And good morning, good morning, good morning. Welcome to part two of
our community connection right here on K one, the one you try. Scherry
Welt is all built up, and Sherry, we've been having fun with Christmas
in the bill. How are things going at the Chamber depot these days?
They are going great. That's been a really good season. We've only had
two days where we struggled with melting ice. So and this weather right now
is perfect, pretty perfect. You got the better part of a week left
we do. We will close what is today Thursday? This is Thursday.
We close next Tuesday, January second, when the kids go back to school
on the third, will be closed. So we went to every day once
school was out on the twentieth. So we've been up in every day from
one to night, except we were close Christmas and we did have to close
because of the rain on Christmas Eve Day. We were going to close it
five anyway. But so it's a good day to rain and we Lord knows
need the rain, so it was it was a blessing get us back up
a little bit, no, thank goodness. And hopefully we're gonna get a
bunch more this spring and the next few months. And I know, it
might be a little too soon to ask this question, but how popular has
the bill been? I I time, every time I've been down in the
area, it's just been you know, busy. It's it's like I said,
it's been a really good season. We've seen an increase in numbers.
I'm real anxious to get with Maria from visit Bartlesville and she's got the little
magic people, the magic thing that you know, the track we're zip codes
because it's mostly when they fill out a way reform and put a ZIP code
at the bottom. But one gets crazy busy. A lot of times they
don't do it, they don't see it whatever, and the workers are you
know, they're just getting skates and going. So they did they move the
line so but you know, just just looking at them, it's there's a
lot of out of town people that have come. And when I say out
of town, I mean out of Washington County and those are the those are
That's one of the reasons we did this was, you know, as a
gift to our own community, which you know, obviously the majority of the
skaters are from our community, are immediate area, but we also wanted to
draw people to our community because when they're here, obviously they're at least going
to eat more than likely. Ice skating makes you hungry, especially out of
the cold, and then you know a lot of times they'll stop and shop
weather here. So that's that's what we want. We want to increase outside
sales tax money coming in. We always love outside dollars coming in and then
going back home wherever they they're from and having fun. And now, I
this is highly unscientific, but sky Took and Colinville were kind of like the
areas that I was kind of getting from a lot of the folks as well
as our friends up in Kansas. Yeah, Southeast Kansas is great. They
We've had a lot of Southeast Kansas, I know, and I've seence of
Collinsville, and like I said, I haven't gone through the but you know,
we did. We were able to put one of our best ways of
advertising is through school flyers because obviously it's the kids that want to skate,
and we were able this year we expanded out the sky Took Collinsville and you
know, of course a lot of the Southeast Kansas. There's only one one
school that doesn't let us, but I know they're missing out. But I
mean, we just want people to know it's here. It's not you know,
but and it gives kids something to do, especially right now, you
know, you're kind of bored. It's after Christmas and now what you know.
And yesterday was great. It was it was I want to say,
I don't want to say it was slow, but it was not crowded at
all. It was a good day. It was a good pace, and
people were able to really really get out there and just really enjoy skating.
So it was it was a lot of fun. Just dress warm. I
mean, that's you know, we were in this cold spell, but it's
not it's not like, you know, twenty degrees out there, exactly.
I worked in the hut all afternoon yesterday and I was fine. I just
you know, I had a couple of layers on and I was fine.
