next Chamber luncheon or dinner? We recommend that you adopt a high school or high school class and invite one student from that school or class each time your company buys a table or a seat at a Chamber event.

Exposing young people to our business community and leaders just might encourage them to come back and work in Rockford, perhaps even for you and The Mentoring Effect your company, once they have graduatIn a national report and survey ed from college. conducted in 2014 entitled, The Mentoring Effect: Young People’s Perspectives on the World Through a Young Outcomes and Availability of Mentoring, Person’s Eyes 95 percent of all the young adults who The benefits of mentoring are not had formal mentoring relationships only one-sided. Dr. Roh shared with found these experiences to be helpful, us that, “It’s been a great privilege to and 99 percent of young adults in serve as mentor to various students over informal mentoring relationships said the years. In some ways, it’s a chance their experience was helpful. The best to give back to the system of support news to come out of this report is that and development that enabled me to mentoring does not have to be a formal, become a physician. At the same time, weekly planned event. Mentoring can it’s fun to discuss career choices with At the YWCA Leader Luncheon in early March, Tim Dimke, executive director of the Rockford Park District, was honored with the prestigious Mentorship Award. He received this award because of the commitment of time he has made both to his employees and the community-at-large to mentor, develop, coach and advise.

We both have been fortunate to have had business leaders who have mentored and coached us in a number of positive ways. We have had the opportunity to learn from Rebecca Epperson, Chartwell Agency; Michelle Polivka, YMCA of Rock River Valley; Bob Raleigh, Renaissance Roofing; LaVonne Brown, Savant Capital Management, and Dr. Michael Roh, Rockford Spine Center. All of these people have been willing to take a risk on us and help us achieve our goals.

We understand that mentoring takes time, and that is perhaps the best gift you can give to any young person -- TIME. We have appreciated the time our mentors have given to us to discuss our future plans and goals and to help us overcome challenges or difficulties we might be facing. It was nice to know that we could pick up the phone, or send an email or text to any of the people we mentioned above, and they would be there to offer their advice, expertise and help.

Robert Raleigh, IV

students and to provide guidance Keith Country Day Keith Country Day School School and perspective, especially given the limitless options that are business community to be proactive and available today.

“For my own part, I feel so grateful reach out to the teens in our area. We for all the people who influenced me also encourage our peers to take a risk along the way. So offering assistance to and call a business leader to seek out today’s students is a great way of paying advice about career and college choices, volunteer opportunities, tours or shadow it forward.”

LaVonne Brown also agreed and days. As Oprah Winfrey said, “A mentor said that, “When you have the privilege is someone who allows you to see the of mentoring a young person, you hope inside yourself.” oftentimes learn something new about yourself along the way. And seeing the world from a young person’s perspective can also open your eyes to a completely different perspective of the world around you.”

We encourage everyone in the

Bridget Krysztopa and Robert Raleigh, IV, are students at Keith Country Day School (class of 2017).

The views expressed are those of Krysztopa’s and Raleigh’s and do not necessarily represent those of the Rockford Chamber of Commerce.

RVC Board of Trustees approves tuition increase The Rock Valley College Board of Trustees approved in March by a 4-to-1 vote a $15 per credit hour tuition increase, effective for the fall 2017 semester.

The board is working towards a balanced budget for fiscal year 2018. Obstacles have included a loss of $2.9 million in state revenue (fiscal year 2017 only), along with a $1.6 million deficit. The college anticipates expenditures to increase by roughly $1 million due to contractual wage obligations, benefit increases and increases in day-to-day operational expenses.

RVC’s per credit hour tuition rate will be $115. The student activity fee remains at $3 and the technology fee at $7 per credit hour. The college stated that this still is in the lower third among all Illinois community colleges and

well below the projected state average of $140 per credit hour.

Open registration for the fall 2017 semester begins April 12.

CLR TO REMAIN ON BELL SCHOOL ROAD In other news, the college announced that its Center for Learning in Retirement will remain at its current location at 3350 Bell School Road. The discussion was to relocate CLR classes to the college’s main campus and sell the property on Bell School Road.

Considered to be one of the most successful programs of its kind, the CLR offers lifelong learning to more than 1,300 members over age 50. It has grown from five classes in 1993 to its current 300 classes, trips and social events.

Visit rockvalleycollege.edu/clr.

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ROCKFORD MAKES ‘BEAUTIFUL’ LIST

Prettiest town in three-hour radius A week after a Gallup survey came out detailing how Rockford’s negative perceptions of the area hurts its “well-being,” a writer for the national travel site included Rockford in a list of the “Most Beautiful Towns in All 50 States.”

Chloe Mulliner included Rockford in a list of beautiful towns that included such places as Pine Mountain, Ga., and Valdez, Alaska.

Mulliner’s one-paragraph description of Rockford: “Rockford is certainly a catch. Whether you’re picking honey crisp apples at Curran’s Orchard or doting on the intricate Tinker Swiss Cottage Museum & Gardens, you’re in for a treat when you explore this Midwest city. But if it looks like rain, don’t worry, it won’t put a damper on your sightseeing; Rockford Rain Art has a genius installation, in which artwork magically appears on wet sidewalks in certain parts of town.”

– Alex Gary

Rockford residents ‘bullish’ in some areas; ‘bearish’ in others

By Alex Gary The Rockford area ranked 178th out of 189 metro areas studied for “wellbeing,” according to surveys conducted over 2015 and 2016 by Gallup, mostly because many residents here still don’t like where they live.

The Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index surveyed at least 1,000 people a day for more than 700 days over those two years simply on how they felt about things. They broke the rankings down by: Purpose. Liking what you do and being motivated to achieve goals.

Social. Having supportive relationships and love in your life.

Financial. Managing your economic life to reduce stress and increase security.

Physical. Having good health and enough energy to get things done daily.

Pro-Rockford and 815 items are sellers at Rockford Art Deli. Photo by Aaron Johnson, Thinker Ventures

Community. Liking where you live, feeling safe and having pride in your community.

In three of the five categories residents surveyed in Boone and

Winnebago counties were positively bullish about their lives.

Fayetteville, N.C., liked where they live

■ Rockford ranked 89th in financial well-being, ahead of places such as Chicago and Indianapolis.

John Groh, president of the Rockford

less than Rockford.

Area Convention & Visitors Bureau, said Rockfordians’ own negative views

■ Rockford ranked 67th in purpose, in front of Peoria, Ill., and Madison, Wis., and Milwaukee.

of the area just amplifies the very real

■ Rockford ranked 42nd in social wellbeing, beating out Honolulu, Boulder, Colo., and St. Louis, among others.

improving the issues underneath the

Incongruency in Attitudes vs. Reality With those scores, how could Rockford be ranked barely above cities such as Flint, Mich., with its public water crisis and Fort Smith, Ark., a struggling manufacturing area with a per capita personal income of $34,065 – more than $5,000 less than Rockford?

Well, in terms of physical well-being, having the energy to get things done daily, Rockford metro respondents graded the area 174th out of 189. And in community, having pride in where we live, Rockford ranked 187th. Only residents in the Binghamton, N.Y., and

issues Rockford is facing. Improving our own attitudes may take longer than attitudes. Groh’s organization markets Rockford to the world at large.

“We are seeing an increase in pride,” Groh said. “Think of 815 day, folks wearing (Rockford Art Deli proRockford) t-shirts, and even an increase in pro-Rockford/can-do posts on social media. As Rockford ‘wins’ more, people will want to be on the team. … Everyone loves a winning team, and the feeling of winning is addictive.”

Alex Gary is communications manager for Thinker Ventures and president of Alex Gary Communications Inc. The views expressed are those of Gary’s and do not necessarily represent those of the Rockford Chamber of Commerce.

theVoice rockfordchamber.com

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Rockford region job growth moving forward Nathan Bryant, president and CEO of the RAEDC, frequently refers to sticky jobs, also known as primary jobs, as the type of employment opportunities that are especially beneficial for the Rockford Region.

