Events for March 2015

"Belles with Boots", a fundraiser and membership drive hosted by The Woodlands Republican Women, will honor Texas Independence Day 5:30 p.m. on Monday, March 2, at Papa's Ice House in Spring. Fully loaded BBQ plates will cost $15, and attendees are also encouraged to purchase extra helpings to go after the event. There will be a silent auction, live band and a boot contest, to boot

The Ambassadors promote goodwill to Chamber members, provide a direct personal contact for Chamber members and for the community, and support Chamber member retention efforts. Ambassadors are “the face of the Chamber” and as such are asked to support and participate in various Chamber activities. