The chamber will host an informational political candidate panel discussion with seasoned politicians who will share their insights and answer campaign-related questions. The discussion is scheduled for Wednesday, April 18, from 5 to 7 p.m. in the chamber’s Flagler Room, at 20 Airport Road in Palm Coast. Don Toby Tobin will act as moderator of the session. He’ll be joined by the following panel of former or current elected officials:
Andy Dance, Flagler County School Board Member.
Jason DeLorenzo, Palm Coast City Council Member.
Tom Lawrence, Grand Haven CDD Board Member, former Palm Coast City Council member and current chairman of the local Tea Party.
Jim O’Connell, former Flagler County Commissioner.
William “Bill” Proctor, Florida State Representative, term-limited this year.
Panel participants will discuss their campaign experiences and cover topics like fundraising strategies, campaign do’s and don’ts, effective communications, building the right team and raising visibility. Local marketing expert Cindy Dalecki of Marketing 2 Go, who’s written and spoken extensively on the subject, will share hints to help candidates expand their reach using social media.
All candidates and their campaign managers are encouraged to attend. The meeting is open to the public. For more information and to pre-register, please call the chamber at 386/437.0106.
kmedley says
I am looking forward to attending and learning. This is a wonderful opportunity and I am thankful to the Chamber and the panel members.
palmcoaster says
@kmedley…If you are looking for the Chamber support, as per your adulation words. I doubt it, they will probably favor Mr. Wetshell from Craig’s Funeral.
Think first, act second says
palmcoaster, you haven’t attended any chamber of commerce meetings lately, have you. If you had you would know that the chamber of commerce neither supports nor endorses any candidates but remain impartial in the elections. You are right they will not support KMedley, nor Whetsell nor either of the other 2 or more if any others join the race. You can vilify the chamber all you want, but be accurate when you do.
palmcoaster says
@Think first ..Where do you come up with your statements regarding my attendance to meetings? Also we do not need to attend any meetings to learn about the Chamber activities as are well covered by the local media and the local residents and businesses owners eyes witnessing as well. Their impartiality sure was very much on the eye of the beholder in our last elections when some candidates were initially not allowed to have their booth on the Creekside Festival:
https://flaglerlive.com/28376/creekside-festival-discrimination/
https://flaglerlive.com/28528/creekside-festival-chamber/
I do not vilify anyone…I just point at the facts. You seem to have a very short memory or maybe you are a very well intended newcomer that still has to learn “the realistic way” this organization works.
Right on says
I agree with you Palm Coaster, and appreciate your honesty and determination to inform readers.
Think first, act second says
palmcoaster, lets assume I am as you say a newcomer. please teach me how the organization works “realistically”.
palmcoaster says
@Think first. Sometimes takes a long time to get aquainted with the effectiveness of local organizations when a newcomer settles in a new area. If realistically the local Chamber of Commerce currently will work as hard as the membership they charge to businesses, most businesses in this county will be their members utilizing those benefits. To the contrary only one fourth or less of the local businesses are Chamber Members about 850 only, of lets say 3,500 existing ones now. The latest statistics of 2002 were 5,645 total businesses in this county back then the Chamber had maybe 1,200 members.. http://www.wolframalpha.com/entities/us_counties/flagler_county%2C_florida/nx/n6/si/
While being a member of the local Chamber, you are never contacted unless when they want (more $$$) to sell their additional services, like display advertisement in their own local phone book, web site, etc. Never a courtesy call or visit asking their members “how’s business doing, we are here to help” after all we have 352 days in the year and they only have maybe 850 members. Then is their outsourcing out of this county of most or if not all, the services they use, “funded by the local businesses members”. Also how many of their staff of 14 reside in this county? Because our unemployment is still around 13%, the highest in Florida as published.
I been a member for many many years and referred multitude of newcomer small businesses back when the Chamber was effective. Until after about 2006 the Chamber changed, got clickers and I got tired of waiting for recognition and being ignored, outsource by cliche and also unfair competition. Finally gave up along with other businesses friends. We are all doing fine and we spend in our community non profit organizations, what it used to be our membership fee. If you keep up with the different channels of local news, sooner or later will learn more specially around elections time as the Chamber then gets seriously involved. Maybe one day if reality sets in, the Chamber will go back to what it used to be, in the years that Kevin Henderson was the President and Linda Jarosz Chamber Executive Director after serving that organization for many years.. http://www.linkedin.com/pub/dir/Linda/Jarosz
http://www.nieworld.com/cc/traveltourism3.htm http://www.realtown.com/violavincent/blog/flaglercountygrowingagain
Think first, act second says
pc, not being argumentative but, I checked the chamber website and they say they have 850 members, I can give you this link and the next one. I then checked the U. S. Census Bureau 2010 figures and they show that in 2009 there were “1781 non farm establishments in 2009”. Now simple math says that is about 48% of the establishments are members of the chamber. Now not knowing which figures the Census relates to there are also 9,695 total firms of which it looks like 7,075 are non employer firms leaving 2,620 firms and if this is the correct number then just over 32% are members of the chamber. http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/12/12035.html. Whether that is good or bad is in the eye of the beholder, I guess and obviously could be better.
Now you say that they outsource, what do they outsource? Just asking.
palmcoaster says
@ThinkFirst. Like you say is on the eye of the beholder as in your provided census link “the total of firms are 9,695 in 2007 in Flagler County”. To be a chamber member you should benefit either way by being an employer or non employer working with a store front or from home, as well as farmer or non farmer. The Chamber membership is open to “anyone with any business”. Then with “9,695 firms doing business in this county in 2007”, do you think that maybe being only 1,200 of them Chamber members, was a positive figure or a 48%? The numbers you found actually gives more veracity to my argument. Regarding outsourcing they do with their capital projects, web site, publishing, media and hiring, etc….If you are a member ask them for their records and find out! This Chamber is all about making a good revenue to benefit the one’s at the top with a very good pay check and have a strong influence in our elections process. The general membership best interest is at the bottom of their cookie jar. If you still doubt me…just walk inside some of the local small businesses and ask them about it. If you are not yet one of their members, I advise you to become one and get to know then better.