The Rockford Area Economic Development Council’s (RAEDC) current strategic plan Rockforward20/20 began in January 2016. The goals of the strategic plan are tracked and reported on key regional economic indicators, including capital investment, square feet of new or renovated commercial and industrial space, and new and retained jobs.

The RAEDC tracks these figures through a project pipeline; maintained by the organization and its economic development partners when additional investment projects locate within our region. This tracking method works well for new and renovated space or capital investment; though tracking accurate figures for new or retained jobs requires a more holistic approach, as not all job creation is tied to regional expansion, retention or attraction projects.

Investing in Primary Jobs In an effort to provide the most accurate figures to the public, the RAEDC is transitioning how it reports job numbers to coincide with the Illinois Department of Labor Security (IDES) reported monthly data. Going forward therefore, the RAEDC will be using job figures provided by the IDES

Do You Know?

Throughout the year the RAEDC will feature companies or stories of the Rockford Region’s history in manufacturing and innovation.

These featured companies and stories have led the momentum we see and have created the strong aerospace and advanced manufacturing supply chains we are familiar with today.

Our aerospace cluster has the sixth largest concentration of employment in the nation and every aircraft flying today has at least one part or component made in the Rockford Region.

These foundations of success and continued collaboration within the community will be the engine and driving power for the region to reach Top 25 status by 2025.

If you were at the RAEDC’s 2016 Annual Meeting in November, then you may have heard about a recent highlight on Superior Joining Technologies, Inc. Celebrating its 25th anniversary this year, the AS9100-registered company provides the aerospace industry with precision welding, NADCAP-accredited testing, as well as advanced laser processes.

The company has recently moved to a new facility that is five times larger than its previous location.

to report on job growth in the Rockford Region.

This change will ensure any new or created job will be accounted for and ensure consistency when reporting these figures. Nathan Bryant, president and CEO of the RAEDC, frequently refers to sticky jobs, also known as primary jobs, as the type of employment opportunities that are especially beneficial for the Rockford Region.

Primary jobs are defined by the RAEDC as jobs that feed other jobs and that increase the “buying power” of the citizens; generally attributed to higher wages with benefits, with clear lines for advancement, and require education, training and/or skilled trades. These types of jobs are more difficult to move out of an area and are less likely to be affected by things such as artificial intelligence, redundancy

or other aspects of business that make them vulnerable to movement overseas.

This change will take effect in the reporting of January 2017 job creation numbers and be included in the RAEDC monthly newsletter as well as on RockfordIL.com, the website for the RAEDC. The RAEDC, working with a team of investors and community leaders that have a shared vision of marketing the positive aspects of the Rockford Region, serves as the region’s sales force to bring new business to the region and cultivates opportunities for primary job growth that increase the economic well-being of our region. Accurately reporting on the key economic indicators for the region demonstrates some of the positive activities happening within the region and continues the momentum towards achieving Top 25 status.

Save the Date!

Critical Investments By focusing on its people, innovative technology and the workplace environment, Superior Joining Technologies has had year-over-year growth and expanded services to include 3-D printing, laser scanning and laser-additive technology, while attracting and retaining the best employees.

This continued re-investment in their employees and equipment allows them to focus and concentrate on quality assurance and technical accreditations.

To ensure the students of today become the workforce of tomorrow with the required skill-set needed to push the industry forward, Superior Joining Technologies has reserved 7,000 square feet of its facilities for the use of a local robotics club. They also work with groups to provide introduction classes to activities, such as welding, and offer tours of their facility.

Superior Joining Technologies is active in the manufacturing community as well as supporting Women of Today’s Manufacturing, organizing Manufacturing Day activities for students, and many other organizations to strengthen the supply chain, strengthen the workforce and promote manufacturing as the highly skilled employment opportunity that it is.

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Community Events COMMUNITY Rockford Chamber members appear bolded. Thank you for your support of your fellow Chamber members.

APRIL, 2017 Saturday, April 1

Rockford Symphony Orchestra presents I Hear a Symphony Motown’s Greatest Hits! with Broadway singers Mandy Gonzalez, Joy Lynn Jacobs and Destan Owens, 7:30 p.m., at Coronado Performing Arts Center, 314 N. Main St. Call 815-965-0049 or visit www. rockfordsymphony.com.

First Northern Credit Union hosts its free, annual Easter Egg Hunt, 9 a.m. to noon at 104 North Show Place, Rockford. Activities include face painting, coloring and an Easterthemed photo booth. For questions contact Carrie DuMelle, cdumelle@ fncu.org.

Monday, April 3

Mercyhealth presents its third-annual Northern Illinois Perinatal, Neonatal and Pediatric Conference, April 3 to 4, at the Radisson Hotel and Conference Center, 200 S. Bell School Road, Rockford. Register at MercyHealthSystem.org/ maternalchildconference.

Wednesday April 5

Rock Valley College hosts a free Hour of Code workshop: Code with Anna and Elsa, 5 p.m., at 99 E. State St., second floor of the Rockford Register Star news tower. Create a game about the movie “Frozen.” Visit hourofcodeworkshops.eventbrite.com.

Rock Valley Credit Union presents College Planning 101: How to Prepare, Pay and Stay in College, 6 p.m., Rockford Public Library, east branch, 6685 E. State St. RSVP to 815-877-0441 by April 3.

Thursday, April 6

University of Illinois College of Medicine Rockford and Thermo Fisher Scientific, Inc., host a 2017 Summer Science Open House, 4 to 6 p.m., at the Robert J. Vickrey, M.D., Auditorium, 1601 Parkview Ave. Presentations by research mentors for the Summer Science Internship Program. Call 815-395-5680 or daryl. messenger@thermofisher.com.

University of Illinois Extension hosts a MarketReady class, 5:30 to 8:30 p.m., Thursday evenings, April 6 to 27, in the Rotary Room, Belvidere Family YMCA, 220 W. Locust St. Register at web.extension.illinois.edu/bdo/.

Hoo Haven Wildlife Rehabilitation & Education Center presents a Fundraiser, 6 to 9 p.m., at Prairie Street Brewing Co., 200 Prairie St., Rockford. Wine tasting, hors d’oeuvres, auctions and the first public appearance of the newest raptor ambassador, Captain Jack, a permanently disabled American Bald Eagle. Visit www.hoohaven.org.

Saturday, April 8

April 14; litter pickup, 9 a.m. to noon.

Walk-ins may register the same day at Patriots’ Gateway Center, 615 S. 5th St., Rockford. For questions contact Frank@knib.org, 815-637-1343.

Rock River Valley Blood Center and Gift of Hope Organ & Tissue Donor Network present the 14th annual Red Shoe Run-For Donor Awareness, a 5K run/fitness walk, 8 a.m., at Northern Illinois University-Rockford, 8500 E. State St. Visit www.

RedShoeRun.org.

Goodwill Industries of Northern Illinois presents a Rockford Community Job Fair, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., at Lou Bachrodt Auto Mall, 7070 CherryVale North Boulevard. Bring a resume. For questions call 815-9653795 or visit www.goodwillni.org/ event/jobfair.

Rockford Park District hosts a free youth Sports Registration Open House, 10 a.m. to noon, at UW Health Sports Factory, 305 S. Madison St., for parents of children 3 to 18 on F.I.R.E. Track & Field, NFL Flag Football, NFL Cheer, tennis, golf and sports camps.

Visit www.rockfordparkdistrict.org/ youthsports or call customer service at 815-987-8800.

Wednesday, April 12

Boyd Consulting Group and Express Pro present a Leadership Event for human resources professionals and leadership teams, 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., at the Janesville Country Club, 2615 W. Memorial Dr. Live Simulcast with Patrick Lencioni, Jimmy Johnson (two-time Superbowl champion coach) and Robyn Benincasa (worldchampion adventure racer). Visit www.

Refreshleadership.com/live or call David Bartz, 608-743-0472.

