Thank goodness that February was only 28 days. It has been a very snowy month. I am really looking forward to seeing green grass and hearing the birds sing. March is such a wonderful time of the year.
Plan now to attend the “Celebrate Sugarcreek” dinner and awards ceremony on April 24. Tickets are on sale now. They can be purchased from any member of the Marketing Committee Member as well as at area businesses including The Budget, Village Drug, The Gospel Shop, Jim’s Sunoco and Beachy’s Country Chalet.

During the month of March, we will be having two meetings that will feature guest speakers. On March 10, we will have an interesting presentation from Scott Robinson and Allison Kerns from United Way of Tuscarawas County. On March 24, a representative of Hospice of Tuscarawas County will be present to update our group on their progress. Please mark your calendars and plan to join us for those lunch meetings that begin at noon at Dutch Valley in the basement. The food is sure to be good and the networking opportunities are abundant.
You never know, you might win a free lunch or one of the many great prizes that have been donated by local businesses. There are some really spectacular prizes coming up for our special drawings – so why not come out and see just how lucky you are.

I would like to take a moment to welcome Marsha Walker to the Board of Directors for the Sugarcreek Business Association. She has graciously stepped up to tackle the position of Vice President. As a branch manager for First Federal Community Bank that serves both Sugarcreek and Berlin, she is very active in our community. If you haven’t met her, please come to a meeting and introduce yourself.

Have a great month.

Sincerely,
Cheryll Shireman
2010 Sugarcreek Business Association President

The weekend of May 7-8 is looking to bring a lot of people into town. This is the time for the Community Garage Sales. Bargains can be found all over town. Then, on Saturday, May 8, bring the family to the pavilion area for the Vintage Garden Tractor Show. I’m sure there will be something for everyone.

Plans are being finalized for our biggest event, the Fabulous 50’s Fling, the weekend of June11-12. This year we are celebrating 20 years. We always need extra volunteers for this event, so clear your calendar now and make plans to join us. For more information you can log on to the newly renovated Web site at www.fab50sfling.com.

We will be having two special guests join us in February for our weekly meetings at Dutch Valley. Jeremy Kauffman from Walnut Hills will be doing a presentation about CROFT Values on Feb. 10 and Milo Miller will be with us on Feb. 24 to give us information about the Sugarcreek Rotary. Please mark your calendars and show your support at these meetings.

If you would like to get more involved in the going ons of the SBA, we have a great opportunity for you. We are looking to fill the position of Vice-president. If you are interested or know someone who would be great for the position, please contact myself, Bev Keller, Keith Rathbun, or Doug Frutschy .

The extra drawings we are doing after meeting are going very well. I still have some dates open. If you would like to donate something for these drawings, please let me know. I hope to see you at a meeting soon.

Sincerely,

Cheryll Shireman
Sugarcreek Business Association President 2010

It’s hard to believe we are already starting a new year. 2009 flew by and I hope you had a chance to celebrate the holidays with your family and friends.
I am looking forward to serving the community as the 2010 SBA President. I have some high hopes for the year as I am sure all incoming presidents of the past have had. Some of my goals for the year are to increase attendance at meetings, get more members involved in our activities, and better market Sugarcreek as a great place to live, work and bring your family.
I would like to have guest speakers at our meetings on a regular basis. We have many knowledgeable people in our community that could pass along very interesting and helpful information. If you know of anyone who would be a possibility for this, please get me the contact information.
I have been speaking to some of our very long time members and another thing they used to do to increase attendance at meetings was drawings in addition to the free lunch. We have over 140 members and only 50 meetings per year. It should be pretty easy for us to have a give away at every meeting. It does not need to be a big ticket item, just something for fun. If you would like to donate something, please give me a call and I would be happy to pick it up.
I would like to form a committee, or maybe the membership committee could take this on, to call to invite people who have not been to a meeting recently. If we can get more people attending meetings, maybe they will be become more involved in our activities, allowing us to do more for our community.
We need to market our community as a “small town with a big heart” and then live up to it. We have a great organization, we just need to get everyone working together with the village and the people to make Sugarcreek the best it can be.
We also need to get the young people involved in the history and tourism side of the village. This is mostly covered by the 50+ crowd. We need to get the younger generations involved to carry the torch into the future.
I would like to meet with the past presidents on Jan. 13, after the regular meeting, to pick their brains on what has worked well in the past.
I am looking forward to an exciting year. Please feel free to contact me with any suggestions you may have to make us more successful.
Happy New Year!
Cheryll Shireman
SBA President
cheryll.shireman@gmail.com

I’m not going to include all of my outgoing December Message here as I complete my 2009 term as the Sugarcreek Business Association’s president. That message is for our members. If you aren’t a member already, consider joining the SBA and taking advantage of all of the benefits and services that it has to offer! You can check many of those services offered as well as the events we help to put on by looking at our Site here or clicking on the Visit Sugarcreek tab to look at the events calendar.

For our Members, PLEASE read your copy of the SBA’s monthly newsletter/e-mail and TAKE ADVANTAGE of the benefits that you have for being a member.

I thank you for the opportunity to lead the SBA and Sugarcreek forward.

Merry Christmas and continued success in 2010!

