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Communique

Communication: The Key to Successful Business

OCTOBER 2012

UPCOMING EVENTS

10/23 Board of Director’s

Mtg. 11:45 am @

Chamber

10/23 Business After Hours at Splash Adventure 5-7 pm

{5051 Prince St – Admin.

Offices} Hosted by Rural Metro & Splash Adventure

10/30 Meet the Candidates

Reception 5-7 pm in

Lawson State’s Ethel

Hall Auditorium

11/02 Glenn Shepard

Seminar 8:30-Noon

at Watermark Place

11/09 Veterans Day

Program @ City Hall

Auditorium at 11am

Bessemer Awards Luncheon

Chamber Chairman Lynn Joyce and Mayor Kenneth Gulley welcomed 120 members and guests to the Civic

Room at Medical West who attended the Bessemer Awards Luncheon. Awards were given to our First

Responders which included: Law Enforcement Officer of the Year - Officer Brent Miller, Fire Fighter of the

Year - Daniel Sanford, Russell Bell and Josh Phillips, plus our Sheriff's Deputy of the Year – Deputy Jeremy

Barbin. It is always an honor for the Bessemer Business Community to honor these true heroes. They risk

their lives daily to protect and defend our community.

Recognized as the Charles A. Long, Sr. Civic Award recipient was long time business woman and business

owner Joni Holt of Holt Insurance. Joni has given much of herself and resources to help the western

Jefferson County area, the City of Bessemer and your Chamber. She has served as both a Chamber

Ambassador and Board member as well as Chairperson in 1999. Joni was truly a worthy business

representative.

It was only appropriate that Mayor Gulley and Lynn presented the Bessemer Business of the Year to Medical

West. President and CEO Tom McDougal received the recognition for the hospital who not only is our area's

largest employer but also one of the great community and chamber supporters. You always see Medical

West leading in our region.

Finally, our special speaker for the luncheon was Tuscaloosa Mayor Walter Maddox who did an outstanding

job in not only highlighting the first responders during the April 2011 tornadoes but also what they mean to

every community. Mayor Gulley concluded the luncheon by thanking all who attended especially the

honorees and thanking Mayor Maddox for addressing the group. He also thanked the Chamber for what they

do to promote Bessemer.

More pictures can be seen in the Chamber section of the newsletter.

Bessemer Magazine Ads are Selling

The Bessemer Area Chamber of Commerce reminds you that we will be publishing our Magazine which includes our chamber Membership

Directory for Bessemer and surrounding area. The magazine will present our area as an attractive and progressive place to live, work, shop and

visit. This publication will include color photography of people, places, and events as well as interesting features and profiles. The Magazine

will allow you the opportunity to market your business to a prime audience and again this year it will be professionally done.

The 5,000 copies of the magazine are distributed to all of our area hotels, business locations, through the Chamber office, to all our members,

through real estate, medical, financial, advertisers offices and sent to all those asking for information about our area. We are offering rates that

are economical-as a member of the Chamber you get a reduced rate and we have special offers for our Corporate sponsors-we will be placing the

magazine on line with click throughs to our advertisers websites as well as having the membership list updated on line through out the year.

This is the official marketing and promotional piece for the entire Southwest Jefferson County region. This magazine is used for economic

development and as a recruitment tool. Chamber Ambassadors and staff (Latasha Cook, Debbie Stewart, Connie Fuell, Claire Mitchell and

Sarah Belcher) will be contacting you soon regarding advertising opportunities in the new magazine. Please allow them sufficient time to

communicate how advertising in this publication will benefit your business and our community. For information contact the Chamber at 425-

3253 or email mmilan1@bellsouth.net.

Board Chairperson

Lynn Joyce,

Mayor Kenneth

Gulley of

Bessemer and

Luncheon

Speaker Mayor

Walter

Maddox of Tuscaloosa

Chamber News

Bessemer Awards Luncheon Photos

LEFT

2012 BUSINESS OF THE

YEAR RECIPIENT

Medical West’s Tom

McDougal accepts award

from Lynn Joyce and Mayor

Kenneth Gulley

RIGHT

2012 CHARLES A. LONG

OUTSTANDING CIVIC

AWARD RECIPIENT

Ms. Joni Holt (Holt

Insurance) accepts award

from Lynn Joyce and Mayor

Kenneth Gulley

2011 LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICER OF THE YEAR

Recipient Officer Brent Miller (Middle) is joined by Asst. Police

Chief Mike Roper, Mayor Kenneth Gulley, Police Chief Nathaniel

Rutledge and Bessemer Elk Mike Bennett

2011 SHERIFF’S DEPUTY OF THE YEAR

Recipient Deputy Jeremy Barbin is joined by Sheriff Mike Hale,

Mayor Kenneth Gulley and Major Paul Logan

October 2012 Bessemer Area Chamber of Commerce Communique Page 2

2011

FIREFIGHTER

OF THE YEAR

Recipients Daniel

Sanford, Russell Bell

and Josh Phillips

(Middle) are joined by

Fire Chief Paul Syx,

Mayor Kenneth Gulley,

Lynn Joyce, Sgt. Gary

Carter and several fire

department officials.