Thursday, April 13

RAMP presents its first Dance Marathon for students and families in the Boone County school districts, 5:30 to 8:30 p.m., at the Community Building, 111 W. First St., Belvidere.

DJ with Big B Productions, performances by Gigi’s Playhouse, 50/50 raffle, food. Visit give.classy.org/ rampdance.

Saturday, April 15

Discovery Center Museum and Burpee Museum of Natural History host an Egg Hunt, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., at 737 N. Main St., Rockford. Kids 9 and under can look for eggs at 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. Call 815-963-6769 or visit www.discoverycentermuseum.org.

Carl & Dianna Cole of Sounds of Good News Productions invites business and community leaders to attend its first-annual Sheriff’s “Rally for Peace!” “Power of Unity” Summit to Combat Violence & Crime, 10 a.m., at Giovanni’s Restaurant & Convention Center, 610 N. Bell School Road, Rockford. Keynote with Winnebago Sheriff Gary Caruana and entertainment by the Young Eagles Success Club Choir. RSVP by April 10 to www.soundsofgoodnews.com. Call Dianna Cole, 815-914-1487, with questions.

Sunday, April 23

Will Allen, founder and CEO of Growing Power, is the featured speaker for Keep Northern Illinois Beautiful’s Earth Day Awards Luncheon on April 25.

Rockford Public Library and Rockford Creative ReUse host a Craft Exchange, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., at the Main Library auditorium, 215 N. Wyman St. Artists and crafters may choose free materials.

Wednesday, April 19 SwedishAmerican Byron Clinic and the Byron Park District present Walk with a Doc, 6:30 to 7:30 a.m., Wednesday mornings, April 19 to May 24 and June 7 to July 12. Meet at the Byron Park District, 696 N. Colfax St. Free. No registration.

Thursday, April 20

IMEC kicks off its Fundamentals of Continuous Improvement workshops on Thursdays, April 20 to May 25, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., at Sauk Valley Community College, 173 IL Route 2, Dixon. Includes real-life scenarios in classroom training and hands-on factory simulations for lean transformation and improvement.

Register at www.imec.org/events.cfm.

Friday, April 21

University of Illinois College of Medicine at Rockford presents its 22nd annual community Research Day, 9:15 a.m., at the UIC Health Sciences Campus-Rockford, 1601 Parkview Ave. Luisa DiPietro, D.D.S., Ph.D., UIC College of Dentistry, presents “How to Heal Perfectly: A Blueprint for Skin Regeneration.”

Panel discussion, 11 a.m., on “Regenerative Medicine: Implications for Clinical Practice & Research.”

Register at 815-395-5649, prrockford@uic.edu or visit rockford. medicine.uic.edu.

Saturday, April 22

Discovery Center Museum presents Future Nurses Academy, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., at 737 N. Main St., Rockford.

Talk to nurses and get your hands on actual equipment. Call 815-963-6769 or visit www.discoverycentermuseum. org.

Keep Northern Illinois Beautiful hosts the Great American Cleanup in Winnebago and Boone counties; equipment pickup, 8 to 9 a.m., at 17 locations if pre-register at knib.org by

Midway Village Museum, 6799 Guilford Road, Rockford, presents a free community program, Welcoming Diversity: Building Bridges of Understanding, 2 to 5 p.m. Dr. Beatrice McKenzie, Beloit College, will speak on patterns of anti-immigrant movements, and Joyce Higgins, on racism in our community. Six breakout sessions on the Human Library Project, refugee resettlement, Muslim immigration, racial discrimination, refugee and immigrant services in Rockford, and work of Latinos in Rockford.

Monday, April 24

Coronado Performing Arts Center presents An Evening with David Sedaris, 8 p.m., at 314 N. Main St., Rockford. Tickets at the BMO Harris Bank Center and Coronado Box offices, Ticketmaster.com or 815-9685222.

Tuesday, April 25

Keep Northern Illinois Beautiful presents its Earth Day Awards Luncheon, 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., at Giovanni’s Restaurant and Convention Center, N. Bell School Road, Rockford.

Will Allen, founder and CEO of Growing Power, will present “Growing Power and the Good Food Revolution.” Visit knib.org or contact 815-637-1343 or Tabatha@knib.org.

Thursday, April 27

Rockford Public Schools hosts a free Academy Showcase at Prairie Street Brewing Co., 200 Prairie St., Rockford.

Learn what’s new in the College & Career Academies of Rockford. Food, cash bar, entertainment, student demonstrations, games and giveaways

Friday, April 28

Coronado Performing Arts Center presents Celtic Woman’s new live show, Voices of Angels, 7:30 p.m., at 314 N. Main St., Rockford. Tickets at BMO Harris Bank Center and Coronado Box offices, Ticketmaster. com or 815-968-5222.

Klehm Arboretum & Botanic Garden presents its Arbor Dash 5K Fun Run, 6:30 p.m., through its 155-acre grounds at 2715 S. Main St., Rockford.

Includes live music. Register at www. klehm.org/arbor-dash-5k.

Roots and Wings Good Food Advocate Awards & Benefit takes place, 7 to 10 p.m., at Prairie Street Brewing Co., 200 Prairie St., Rockford, to raise funds for the Angelic Organics project hosted at Rockford Housing Authority’s Blackhawk Courts site.

Tickets at www.learngrowconnect.org or 815-389-8455.

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Community Events Saturday, April 29

MAY, 2017

Discovery Center Museum presents Astronomy Day, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., at 737 N. Main St., Rockford. Free planetarium show, learn to read a star map and create glittery star crafts. Call 815-963-6769 or visit www. discoverycentermuseum.org.

Wednesday, May 3

Macktown, A Living History Education Center, presents its Annual Gathering at Macktown, 10 a.m., April 29 to 30 at 2221 Freeport Road, Rockton. Experience pre-1850s frontier life. Meet traders and trappers, French voyageurs and Native Americans. Food, mercantile vendors, demonstrations and black powder shooting. Visit macktownlivinghistory. com or call 815-624-4200.

Rockford Symphony Orchestra presents Classics 6: Strauss’ Last, Mahler’s First, 7:30 p.m., at Coronado Performing Arts Center, 314 N. Main St. For tickets call 815-965-0049 or visit www.rockfordsymphony.com.

Montford Point Marine Association presents its third-annual Charter Banquet at Boundaries Bar & Grill in the Birch Room, 3807 S. Riverside Dr., Beloit, Wis. Cocktail hour, 5:30 to 6:30 p.m.; dinner, 6:30 to 7:30 p.m.; program, 7:30 to 9 p.m.; DJ to follow at 9 p.m. Keynote speaker is C.L.H. Johnson, Sr., Montford Point Marine Association. For tickets in Rockford call 815-988-2735 or 815-218-5485.

Rock Valley College hosts a free Hour of Code workshop: Coding with Minecraft, 5 p.m., at its downtown location, 99 E. State St., second floor of the Rockford Register Star news tower. Visit hourofcodeworkshops.eventbrite.com.

Sunday, May 7

Barbara Olson Center of Hope presents its Rock for the Center Family Festival, noon to 6 p.m., at Tebala Event Center, 7910 Newburg Road, Rockford. Musical entertainment with Minimal, The Missing Links and Mr. Big Stuff. Children’s talent show with cash prizes, games, chance auctions, food, craft vendors and photo opportunities with princesses and superheroes. Tom Wartowski, will sign his book, “You are like an Acorn.”

Tickets at 815-964-9275, ext. 265, or www.b-olsoncenter ofhope.org.

Tuesday, May 9

The Rockford Chamber of Commerce and NIU-Rockford host a Lender Forum, 9 a.m. to noon, at 8500 E. State St., Rockford. Presenting organizations include the U.S. Small Business Administration, SBA 504 corporations, Illinois Small Business Development Centers and SBA microlenders. For questions contact 815-987-8100 or eforsman@ rockfordchamber.com.

