September 2010 President's Message

I’m sure everyone has already heard that we are losing our one and only Jill Larson. The old saying that, good things never last, is apparently true. Jill has contributed so much to our association over the past 6 years, it’s impossible to think that she is leaving. She will be missed immensely but we all wish her the best of luck in her new job.

A hiring committee was formed and they are as quickly as possible trying to interview and hire Jill’s replacement. The job will begin as a part-time position and increase as our association grows. It will not be easy to fill Jill’s shoes but with new faces comes new ideas.

During the transition period there will be some bumps in the road, so hopefully everyone will be patient and consider helping out in anyway they can to make the transition easier.

Just to you all know that we will continue to use Jill’s phone, email and mailing address until the new replacement is hired, so please do not change any of your records just yet. She will continue to help out the association until someone is hired to take her place as well as train this individual.

Thanks to all that attended the boat cruise and hope to see all of you at the September General Membership Meeting. Thank you.

August 2010 President's Message

Where has the summer gone? August is here already and we are gearing up for the 2010Fall Tour of Homes Event that will begin on September 11, 2010. How times flies!

We had a great turnout for the annual Golf Outing on July 19, 2010 at the New Richmond Golf Course with over 100 players. We had wonderful sponsors that make this event possible, like the Royal Credit Union team pictured here, who was our Gold Sponsor. Without their support, our event would not be as successful as they are and will continue to be.

Make sure you check out the pictures of the golf outing in this edition of the Valley Voice as well as our entire collection of photos from all events on our Face Book page.

I also want to encourage all of you to register for our Boat Cruise before August 4, 2010. We need at least 40 people registered before we can commit to this 2-hour cruise down the St. Croix River beginning at Taylors Falls in Minnesota. The cruise will be from 7-9pm with boarding beginning 15 minutes before we launch. We deliberately scheduled it later in the evening so everyone can still work during the day and have enough time to drive north to Taylors Falls - so please sign up ASAP.

Keep watching for more exciting events, meetings and information in the next issues of the Valley Voice. Thank you for your continued support.

July 2010 President's Message

The year is almost half over and hopefully most of us are still hanging on. By all accounts and by many of the forecaster’s we should be experiencing much better times than we are. They seem to be no better than the weather forecasters. It is just another reason why each of us has to take control of our own business and plan for our own future.

I haven’t see the results from the fishing tournament but the weather was great and I’m sure the fish stories were equally as good.

The golf outing is coming up on July 19, and hopefully everyone will be able to join us for a fun day with lots of socializing and great networking opportunities. (see invitation inside this edition for more information)

One of our Helping Hammers project is almost complete thanks to Tim Tryba, Arrow Building Center-River Falls, and his endless efforts to get a shed built for Turning Point. See more pictures of this project inside this edition of the newsletter as well as on our Face Book page.

The political campaigning is heating up with some very good candidates that could help change the business climate in our state in a very positive way. Take the time to learn more about them and get involved in anyway you can to ensure that the building industry is protected in the future. I know that some of you may think that the association is too political, but we all must be aware of what is going on at the state capitol in regards to our industry...please do your part by getting involved. Thank you.

June 2010 President's Message

Summer officially begins in June and we are already on our way with the heat and busy schedules. This is a great time to remind all of you that even though our General Membership Meetings will not be continued for the next couple of months, we do still have several events that provide the same great networking opportunities for all members.

The Fishing Tournament is in June and is sponsored by Culligan Water Systems. This is a wonderful event that many people attend, fish and have a great time outdoors.

The Golf Outing is on July 19, 2010 at the New Richmond Golf Course and even if you don’t golf, you can still attend the dinner and network with all the golfers that played that day.

At our May General Membership Meeting, Bill Rubin, Executive Director of the St. Croix Valley Economic Development Corporation, spoke to the attendees on current developments and trends in the St. Croix area. It was extremely beneficial information and if anyone is interested in pertaining his talking points, please call the HBA office.

We also welcomed one of our newest members, Brian McQuade, Wireless World/Verizon Wireless into the membership. Brian has already became active and has established a Member Benefit program for members of our association by providing a 25% discount on most accessories and $10 off Bluetooth product as well as give back to the association for every member that either renews or activates a new line of service through him. WAY TO GO...more information will be on the website. Thank you.

May 2010 President's Message

WOW - what a month! We held our annual Silent Auction to support WBA’s Building a Better Wisconsin on April 27, 2010 and it was another huge success.

Members donated over $10,000 worth of product and/or services and we raised over $8,000 to support our efforts. Now, that is teamwork. Please see the enclosed report that is included in this newsletter for more information on who donated what, which once again secured our association’s #1 status at state with our fund raising efforts.

We also welcomed in two of our newest members at the meeting in April. Beau & Sarah Bune, Level Rite Concrete Lifting and Rob Vrieze, Menards-Hudson. Thank you both for attending and receiving your “welcome packets”.