So it's just dress warm. It's it's cold, it's the holidays, it's
supposed to be cold. We've got a few things that are going to warm
up the community here with the chamber. You guys are busy right soon than
New York flips over interest we are Christmas or December. We always well,
take a break, take a break from regular regular programming, sure, and
you know we just focus on Christmas and keeping that up and going. And
but in January we start back. We'll have Business after Hours on January eleventh
at Tri County Tech. They're going to show off their new totally remodeled cosmetology
department in that whole area. Big you know, it's very popular program for
them, very so anyhow, that will be on January eleventh. Business after
Ours is usually the first Thursday, but with the holidays and the way they're
falling, we just thought there's still gonna be so many people on vacation and
you know, just taking the to that week off the way they, like
I said, the holidays fall. So this month's Business after Hours will be
on the second Thursday, January the eleventh, that Try count Tech. And
then the following week on Wednesday, we have January seventeenth is our will start
our next series for women in business luncheons, and those are fun. Those
are at Hillcrest Country Club and it's over the neon hour eleven thirty to one
and just yeah, a lot of good networking, a lot of fun with
the women. And this topic is do women make better leaders? So it
should be interesting a mom, I think it probably figure out, yes,
you know, and it it depends. But there's a lot of topics,
or not a lot of hot topics, but a lot of things she's going
to cover from you know, how we listen to, how we interact,
just different things and you can't stereotype all women. Anyhow, it'll be interesting.
So I'll refrain from my opinion. But being the leader of the chamber,
well the great stats so but anyhow, so that starts off, and
then we have another form coming up in February that I'm really excited about.
Pat McFerrin will be here and he has a polling company and he pulls for
all over the US. He's pulled national, he's pulled like polling. I
say it funny, you know who are you voting for? What do you
think about this? What do you think about that? And very scientific and
so he's going to kind of give a little bit of background history of of
some things and talk about just uh relevant issues and kind of where we how
how Oklahomas feel about different things, how it's pulled at, how it has
polled with with Oklahoma's so anyhow, I'll have a lot more detail on that,
but I think it's gonna be really a very interesting one. Something a
little bit different. We try to find. We always try to find one
each year that's a little different than you know, we usually we have a
you know, we have the update with Conco and Phillips and usually have like
a congressman or senator. This year we had the governor. So you know,
we try to find something a little bit different than the typical speakers that
we usually have. So I think this will be a very very interesting and
that'll be on February fifteenth. I think it will be too because it's a
well it's a it's a big election year and people are always wondering just how
do you go about doing that? Yeah? Work, And I will tell
you he is spot on. I have followed him and what he's predicted,
and it's amazing, you know, the whole all the other media may be
saying one thing and he's over here saying another thing, and he has been
spot on it. I don't know how. I don't have his how they
do that, but he has been really really really close with with with his
with his predictions for you know, outcomes on different things or how votes are
going to turn out how state question votes are going to come turn based on
polling, So yeah, some of it. It'll be very very interesting.
And he's a great guy. He's actually local. Well when I say local,
he's actually a no lot of boy mcfairn meets over, he's I should
know this. He's related to them somehow. I don know if it's their
son or or what, but anyhow, he's he's a he's a local boys,
i'd like to say from Nowada. So yeah, nice. What else
we got cooking? I know we got a bunch. Well, Judy is
our membership development specialist and she would love to talk to anybody that's interested in
the chamber. You know a lot of people are like, well what do
you mean be a member of the chamber, And she can, you know,
go through and just tell you the benefits of it, tell you what
you might be able to take advantage of it. Kind of depends on your
business, what you're looking for, what you need. You know. Some
members join and we don't ever hear a peep from him, We never see
him. They they just they just kind of want to be more of a
community supporter and player. And then other ones they want to take advantage of
all sorts of things. They want a network, they want to make connections,
so it kind of depends what a business is after what they're looking for.
But if you're interested, either give Judy a call at three three six
eight seven zero eight, or if you want to just kind of look at
it online and kind of see, I would encourage you to go to Bartlesfield
dot com, which is our new website. It's only been up. We
redid a new our site. Gosh, I don't know three months ago,
maybe now two months ago on time flies when it's this timing year, I
don't know what time it is, but yeah, new website. So it
gives you all the benefits different things, our mission, that kind of thing.
So go check that out and we'd love to have some new members starting
off twenty twenty four. Well, very good, very good. Chamber does
all kinds of great things and like you say, everything from networking to you
know, letting people know just what's going on, what to watch out for
your darn good advocates for our business community. Well, thank you, We
try hard to do that. Well you succeed very very panity. Thank you.