25 worst passwords of 2016 SplashData, a provider of security applications and services, released in January its sixth-annual Worst Passwords report of 25 weak and easy-to-guess passwords most frequently posted on various hacker forums and websites.

123456 password 12345 12345678 football

qwerty 1234567890 1234567 princess 1234

login welcome solo abc123 admin

121212 flower passw0rd dragon sunshine

master hottie loveme zaq1zaq1 password1

Get to Know Your Ambassadors Name: Danna Krischke

Company: Shelter Insurance Position: Insurance Agent

How long have you been an Ambassador?

3 years

What do you like most about being an Ambassador? Being an ambassador with the Rockford Chamber has allowed me to come in contact with so many amazing people. I truly love meeting new people and have enjoyed each

opportunity to do so. As an ambassador, we are invited to ribbon cuttings for new businesses all the time. This is one of my favorite things to do, because it allows me to be a part of a memorable occasion for these new companies.

I also love being an ambassador because I truly believe the chamber does everything in its power to promote our businesses. It is not always an easy task to keep current on events and be everywhere you need to be as you are running your business. The chamber is constantly reminding me of upcoming events to benefit my agency and networking events for meeting new contacts.

I feel my insurance agency has grown immensely in part because of the chamber, and I feel very honored to be a part of this wonderful group of volunteers. Thank you for allowing me this opportunity to help our community.

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Business Briefs BUSINESS BRIEFS Rockford Chamber members appear bolded. Thank you for your support of your fellow Chamber members.

Savant Capital Management was named one of the Top 9 Best Financial Advisors in Chicago for the second consecutive year, according to a selection process by AdvisoryHQ based on fiduciary duty, independence, transparency, level of customized service, history of innovation, fee structure and quality of services.

Community Foundation of Northern Illinois was re-accredited with the nation’s highest standards for philanthropic excellence by the National Standards for U.S. Community Foundations®. The organization distributes roughly $3 million per year in grants and scholarships to local organizations and students.

OrthoIllinois donated $35,890 to Northern Illinois Food Bank. For the past 14 years, OrthoIllinois staff and physicians have turned their winter holiday party into a fundraiser with more than $356,000 raised for after-school meals and weekend backpacks of food to area children at risk for hunger.

Lifescape Community Services accepted nearly $2,000 in donations from Kelley’s Market from customers who purchased small paper squares featuring the image of a Lifescape Meals-On-Wheels truck for a dollar each.

WilliamsMcCarthyLLP launched a redesigned website at www.wilmac. com, developed by Chartwell Agency and Ignition Studio. theFranaGroup, a Rockford-based health care consulting firm serving Federally Qualified Health Centers, hired Chartwell Agency for event services.

Midland States Bank Foundation contributed $159,000 to nine organizations in Illinois.

The Rock River Anything That Floats Race returns on Aug. 20. Teams on their makeshift rafts or floating devices will compete in the 1.6-mile

race on the Rock River from Auburn Street Bridge to Prairie Street Brewing Co., with a party following the race. Registration is open at www.rratfr.com. Last year, the event raised nearly $8,000 for the Rockford Fourth of July and Holiday Lighting efforts, the Rock River Trail Initiative and the Ski Broncs.

Northwest Bank selected Hayes Marketing Services, Inc., to develop and execute a comprehensive marketing plan of broadcast, print, outdoor and digital campaigns.

The American Council of Engineering Companies-Illinois Chapter awarded the City of Rockford and Willett Hofmann & Associates, Inc., an ACEC Structural Systems Merit Award for the Rails to Trails Bridge project. The retrofitted bridge now allows for a full-width bicycle and pedestrian pathway with lighting system and lookout points from the Morgan Street bridge path on the east bank of the Rock River to Davis Park on the west bank. Cost was roughly $1.5 million; funded in part by a $740,000 Illinois Transportation Enhancement Program grant.

Klehm Arboretum & Botanic Garden was chosen by the Community Foundation of Northern Illinois to participate in the Carroll Starr Endowment Challenge VIII with a goal to raise $30,000 by October 2018. A $10,000 matching grant will be given to the Bur Oak Endowment Fund for operations, supplies and programs.

Rock River Valley Tooling and Machining Association (RRVTMA) hired V2 Marketing Communications to redesign the organization’s website and produce trade show displays. And Family Building Services, a building and remodeling contractor in Portland, OR, recently hired V2 to redesign their website.

The National Inclusion Project awarded $5,000 to the Rockford Park District therapeutic recreation department to hire two summer staff members to create an environment

where children, with and without disabilities, can play, learn and laugh together using the Let’s ALL Play program model.

Entré Computer Solutions announced a new service: phone and tablet screen replacements for iPhones, iPads, Galaxy phones and Galaxy tablets.

For the third consecutive year, Becker’s Healthcare included SwedishAmerican, a Division of UW Health, in its “150 Great Places to Work in Healthcare” list.

Mercyhealth announced its support of the 80% by 2018 initiative, led by the American Cancer Society, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the National Colorectal Cancer Roundtable, with a shared goal of 80 percent of adults aged 50 and older being regularly screened for colorectal cancer by 2018. It’s the nation’s second leading cause of cancer-related deaths, yet one of a few cancers that can be prevented with the removal of polyps.

U.S. Cellular announced new total plans featuring an unlimited data option for $40 a month per line with four lines. No data overage charged, activation fees nor monthly connection charges. Visit www. uscellular.com/nohiddenfees.

Rock Valley College received a Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting by the Government Finance Officers Association of the United States and Canada for its comprehensive annual financial report for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2016.

V2 Marketing Communications received gold and bronze ADDY awards at American Advertising Award gala: Gold ADDY Award for Chicago National Association of Dance Masters Fall 2016 Workshops poster; Gold for Renaissance Roofing’s Monarch Sales Booklet; and two Bronze ADDYs for OrthoIllinois’ Bike Builder TV spot and the “You Have a Choice” campaign.

SwedishAmerican, a Division of UW Health’s marketing team earned gold and best in broadcast ADDY awards for its integrated campaign and 60-second animated TV commercial, “Moments.”

Rockford Park District announced that its 2017 Spring/Summer Program Guide is available online at www.rockfordparkdistrict.org/ guides and registration open for lessons, leagues, camps and workshops. Printed copies also are available at customer service locations.

The Rock River Multi Sport Group and Rockford Area Mountain Biking Alliance gave a $1,000 donation raised during Do the Kish, a mountain bike race last October, to the Rockford Park District for the Silent Sports Trail Initiative. The Atwood Silent Sports Trails Project will be a facility for activities such as mountain biking, hiking, trail running, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, wildlife observation and fat biking.

Chicago Rockford International Airport reported that passenger traffic increased in 2016 by 9,132, while cargo increased by 126,848,770 pounds. The significant 4.2 percent increase in passengers was due in part to Allegiant increasing service on the Punta Gorda, (Fla.), Mesa (Ariz.) and Clearwater (Fla.) routes.

More than 20 nursing students from Saint Anthony College of Nursing’s community health class hosted a health fair for residents at Rockford Rescue Mission in March with posters, educational handouts and blood pressure checks.

The Village of Machesney Park received $448,700 in grants from the Illinois Housing Development Authority to revitalize neighborhoods, including singlefamily housing rehabilitation and abandoned properties.

Tickets are on sale for a new, live stage show, Peppa Pig’s Surprise, based on the TV series airing daily

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April 2017

Business Briefs Continued from page 20 on Nick Jr., on Nov. 9 at the Coronado Performing Arts Center.

Visit ticketmaster.com or call 815968-0595.

Editor & Publisher named the Rockford Register Star and the Journal-Standard of Freeport to its list of “10 Newspapers That Do It Right” for 2017. The newspapers, operating as Register Star Media, were the only GateHouse properties on the top 10 list.

Rockford Area Convention & Visitors Bureau celebrated a 15-year relationship with the Illinois Kids Wrestling Federation and announced big wins for 2017-2018: America’s Table Tennis Team Championships, Christian Congregation of Jehovah’s Witnesses Convention, American Amateur Baseball Congress World Series, North American Fast Pitch Association Masters East World Series and 2018 USA Ultimate College Championships.