At this months General Membership Meeting, we are honored to have Bill Rubin, Executive Director from the St. Croix Economic Development Corporation, speaking during our program on the current economic development activities and trends we can expect to see in 2010. Make sure that you register before the deadline of May 18 so you can hear that is on the horizon. Thank you.

April 2010 President's Message

There are positive signs around us that indicate people are tired of waiting for things to happen. They are starting to go ahead with their plans, or it seems by the response we have been getting during the Tour of Homes event and the Home Show. Participates in the Tour and the Home Show have gotten may leads and positive feedback from visitors.

The Home Show was a big success and all of it was due to the enormous work that they committee puts in. Chair Cheryl Ross and her committee members log in many hours of work prior to the show and during those 2-days of the show...they basically live there to make sure everything goes without a hitch. We desperately need more volunteers to help this committee next year, so if you have some time to volunteer, please contact Jill or Cheryl. Again, thanks to the Home Show committee for their endless hard work.

We have some of our fun membership meetings coming up: Silent Auction that supports the Building A Better Wisconsin efforts from the state; Builder Buck Night, where you can buy items using your “fake” bucks that you accumulate throughout the year; Golf Outing in July and many more.

It would be great if you brought a new potential member to any of these meetings/events in 2010, so look through your database of contacts and invite anyone that you think would benefit from being part of this organization.

Remember to also get involved...be part of a committee, sponsor an event, advertise in our publications. There is something for everyone!

Found a new member yet?

March 2010 President's Message

We are now into the 3rd month of 2010 and spring is right around the corner. Everyone says that we will be coming out of the big recession this year or maybe they think so. No one really knows for sure do they? We keep listening to the professional economists and our politicians on what they are doing for us and we see no improvements.

No one can control what they are doing, all we can do is follow and that is leading us nowhere. It’s time to put them out of our minds and work on what we can control. Get your business in order, financially and organizationally, expand your networking group, be pro-active, find a niche market, advertise what you do, and don’t give away the farm.

Let’s change directions a bit because that was getting way to heavy! Membership is always good to talk about and we need more. It’s the only way we can stay a viable organization. There are many companies out there that we need and they need us. Everyone knows a subcontractor or a company that they work with that is not a member. Ask them to join and tell them we need them.

Many things are coming up in the area these next couple of weeks, Tour of Homes, Home & Remodeling Show, membership meetings, planning for the annual golf outing, community projects and much more. Get involved in these events - you would surprised what you will get out of them.

Get Involved - Stay Involved - Be Successful!!! Thank you.

February 2010 President's Message

It is hard to believe we are in the year 2010 already. A very tough year for everybody is behind us and hopefully a new year is here that will shine a little brighter for all of us.

As an organization that is tied in 100% to the housing market, we have the same struggles everyone else does. With that in mind, we rely heavily on our membership and without you we have no membership. In my last Valley Voice article I asked that everyone try to recruit one new member into our association, this is a reminder for all members to keep asking people to join this fine organization and get more involved.

To offer the many events we do it takes participation by as many members as possible. The Tour of Homes is starting on March 6 and if you didn’t enter a model into the event, you can still market your company by placing an advertisement in the guidebook that will reach over 1 million readership. Don’t forget about our Annual Home & Remodeling Show either, that begins on March 13 and will offer another great opportunity to increase your exposure to the general public by exhibiting, placing literature or volunteering to work the show. (see all details in both reports inside this edition of the Valley Voice)

Another option is to offer a gift, discount coupon or gift certificate for the drawing at the end of the Tour of Homes or during the 2-day Home Show, for more details, please see the flyer included later in this newsletter.

The association sponsored 2 sales training classes in January for builder credits and is also scheduling informational sessions during our monthly meetings, so please take advantage of these in the future if you haven’t done so already.

January 2010 President's Message

First I would like to thank everyone for attending the Christmas party and installation banquet in December. Its great to see the involvement and concern by so many loyal members. The number of gifts for Toys for Tots and members stepping up to sponsor the evenings offerings is special to see. So thanks to everyone who gave to make the event happen.

The new year brings many challenges to all of us. Your local HBA is not immune to them either. Our membership has fallen because of the economy so we need to do what ever we can to bolster our numbers. I would like everyone to think hard on one new member they can bring into the association this year. If each one of was able to do this, it would be tremendous.

The committees have been working constantly to bring events to our members this coming year. These events help fund our organization so they are very important that they be successful. You can help your business and your association if you participate in these. The Home Show is coming up in March and has been very well attended in Hudson. The Tour of Homes is also coming up in March. This year changes have been made to allow more homes and remodels in the Tour. All registration and information can be obtained on our website or you can call Jill.

We have a couple projects being planned already for the helping hammer program that was started last year. It is a very strong statement that the association wants to give back to the community. Please help out with labor or material whenever you can.