The Chamber, of course could always use a little bit of help every
now and then, and that's why I'm taking warm weather stuff. You got
the golf thing ready to go yet, well you know what, we change
that to October. That's right, because it was way it was way too
hot in August. Oh againness, yeah, we do our legislative golf tournament
used to be in August for years and years and years. This is like
our thirty This will be our thirty third annual. I think it is thirty
third legislative golf tournament. And we always did in August and it was so
hot. I was like, why are you doing this? Let's do it
till the fall in October when it's beautiful. It was gorgeous this year.
So that is so we do have another golf outing till October. What am
I saying? We do have one in April? You do? Yes,
thank you? Where it's nice and bearable and bearable. Yes, last year
was a gorgeous day. It was absolutely beautiful. And that one's at Hillcrest
Country Clubs. So if you want a chance to play on a member course
but you know a member, this is a great opportunity. So that's coming
up April twenty third on the website. Yes, it is on the website.
And by the way, your website is very cool, very easy to
navigate. Thank you. I like those little movie things. I know.
I love the top movie. If nothing else, just go check out bartleswol
dot com and watch the little video banner at the top of the of the
of the website. I love it. It's a great, nice panoramic flyover
of just all sorts of clips from Bartlesville. So we really like that one.
Was that done with drones? By the way, I think some of
it was Trussa, who's our graphics person, put that together with we won't
we won't ask about the magic I don't ask the website by the way,
Yes, but TRUSTA put our community guide together and that will be coming out.
Our twenty four community Guide will be coming out. We delayed just a
little bit, but it should be out late January, so we will be
delivering those to all our chamber members. They're all listed in the back by
their business category. The front of the book is wonderful for new folks to
town. Tells everything about our community, all sorts of you know, from
education to healthcare to housing to things to do with your kids. Different activities.
You don't list all the different organizations kids can be involved with, things
do with family parks, wreck just I mean, it covers the community,
gets a really good overview of the community. So it's one hundred and twenty
pages, so gorgeous book, full color. And that is thanks to the
advertisers in the book, obviously, and we appreciate each one of those that
do that. So you know, when my mom moved here, we've got
a copy of that book. She said that's the best reference thing that she's
ever had, ever lived in. And she said it was easy to follow,
it was easy to find, and she said it harkened her back to
the good old days when folks really welcomed you. So I'm saying, well,
yeah, well that part really hasn't changed here. We welcome new people
all the time. And where was I at, somebody was saying what they
I can't remember, but how friendly our community is. And you hear that
a lot and sometimes just take it for granted. You just think everybody's like
that, but people take a vacation out of town. Yeah exactly. I
was on the East Coast. Although they it wasn't as unfriendly as I thought
it was going to be. But anyhow it was. But people always comment
how friendly everyone is in Bartlesville, and we were really I love that makes
me very proud of Bartlesville and just I love it. I love this community.
Well. When I moved here about four and a half years ago,
I never lived in the community where total strangers were rooting for your success.
Uh, they wanted everybody to be successful. They didn't care you know anything
your new person in telling they wanted you to do well. And you know,
I can tell you that living in some other communities that wasn't necessarily that
way. See if we can knock that fella out of here, and it's
like, wow, you know, what a what a eye opening experience it
is to be here in Bartlesville. And uh, you know, I like
what our friend Maria often says. It visited Bartleville and it all starts with
the business. It does start with say, you know, people move here
and they started up businesses. I know several I can give several instances of
that. They came to visit and then then they moved here and then they
started a business. That's exactly true. So it does start. It does
start with a visit and That's why things like ball tournaments, you know,
events that draw people to town. It's important because it brings people to our
community. They see it, they experience, and they're always so surprised at
oh wow, you guys got a downtown. I mean there's high right,
and how clean it is, and just how beautiful our downtown is. I
mean, if you have not been downtown yet for Christmas, okay, we're
done, But if you have not been downtown yet, you need to come
downtown and see the lights. It is absolutely spectacular downtown. It looks beautiful,
So come down, hey, Sherry, thank you for being absolutely We
sure appreciate y'all