Edward Jones ranked No. 5 on the 2017 Fortune 100 Best Companies to Work For list by global research and consulting firm Great Place to Work® and Fortune magazine. This is its 18th appearance on the list.

KMK Media Group was hired by Timber Pointe Golf Club in Poplar Grove for marketing consultation and graphic design services and by Kelley Williamson Company for a website promoting multiple hiring opportunities.

Baird ranked No. 4 on Fortune magazine’s 2017 list of the “100 Best Companies to Work For.” It’s been on the annual ranking of the top U.S. workplaces based on employee feedback and workplace attributes for 14 consecutive years.

RAMP announced a new service, a visit-ability assessment, with staff available to help businesses identify opportunities to become more accessible to individuals with disabilities using the Illinois Accessibility Code Checklist.

Rockford Public Library added a new feature to pay accumulated fines and fees on its website, under My Account.

Rockford Park District gave its 2016 Community Service Awards to 100 Strong, KFACT, Northeast Christian Church, Rockford Work Camps, Wabongo Leadership Council and YMCA Togetherhood.

First Free Rockford’s reSTART concert in March raised $11,908 to benefit families in need in the Rockford Public Schools.

Digital Hive Mind received Certificates of Excellence by Graphic Design USA for outstanding work in graphic design and video production for its capital campaign brochure, “Our New Home,” and video, “One in

Four;” pro bono work for Remedies Renewing Lives.

13 WREX debuted its “REX-1” news drone on 13 News. Operated by an on-staff FAA drone pilot, it provides video of traffic events, weather news, daily news stories and breaking news. Plans are to expand its fleet of licensed pilots and drones in the near future.

Colorwave Graphics, LLC won gold and silver ADDY awards for wall displays installed at Wheaton College and Remedies Renewing Lives. It installed vehicle wraps on the Rock Valley Fence & Deck fleet, SUV for B103 FM, truck for Pro Arc, Inc., Bergstrom, Inc., and ATV for RVC Performance Products.

Colorwave also added evening painting parties hosted by ArtByKarla each month in its shop. “Like” Colorwave Graphics and ArtByKarla facebook pages.

Rockford IceHogs raised $30,536 at its annual Autism Awareness Night and Bowl-A-Thon events to benefit the autism program of Easterseals and families with HD Rooted in Hope, Inc., respectively.

Savant Capital Management hit an important milestone, reaching $5 billion in assets under management (AUM). It grew 400 percent over the past 10 years and has expanded its ownership to 47 employees.

The 23rd annual SwedishAmerican Cruise fundraiser sold out in March and raised more than $190,000 – its most successful year yet. Proceeds will benefit holistic health services: therapeutic massage, aromatherapy, music therapy, yoga, the Caring Canines therapy dog program and expressive arts therapy.

Chartwell Agency earned five ADDY awards in March: the Choose Your Adventure campaign for the Girl Scouts of Northern Illinois (gold); the “Brought to You By ...” campaign for Rockford Bank & Trust (silver) and its television commercials (bronze); the Transform Rockford Progress Report (bronze) and the Life is More campaign for First Free Rockford church (bronze).

In March, University of Illinois College of Medicine Rockford students matched to residency programs in 15 specialties and 20 states. Nineteen 2017 graduates will stay in Illinois, and 64 percent will continue their training in the Midwest.

SwedishAmerican Foundation awarded a $12,000 grant to Zion Outreach, an organization partnering with Angelic Organic Learning Center and Rockford Housing Authority (RHA) to provide sustainable food and micro-economic employment to residents of Blackhawk Court, an RHA site.

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the News IN Members THEin NEWS

1. Tyler Smith

2. Scott Leiser

3. Kerry Keller

4. Brandon Boggs

5. Joe Capriola

6. John Lillge

7. Dr. Sara Zibert

8. Daniel Tippy

9. Cherene Sweeny

10. Richard D. Wolfe

11. Matthew Kiehl

12. Stephen Lorence

13. Michael Ruane

14. Allison Alexander

15. James Foley

16. Dr. Eric Marnul

17. Luke Uran

18. Brenda Nayonis

19. Laura Snyder

20. Lori Malatesta

21. Stacy Wallace

22. Eric Vance

23. Lauren Downing

24. Dylan Schroeder

Rockford Chamber members appear bolded. Thank you for your support of your fellow Chamber members.

BOARD APPOINTMENTS Woodward, Inc., appointed Daniel G. (“Dan”) Korte and Eileen P. Drake to serve on its board and Audit Committee.

The Board of Trustees of Community College District 511, Rock Valley College, appointed Michael Dunn, Jr., to the seat vacated by Ashley Burks.

Tyler Smith (1), commissioner, Rockford Park District, was elected to the Illinois Association of Park Districts’ Board of Trustees.

Scott Leiser (2), manager, Rock Valley Credit Union’s Meijer in-store branches, was elected to serve on the Rockford Area Chapter of Credit Union board.

NEW HIRES, PROMOTIONS, RETIREMENTS Brandon Boggs (4) joined Fehr Graham as an engineer in the Rochelle office and Joe Capriola (5) as an engineer and John Lillge (6) as a network administrator in the Rockford office.

Crusader Community Health welcomed board-certified pediatrician, Sara Zibert, M.D. (7) Entré Computer Solutions hired Daniel Tippey (8) as web developer/ software developer.

Cherene Sweeny (9), Patriots Gateway, Zion Development Corporation, retired as executive director.

Christine Albert joined J.L. Clark’s accounting & finance group as chief financial officer.

Richard D. Wolfe (10) was promoted to chief executive officer and president of UNION Savings BANK.

Savant Capital Management hired Matthew Kiehl (11) as financial paraplanner, Stephen Lorence (12) as financial advisor and Michael Ruane (13) as director of corporate development at the Rockford office.

Allison Alexander (14) received the CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNERTM designation.

Miller Eye Center hired James Foley (15) as optical manager and Dr. Eric Marnul (16) as bi-lingual (Spanish) optometrist.

First Free Rockford welcomed Pastor Luke Uran (17) as its new senior lead pastor.

University of Illinois College of Medicine Rockford hired Sandra Perpignani as associate director of survey research in the health policy and social research division of the department of family and community medicine, replacing Deb Lischwe who retired.

Keep Northern Illinois Beautiful named Kerry Keller (3) as president and David Sobojinski as vice president of its board, and named Jake Castanza, Dick Gorman, Stephanie Jacobs, Michael Keefe, Doug Mark and Rob Reed as members. Jacki Minnihan is treasurer and Ryan Monette is secretary.

Rebecca Epperson, founder and president, Chartwell Agency, and Nancy Razón, bilingual community liaison for her hometown school district, were chosen for three-year terms on the YWCA of Northwestern Illinois board.

Brenda Nayonis (18) was promoted to executive vice president operations & cashier for Rockford Bank & Trust.

Rockford Area Arts Council named Sharon Nesbit-Davis as executive director.

Rockford Housing Authority appointed Laura Snyder (19) as chief operating officer.

Lori Malatesta (20) is the newly appointed vice president of human resources and organizational development at Gift of Hope Organ & Tissue Donor Network.

Stacy Wallace (21) joined V2 Marketing Communications as an account executive and marketing strategist.

MPOWR, a cloud-based social and strategic software division of SupplyCore, Inc., hired Eric Vance (22) as director of business development.

Fehr Graham hired Lauren Downing (23) as an engineer and Dylan Schroeder (24) as a landscape architect.

EMPLOYEE/COMMUNITY RECOGNITIONS, AWARDS Castle Connolly Medical, Ltd., named Brian Bear, M.D., OrthoIllinois (25), on its list of Castle Connolly Top Doctors for the fourth straight year.

Sue LaVine (26), senior customer care specialist, celebrated 10 years with Rockford Mutual Insurance Company.