Business After Hours at Medical West

Keith Pennington and Dr. Mike Mueller of Medical West welcome over 50

people to the business after hours hosted by our hospital on September 13th

.

Chamber Chairperson Lynn Joyce greeted all attendees and welcomed them

for the Chamber. Haley Montgomery and her marketing staff at the hospital

did an excellent job in coordinating the event. Your Chamber Ambassadors

were there to make everyone feel welcome and to eat the delicious food

prepared by the Cafeteria staff at the hospital. It was a great evening with

networking and friend-shipping taking the lead for our membership.

Angela's Ribbon Cutting Angela's Southern Style Restaurant held its grand opening and

ribbon cutting on September 22nd

with City Councilman Jesse

Matthews helping to cut the ribbon. Located at 5204 Bessemer

Super Hwy, Brighton, AL 35020, the food is outstanding. Just down

home good Southern food prepared and served by people who love

making you feel at home. For information about their hours and

menu contact them at (205) 434-2050.

Councilman Jesse Mathews helps open Angela's

Chamber News (continued)

October 2012 Bessemer Area Chamber of Commerce Communique Page 3

Chamber Supports City’s Breast Cancer Awareness

Kick Off

2012 Board of Directors

Chairman

Lynn Joyce, First Financial Bank

Past Chairman

Keith Pennington, Medical West

Chairman Elect

Billy Parsons, CPA

Treasurer / Finance Chairman

Charles King, Regional Paramedical Services

Julie Bell, State Farm Insurance

Rev. Reginald Calvert, New Jerusalem Baptist Church Regina Doriety, Lawson State Community College

Rob Kirkland, Legacy YMCA

Eric Messer, Rural Metro Ambulance

Dr. John Poczatek, McCalla Dental

Kyle Sain, Town & Country FORD

Jon Staggs, Alabama Power Company

Chuck Taylor, Splash Adventure

Tammi Turner, City of Bessemer Devron Veasley, Bessemer Business Incubation System

Frank Whaley, GREDE – Bessemer

2012 Ambassadors

Coordinator

Claire Mitchell, Hair Gallery Beauty Salon

Co Coordinator

Ericka Watson, Individual

Secretary

Nelda Pate, Retired

Michael Ashmore, Stellar Staffing

Kay Baggett, Retired

Sarah Belcher, Bessemer City Council

Sarah Beasley, Joe Beasley Memorial Foundation, Inc.

Beverly Edwards, Rural Metro Ambulance

Connie Fuell, Konica Minolta

Louise Hickey, Legacy YMCA

Shirley Horn, Retired

Nikki Jordan, Sarrell Dental

Doris Lewis, City of Bessemer

Ernestine McNair, Humana MarketPoint

Sherri Rice Sullivan, Medical West

Minnie Roper, Retired

Debbie Stewart, Digital Print Solutions

Rachel Townsend, Rural Metro Ambulance

Lula Walter, City of Bessemer

Trisston Wright Burrows, Moore Coal Company

October 2012 Bessemer Area Chamber of Commerce Communique Page 4

2012 City of Bessemer Christmas Parade

Saturday, December 8th @ 2pm

Theme: 125 Christmases in Bessemer –

Celebrate the Decades

0

It’s Your Business By: Ronnie Acker, President

“Being average is contagious … If you demand more of

yourself, you get more.” So said Alabama Coach Nick

Saban. Whether you love him or hate him this quote is a

universal truth. If you settle for mediocrity that is what you

get. My father always taught me to stretch farther than I can,

that meant the same thing as what Coach Saban teaches.

Don't be just an average person, stand out, be the best at

something, be your best self.

As business men and women we work hard to find financial

success in our businesses, we work hard to be great

managers or owners, sometimes these get in the way of

being a better person. What does that mean? If you are

above average you have the ability to lift others up, to help

those who need you. If you however, just think about you,

about making money, about your success, what little you

accumulate means little in the great plan of things. What

matters are the lives you touch for good, the impact for good

that you have on others, the being the best person you can

be.