Zachary K. Lint
2009 SBA President

Veteran’s Day this week (as of my writing) comes for us to remember and acknowledge the  service  that our military veterans have  given to our country and the service that our current service men and women are putting forth on our behalf – not that they should ever be far from your mind  if you pay attention to the news.

The next pause for thanks and reflection comes with the SBA Thanksgiving Luncheon at Beachy’s on the 25th.

Dave wants me to remind everyone that the luncheon at Beachy’s is open to all members and their families.  He’s always a gracious host.

NOTE: In addition, we’re accepting nomination of officers for the SBA board for next year.  Those interested in taking on a little additional responsibility or if you know someone who would be a great fit, let us know.

A vote is to be taken at the Beachy’s luncheon on the 25th so that things can be set before our last few meetings of the year in December.

I hope all of you are able to take a little time to reflect and remember the things that are truly important as we had into the Holiday and Christmas season.

Don’t forget the Candle Lighting Cermony on the Square on the eve of the 27th or Breakfast with Santa for families, children and grandchildren on the 28th.

Have a great November.
Be thankful,
Zach Lint
SBA President 2009

Last month we announced the beginning of the Business Advisory Board. I want to reiterate it again and talk about what the SBA’s Marketing Committee just did in order to help all of our members, including you and Sugarcreek!

First, the Business Advisory Board is a FREE SERVICE to prospective businesses and SBA MEMBER BUSINESSES.  It is completely confidential and is for those at all stages of progression in their business.

If you have a problem you can’t seem to find the answer for or just want to take a deeper look at how to go about improving your business, make an appointment with Mark Fearon at 330-308-6894 or e-mail at: Mark.Fearon@reacpa.com.

Those individuals who volunteered their time for the Business Advisory Board have a wealth of knowledge just waiting to be tapped. Go ahead and see if they can’t help you and put their advice to good use.

Second, the SBA Marketing Committee voted on and adopted a simple set of rules to help promote and enhance our businesses here in Sugarcreek.

A SugarcreekPR@gmail.com e-mail address with more than 130 media contacts has been created and thanks to the marketing committee’s new rule, any SBA Member Business who is looking to announce a milestone or promote an event in and around Sugarcreek that they are a part of can do so for FREE.

The membership committee is willing and able to e-mail your press release to every contact on their list for as many weeks as you want leading up to your event or milestone.  All you need to do is supply the info: Who, What, When, Where and Why.

Again, that’s a Free Service to help promote your business or a local event and, in doing so, to help promote Sugarcreek. The more lead time the better,  so get your information in STAT!

In addition, the membership committee is scheduled to meet on Nov. 10 at 6 p.m. in the backroom of Beachy’s with our retail business owners to discuss the possible addition of events to the SBA lineup that could positive outcome for our retail establishments. If you have not been contacted and are a retail business, please attend. Let Ruth Ham-Hale,  Dave Beachy or me know that you are  planning to attend ahead  of time.

I hope your Swiss Festival ended on a high note after waiting out all the rain we had.  Our organizers once again deserve a pat on the back for all their hard work, as do our representatives on the OSF committee  Please Be Sure to Check out our Fall Community Garage Sales this weekend  (October 16 & 17) and have a great October !

We’ll see you out there.

I have two things I  want to convey this month, so we’ll get right to it.

FIRST, I want to make sure all of our members are aware of:  We are now offering free services via the Business Advisory Board to new and existing businesses to help with the growth and retention of business in Sugarcreek.

Attorneys Doug Frautschy and Mike Warkall, CPA Mark Fearon, Businessmen John Miller and  Dustin Miller and several other ad-hoc members have volunteered their time and expertise and honest, simple critiques to help those looking to get started in business or to help bounce ideas for business owners working to improve their business and stay in Sugarcreek.

This is a free service and a benefit for your membership. All meetings need to be set at least two weeks in advance in order to try and coordinate schedules. ALL INFORMATION SHARED AT THESE SESSIONS IS CONFIDENTIAL and if an issue is beyond the scope of the local help our group is willing to provide, we have networked with the Village, County and other entities to ensure that our businesses will be able to get the answers they are seeking to get started, grow or stay here in Sugarcreek.

Mark Fearon will work as the point of contact for this board. He can be reached by e-mail at Mark.Fearon@bmacpa.net or by phone at 330-308-6894.

Second, the first group of Web sites, sponsored by the SBA, is up and running. You’ll find them at www.villageofsugarcreek.com and be able to navigate easily across the very top menu bar to find the Ohio Swiss Festival and Visit Sugarcreek pages.  We still have some work to do and they’ll only be as successful and good as we work to make them.  Your critique is welcomed. Feel free to e-mail me at ZacharyLint@yahoo.com

(Note: The Sugarcreek Business Association Site, Fabulous 50s Fling Site and an Economic Development page are on tap to be integrated with the other Web sites that just went live.)

As access to each of these sites will be improved by the way they are connected, our Business  Directory and Monthly Business Spot Light should become more easily found and viewed  by those looking at all things pertaining to Sugarcreek.

Some may disagree, but I believe that through completing our Web project, the SBA is not only giving back to the community but also helping to enhance our brand: Sugarcreek. That is something we should all be able to rally behind.

I hope you all have a successful September. Don’t forget the Ohio Swiss Festival is Oct. 2 & 3rd, and if we haven’t met already, I hope to see you out there.