Rocktown Adventures in downtown Rockford honors Logan Bohnenkamp and Jake Kaltved, who saved a kayaker in the Rock River; presenting them with safety gear and fishing kayaks, partially donated by NuCanoe.

David Cyrs (27), CYRS Wealth Advisors, became certified in Retirement Counseling from the International Foundation for

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April 2017

the News IN Members THEin NEWS

25. Dr. Brian J. Bear

26. Sue LaVine

27. David Cyrs

28. Matthew Johnson

Your Products and Services in front of Key Decision Makers The 2017 Community Guide & Membership Directory, published once a year by the Rockford Chamber of Commerce, is an opportunity to build name recognition in our region.

This resource for living, working, playing and visiting the Rockford region includes a listing of Chamber members and a buyer’s guide.

Who sees it?

29. Jennifer Reisinger

30. John Holevas

Continued from page 22 Retirement Planning, earning the industry designation of Certified Retirement Counselor (CRC®).

YWCA Northwestern Illinois presented 2017 Women of Achievement Awards to Rebecca Epperson (business), Maureen Hargrove (community leadership), Tim Dimke (mentorship), Dr. Connie Vitali (professions), Purvi Shah Khare, J.D. (promise) and Hana Hinkle (racial justice). College scholarships were presented to Bridget Krysztopa and Julia Lieb (Bright Future), Sofia Sanchez (La Voz Latina) and Mollie Fissell and Lauren Stoklosa (Women of Achievement).

Rockford Area Arts Council announced that Jefferson High School students Olyvia Micklo (winner), Nathan Weimerskirk (first runner up) and Ana Plankenhorn (alternate) represented northern Illinois in the State Poetry Out Loud competition in Springfield, Ill. The winner advances to the national finals in April in Washington, D.C. Jackie Bunch was named Meridian’s employee of the month.

Matthew Johnson (28), P.E., S.E., branch manager, Fehr Graham’s Champaign (Ill.) office, received the

31. Curt Lansbery

32. Stephen Nelson

2017 Civil and Environmental Engineering Alumni Association Young Alumnus Award.

Sandy Wolf celebrated her six-year work anniversary as office manager at Upper Cervical Care Center – Rockford, a division of 1st Step Chiropractic.

Jennifer Reisinger (29), financial advisor, Edward Jones, was accepted into the National Association of Professional Women.

John Holevas (30), president, WilliamsMcCarthy, received the Lincoln the Lawyer Award from the Abraham Lincoln Association in February on behalf of former senior partner, Tom Johnson. Johnson was honored posthumously for demonstrating the characters and ideals of Abraham Lincoln in his legal career.

Curt Lansbery (31), president & CEO, North American Tool Corporation, received the 2017 Laurence A. Raymer Headliner Award by the Beloit Daily News at the Beloit Chamber of Commerce annual dinner.

Rockford Park District gave its 2016 Community Service Awards to Mary Conley, Susan Hacking, Daniel Jarrett, Jim Kaplanes, Mary Kaull, Dave and Trina Krueger,

■ 1,200+ Chamber-member companies.

■ Non-Chamber-member companies.

■ Relocating families and individuals interested in visiting the Rockford region.

■ Large corporations, hospital systems and local realtors recruiting high-level employees and receiving relocation inquiries.

The 2017 Community Guide & Membership Directory, distributed in glossy magazine form, also will be published as an e-publication and online resource.

Contact Lynette Jacques at ljacques@rockfordchamber.com or 815-316-4317 for a variety of advertising opportunities.

www.rockfordchamber.com

Jan Merchant, Xavier Whitford and Wester Wuori.

OF GENERAL INTEREST Michael Roh, M.D., surgeon, Rockford Spine Center, spoke to UTC Aerospace Systems employees in Rockford during its monthly Employee Engagement Lunch and Learn Series on “Common Neck and Back Problems: Prevention and Treatment.”

Brian J. Bear, M.D., OrthoIllinois authored “Treatment of Recurrent Dupytren’s Contracture in Joints Previously Treated With Collagenase Clostridium Histolyticum,” accepted for the Journal of Hand

Surgery, spring 2017 issue.

Philip Eaton, president/CEO, Rosecrance, will speak on “Charting our Field’s Trajectory: The NAATP Provider CEO Perspective” as well as “All Addicts Matter: Addressing the Public System/Private System Treatment Divide” at the 2017 National Addiction Leadership Conference, May 21 to 23 in Austin, Texas.

Stephen Nelson (32), director of educational architecture, Larson & Darby Group, spoke recently at the LaMoille Community Unit School District #303 STEA2M Conference at Illinois Valley Community College.

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April 2017

ON DIGITAL Members Caught on Digital Ceremonial ribbon donated by SERVPRO of Rockford.

theVoice rockfordchamber.com

Works! Center opens to transition residents to jobs The Rockford Rescue Mission celebrated the grand opening of its Works! Center on March 23, an education and job skills training program for mission guests and residents. The reality for many of these unemployed individuals is that they don’t have a high school diploma and often lack the basic employable job skills and positive employment record.

The Works! Center aims to address this by providing education and job training classes focused on soft skills, writing and math instruction, computer

literacy, money management, GED tutoring and literacy. Services to support the transition to a job will include mentoring, tutoring, job placement, salon and career wardrobe, legal assistance and bi-lingual translation.

The SwedishAmerican Foundation announced a $10,000 grant to allow the mission to offer the Works! Center program free of charge and to fund educational materials and facilitate connections between employers and skilled job seekers.

New Chamber Members APRIL AGRACE FitRight Precision Orthotic Prosthetic Lab held a ribbon cutting on Feb. 28 at 5929 E. Riverside Blvd, Rockford.

Hospice and Palliative Care 7290 Argus Dr., 61107 Tami Kellerman 815-394-1530 www.agrace.org

CORK KEG & SPIRITS Full service specialty wines, spirits and craft beer shop.

1603 N. Alpine Road, 61107 Chris Patel 773-220-2991 www.corkkegspirits.com

[DESIGN] [BUILD]

BY ARCHITECTS Architects who bridge the gap between design and construction through interactive design and by housing the architect’s office at the construction site.

309 S. Main St., Ste. 2, 61101 Zach Enderle 815-904-6666 www.buildbyarchitects.com

Lehan’s Medical Equipment held a ribbon cutting on March 9 at 811 S. Perryville Road, Ste. 101, Rockford.

DISTINCTIVE ROOFING, INC. Commercial and Industrial Roofing 1555 New Milford School Road, Ste. B, 61109 Jon Neslund 815-986-0831 www.distroofing.com

FOREVERLAWN CHICAGO Your complete source for highquality grass products and installation 3438 Colony Bay Dr., 61109 Wendy Gale 779-368-0251 www.foreverlawn.com/chicago

LEHAN’S MEDICAL EQUIPMENT

Rockford Rescue Mission held a ribbon cutting on March 23 for the grand opening of its Works Center at 715 W. State St., Rockford.

Family-owned medical equipment and supplies business serving northern Illinois for over 70 years.

811 S. Perryville Road, Ste. 101, 61108 Bobby Larson 815-708-7456 www.lehansmedical.com

M2 LANDSCAPING LLC Landscaping Design, Construction, Maintenance, Snow Removal 5431 Einor Ave., 61108 Michael Rossella 815-978-8061 www.m2landscapingand lawncare.com

NORTHERN ILLINOIS VEIN CLINIC Dedicated to offering the most advanced and comprehensive non-surgical treatments for varicose veins and vein disorders 1340 Charles St., Ste. 404, 61104 Rimas Gilvydis, M.D. 815-316-VEIN www.niveinclinic.com

ROCKFORD AREA ARTS COUNCIL The regional arts council’s mission is to support, promote and develop the arts for everyone.