I was asked the other day how much of my worldly

possessions I will take with me when I die. The answer is

the same for all of us, zero! What do we take with us or

leave for posterity? First is our knowledge, so we need a

good education both spiritual and secular. Next, we need a

good reputation to leave behind for our children, a name that

they can be proud of and build on as they grow. Third, the

“praise of men” this does not mean in a vain way but in an

honorable way, this because of the unselfish good we

preform while on this earth. Finally, we need an

“inheritance of work” to leave to our children. What do I

mean? Teaching our children, grandchildren, nieces,

nephews or anyone we can to have a good work ethic means

more to them in the long run than all the money we bestow

on them.

We each have different gifts or talents. Some are great

athletes, great educators, great scientists, great plumbers,

scholars, engineers, carpenters, painters, etc. but we each

have something we can be above average in doing. Maybe I

can't throw a hundred touchdown passes in my life but I can

throw the football to my sons thousands of times. Maybe

you can't earn a doctorate but you can graduate from high

school and send your children to higher education. We can

be the best we can be, above average and not settle for less.

Average is contagious. But so is excelling. Making the right

decisions is also contagious but so is making bad decisions.

Competition is great if you win, not so great if you lose. The

definition of winning is different to a person who is

comfortable with who they are and who strives to excel at all

they do. Winning is making the right decisions in life,

winning is learning from your set backs, winning is not

being just average, winning is getting up each time you are

knocked down, winning is being the best that you can

possibly be.

October 2012 Bessemer Area Chamber of Commerce Communique Page 5

Community News

Splash Adventure to Receive Award

Splash Adventure has been awarded the "Leading Edge Award" for, "Best New Water Attraction". This was awarded by the World Water Park

Association at its convention in Las Vegas, Nevada October 2-5. Chuck Taylor, GM at Splash Adventure, was at the convention to receive the

award. The Chamber congratulates them for this outstanding recognition.

The Heart of a Champion

It would have been understandable if Brandt was distracted from work Sunday. It was a beautiful day here in Nashville, where he lives with his

wife Mandy and their 18-month-old daughter Lily. But his job required him to be in Atlanta for a few days.

While he was there, he stopped by the hospital to visit Tucker, the son of a business colleague who was critically injured in a recent car accident.

Though trying to cheer up Tucker, Brandt couldn’t stop thinking about his own father, who’s still recovering from a liver transplant.

And then there’s the fact that Brandt is so disrespected at work. Maybe it has to do with the way he looks.

With his freckled face and blonde hair that frequently appears disheveled, he looks like a kid. Maybe it has to do with that fact that he’s a

professional golfer who never had the WOW! factor of bigger names like Tiger Woods, and my personal favorite, Phil Mickelson.

When he was a student at Vanderbilt University in 2003, it was assumed he’d be invited to join the team representing the U.S. against Great

Britain and Ireland in the Walker Cup. He was one of the best amateur golfers in the U.S., having enjoyed victories at the U.S. Amateur Public

Links and the S.E.C. championship.

But that call never came, and Brandt never got over it. In his rookie year as a pro (2007), Golf Digest wrote “He doesn't hit the ball very far. He

doesn't hit the ball very straight. And he doesn't hit a lot of greens.” Poor Brandt got no respect.

But what all those people didn’t realize was that he had three things that make up for what he might not have:

1. The mental toughness to focus on what he’s doing, not what everybody else is doing (and saying)

2. The constant, never ending desire to get better

3. The physical discipline and work ethic to make #1 and #2 count

Those ingredients are what make up the heart of a champion.

On Sunday, Brandt proved what a champion he is when he played the biggest round of his life, at exactly the right time, and won the biggest

purse in golf. He handily beat Rory McIlroy, currently the hottest golfer on the PGA tour, and won the Tour Championship and the 2012 FedEx

Cup. The $11.4 million he won was more than he had made in his entire career, and he’s not disrespected by anyone now.

No matter what business you’re in, Brandt Snedeker is the kind of guy to emulate if you want to be a success. Glenn Shephard

Business News

October 2012 Bessemer Area Chamber of Commerce Communique Page 6

City Officials Work to Keep Courthouse Open

City Officials Welcome Terri Vaughn to Bessemer

ABOVE - Dr. Fred Primm, City Councilors David Vance, Cleo King, Sherrina

Rice, Mayor Kenneth Gulley and Councilor Jesse Matthews welcome Ms. Terri

Vaughn (3rd from right) to Bessemer

LEFT – Mayor Kenneth Gulley, Senator Priscilla Dunn and Commissioner Sandra

Little Brown defending Bessemer county courthouse

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October 2012 Bessemer Area Chamber of Commerce Communique Page 11

2012 CORPORATE SPONSORS

2012 SMALL BUSINESS PARTNERS

Paden & Paden, PC