713 E. State St. Rockford, IL 61104 Sharon Nesbit-Davis 815-963-6765 www.artsforeveryone.com

STATE FARM INSURANCE SOLOMON FOLEY Insurance P.O. Box 6911, 61125 Solomon Foley 815-397-3377 www.solomonfoley.com

WINTRUST BANK Our mission is to provide best-in-class financial services to all of our customers, be the local alternative to the big banks, and to improve the communities which we call home.

6885 Vistagreen Way, 61107 Michele Petrie 815-520-2258 wintrust.com

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April 2017

April 2017 Member Anniversaries Thank you to the members celebrating their anniversaries with the Rockford Chamber of Commerce.

Regional, National Indicators THE ECONOMY U.S. Indicators

65-YEAR MEMBERS

20-YEAR MEMBERS

February 2017

Lindstrom Travel

Hampton Properties

Consumer Price Index

Winnebago County Medical Society

(Leasing Office)

Unemployment Rate

Prairie State Legal Services, Inc.

Payroll Employment

60-YEAR MEMBER

10-YEAR MEMBERS

Average Hourly Earnings

Rockford Area Realtors

Mark Pack Inc.

Producer Price Index

55-YEAR MEMBERS Rockford Mercantile Agency, Inc. Rockford Public Library

Specialty Screw Corporation

50-YEAR MEMBER Dickerson & Nieman Realtors

30-YEAR MEMBER Enders Flowers

Singley Construction

Tinker Swiss Cottage Museum

Productivity

American Driveway

U.S. Import Price Index

Maintenance, Inc.

Mylan Institutional Inc.

23WIFR Gray Television, Inc. Advanced Disposal Solid Waste Services American Cancer Society American Precision Supply, Inc. Ameriprise Financial Athletico Physical Therapy Ballard Services, Inc. Barnes International, Inc. Broadmoor Agency, Inc. Butitta Brothers Automotive Byron Forest Preserve/PrairieView Golf Club CIT Trucks Cord Construction Company Custom Concrete Ltd. Dickey Staffing Solutions Diversified Machining, Inc. EGS/Alorica Employers’ Coalition on Health (ECOH) ESCO Grinding & Supply Company First National Bank Fitzgerald Funeral Home and Crematory, Ltd. Fitzgerald Funeral Home and Crematory, Ltd. Forward Equity Marketing Group Frink’s Sewer & Drain Inc. Garden Hotel and Conference Center Giordano’s Goodwill Industries of Northern Illinois Hanson Professional Services Inc. Holmertz-Parsons, CPA’s In Home Medical Group LLC Jason’s Deli Jimmy John’s L.K.G. Industries, Inc. Larson & Darby Group Lechtenberg & Associates LLC Lindstrom Travel

Marden Tire & Auto (Marden Distributors, Inc.) McClure Engineering Associates, Inc. Meridian Merrill Lynch Midwest Stitch Missman, Inc. Northern Illinois Food Bank Rockford Branch

$0.06 0.3 percent 0.5 percent (fourth quarter, 2016) 1.3 percent (fourth quarter, 2016) 0.2 percent 0.3 percent

Unemployment Rates

Pharmacy

Maney’s Lawnscape Inc.

235,000

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

Rock Valley Compounding

Thank you to members who renewed with the Rockford Chamber of Commerce in February, 2017.

      

U.S. Export Price Index

Pathways EAP

Membership Renewals

0.1 percent 4.7 percent

Employment Cost Index

5-YEAR MEMBERS

Gitz-Meier Remodeling/Restorx



Region / State / Nation Oct 2016

Nov 2016

Dec 2016

Jan 2017

Rockford

6.0

5.8

6.5

11.1*

Chicago

5.7

5.3

5.4

6.0

Illinois

5.6

5.6

5.7

5.7

United States

4.9

4.6

4.7

4.8

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

*Einar Forsman, Rockford Chamber, addressed in the March 16 Chicago Tribune the January spike in unemployment in Rockford, stating that it was temporary, and due in part to the workers laid off in connection with the $350 million retooling of the Fiat-Chrysler assembly plant in Belvidere. The workers are expected to be re-hired as the new Jeep lines begin production and new suppliers move in.

“The end game is that the investment will lead to more jobs in that industry,” Forsman said.

OC Creative Inc. Oliver Close, LLC

How educated is Illinois?

Olson Aluminum Casting Ltd. Pierce Laminated Products, Inc.

The personal-finance website WalletHub conducted an in-depth analysis of 2017’s Most & Least Educated States; comparing the 50 states across 11 key metrics from “percentage of adults aged 25 and older with at least a high school diploma” to “average university quality” to “gender gap in educational attainment.”

Pumilia Family Dental Group Resort Release Restoration Cafe Rocket Industrial, Inc. Rockford Broach, Inc. Rockford Metal Polishing Co. Rockford Rescue Mission Ministries Shogun Japanese Restaurant Izakaya 88 Sikich LLP Superior Joining Technologies, Inc. Taco John’s - South Alpine The Carriage Homes of Park Hills VI The Literacy Council Transformations Plastic Surgery University of Illinois Extension Winnebago County Van Matre HealthSouth Rehabilitation Hospital Weldstar Co. Wells Fargo Advisors, LLC Zimmerman & Walsh, LLP

Where Illinois Rated (1=Most; 25=Avg.) 30th Percentage of High-School Diploma Holders

21st Percentage of Associate’s Degree Holders or College-Experienced Adults

12th Percentage of Bachelor’s Degree Holders

11th Percentage of Graduate- or Professional-Degree Holders 23rd Avgerage University Quality

26th Gender Gap in Educational Attainment Source: wallethub.com

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April 2017

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EVENTS

Upcoming Chamber Events APRIL, 2017 Tuesday, April 4

Business Women’s Council, 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., Rockford Country Club, 2500 Oxford St. Jody Perrecone, CHIP Program, and Sherri Habben, Team Tree, present “Is Stress Stressing You Out?” Sponsored by First Northern Credit Union.

Thursday, April 6 4 - 8 pm Giovanni’s, Inc. 610 N. Bell School Rd., Rockford

CELEBRATION OF MANUFACTURING Expo and Dinner Dr. Douglas J. Jensen, president, Rock Valley College, will outline his vision for workforce development and meeting the demands of the region. Announcement of the Individual Business Catalyst of the Year and the Manufacturer of the Year awards.

Sponsored by QPS Employment Group (presenting); Nuts, Bolts, & Thingamajigs; Rockford Bank & Trust Co., and Wipfli LLP (gold); United Way of Rock River Valley (awards), and Thayer Lighting, Inc. (silver).

Friday, April 7

Ribbon Cutting, Nothing Bundt Cakes, 11 a.m., 881 S. Perryville Road, Suite 200, Rockford.

Monday, April 10

Ribbon Cutting, [design] [build] by architects, 4 to 5 p.m., 309 S. Main St., Ste. 2, Rockford.

Tuesday, April 11 8:00 am - Noon Forest Hills Country Club 5135 Forest Hills Rd., Rockford

Glen Shepard

How to Supervise People and Lead a Team The Rockford Chamber presents Glen Shepard, whose work and training programs in the areas of human resources are highly-valued.

Learn how to effortlessly defuse tension, derail toxic behavior and defang even the most malicious employee. Register online at rockfordchamber.com.

Wednesday, April 12

Breakfast Buzz 7:30 - 9:00 a.m., Rockford University PURI Business School Bldg., Room 124, 5050 E. State St., Rockford. Joseph Granneman, CEO & principal consultant, Illumination.io, will present The Cybercriminal View of Your Business. Mobile devices, cloud applications and social media can be attractive targets. Learn how a cybercriminal views your business and take away actionable intelligence to defend your networks.

Sponsored by RSM US LLP.

Friday, April 14

Government Affairs Council, 7:30 to 8:45 a.m., Stockholm Inn, 2420 Charles St., Rockford. Mike Dunn, executive director, Chicago-Rockford International Airport, will provide an update on airport activities and priorities including the AAR MRO and the terminal expansion.

Sponsored by AT&T. Thursday, April 20 11:30 am - 1:15 pm The Mauh-Nah-Tee-See Club 5151 Guilford Rd., Rockford

Out Think - Out Market Out Sell Your Competition

Business Growth Luncheon Featuring Scott Hanson

The sought-after speaker and podcast host has been featured on Inc.com, ABC, NBC, FOX, and Entrepreneur magazine.

Sponsored by BMO Harris Bank (presenting) and SwedishAmerican, A Division of UW Health (gold).

Thursday, April 20

Greg Baise, president & CEO, Illinois Manufacturers’ Association, presents an Outline of Legislative Priorities for Illinois Manufacturers, 7:30 to 9 a.m., at Northern Illinois University-Rockford, 8500 E. State St.

Tuesday, April 25

Ribbon Cutting, Puri Family YMCA, 4 to 7 p.m., at 1475 S. Perryville Road, Rockford.

MAY, 2017 Tuesday, May 2

Business Women’s Council, 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., Rockford Country Club, 2500 Oxford St., Rockford.

Gary Anderson and Ashley Sarver, Gary W. Anderson Architects, talk about New Developments in the City and how our commercial and residential property affects the city and how the city affects our property. Sponsored by First Northern Credit Union.

Thursday, May 4 11:30 am - 1:00 pm Radisson Conference Center, 200 S. Bell School Rd., Rockford

STATE-OF-THE-COUNTY Luncheon Winnebago County Board Chairman Frank Haney will talk about his 19-point ACT plan to make the county the most Accountable, Collaborative, and Transparent (ACT) unit of government in Illinois.

Sponsored by BMO Harris Bank (presenting) and AT&T (silver).

For more information, to register for an event, and to view an updated Chamber Event Calendar, visit rockfordchamber.com.

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April 2017

EVENTS

Upcoming Chamber Events Wednesday, May 10

Breakfast Buzz, 7:30 to 9 a.m., at Rockford University, 5050 E. State St., PURI Business School building, room 124. Mike Mastroianni, president, MDM Consulting, presents I Don’t Want to Change. ... But I Have To. How to Embrace a ‘Glass Half Full’ Mentality. Sponsored by RSM US LLP.

Friday, May 12

Government Affairs Council, 7:30 to 8:45 a.m., Stockholm Inn, 2420 Charles St., Rockford. Sponsored by AT&T.

Tuesday, May 16

Chamber 101 with Speed Networking, 7:30 to 9 a.m., Century Plaza Business Center, 7210 E. State St., Ste. 102, Rockford. Sponsored

by MembersAlliance Credit Union.

Thursday, May 18 11:30 am - 1:30 pm Prairie Street Brewing Co. 200 Prairie St., Ste.203, Rockford

Celebration of Leadership Luncheon Join us in celebrating the new graduating class! The featured speaker will be John Groh, president/CEO of the Rockford Area Convention & Visitors Bureau.

Thursday, May 18

Advertisers Index ADVERTISERS

Alpine Bank. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Northern Public Radio . . . . . . . . 19

Ribbon Cutting, Market Dimensions, Inc., 4 p.m., 4320 Morsay Dr., Rockford.

Athena PowerLink . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 BMO Harris Bank . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

Rockford Bank & Trust Co.. . . . . . 7

Ribbon Cutting, Crusader Community Health on Alpine, 5 to 7 p.m., at 1215 N. Alpine Road, Rockford.

Brian Thomas Photography . . . . 21

Rockford Chamber of

Monday, May 22 11 am Rockford Country Club 2500 Oxford St., Rockford

ROCKFORD CHAMBER

Golf Classic

Enjoy an afternoon of healthy recreation, casual networking and cut-throat competition.

Sponsored by SwedishAmerican, A Division of UW Health (presenting); Baker Tilly Virchow Krause, LLP (gold); Blackhawk Bank (gift); OSF Healthcare (photo) and The Alliance (greens).

Thursday, May 25

Good Morning Rockford! 7:30 to 9 a.m., Wesley Willows, 4141 N. Rockton Ave., Rockford. Meet in the Town Center building on the west side of campus.

Sponsored by PNC Bank (presenting); OSF Healthcare and Savant Capital Management (graduation).

®

Blackhawk Bank. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Broadmoor Agency. . . . . . . . . . . 10 Century Plaza Business Center . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 Comcast Business . . . . . . . . . . . 11 FurstSearch LLC. . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Illinois Bank & Trust. . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Keep Northern Illinois Beautiful. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Klaas Financial Asset Advisors, LLC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

OSF HealthCare . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Commerce. . . 5, 9,16, 19, 26, 27,28 Rock Valley College. . . . . . . . . . . 12 RSM US LLP. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Stillman Bank . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Thayer Lighting, Inc.. . . . . . . . . . . 7 Upper Iowa University. . . . . . . . . 14 Van Galder. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Chamber Staff / Call 815-987-8100.............................................. Direct Line

Harold “Bo” Boger, IL Small Business

Development Center Director.............................................................. 815-316-4301

Sue Boyer, Member Relations................................................. 815-316-4315 Einar K. Forsman, President & CEO.......................................... 815-316-4304 Heidi M. Garner, Chief Operating Officer.................................... 815-316-4312

Doug Hessong, Director of Publications & Technology................... 815-316-4338 Lynette Jacques, Vice President, Member Investment. . .................. 815-316-4317 Doug Mark, Membership Development Executive............................... 815-316-4336

Stephanie Mathews, Administrative & Finance Assistant .................... 815-987-8100 Stacy Mullins, Director of Events. . ............................................ 815-316-4302

Caitlin Pusateri, Vice President, Leadership Development................... 815-316-4337 Doug Rand, Accounting Manager/Controller............................... 815-316-4316

Joan Sundvall, Membership Contact Coordinator......................... 815-316-4320

Chamber Board of Directors & Officers EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

DIRECTORS Andrew Benson Benson Stone Company, Inc.

Chairman of the Board Richard Zumwalt Z Resource

Jan Bowman TLC Construction

Vice Chair Michele Petrie Wintrust Bank

LaVonne Brown Savant Capital Management

Vice Chair Dan Ross Williams-Manny Insurance Group

Paula Carynski OSF Saint Anthony Medical Center Samuel J. Castree Staff Management, Inc.

Treasurer Amy Ott Boylan Catholic High School Immediate Past Chair Patti Thayer Thayer Lighting, Inc.

MAY VOICE SPECIAL SECTIONS: City of Innovation (Business Ingenuity) EXPLORE ROCKFORD: Hotels/Restaurants/Things to Do/ Great Event Spaces For information on advertising, call 815

987-8100

Joe Castrogiovanni Giovanni’s, Inc. Rena Cotsones Northern Illinois University Jean Crosby Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Crosby Starck Real Estate Don Daniels SwedishAmerican, A Division of UW Health

Rebecca Epperson Chartwell Agency

Patrick Shaw RSM US LLP

Ira Grimmett UTC Aerospace Systems

Karl Swanson Rockford Bank & Trust Co.

Tim Honquest Honquest Family Funeral Home with Crematory

Jon Thompson Butitta Brothers Automotive

Jeff Hultman Illinois Bank & Trust Michael F. Iasparro Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP Kris L. Kieper Machajewski YWCA Northwestern Illinois Patrick Morrow Alpine Bank Mike Paterson Mid-West Family Broadcasting Mark Peterson CBL Associates Cherry Vale John Schuster Rosecrance Health Network

Laura Pigatti Williamson Rockford Park District

EX-OFFICIO DIRECTORS Einar K. Forsman President & CEO, Rockford Chamber of Commerce John Groh Rockford Area Convention & Visitors Bureau Nathan Bryant Rockford Area Economic Development

Let your Voice be heard Do you have news to share?

Send news releases and other items of interest to the business community to: The VOICE, Rockford Chamber of Commerce 308 W. State St., Ste. 190, Rockford, IL 61101 DEADLINE IS THE 15TH OF THE MONTH PRECEDING ­PUBLICATION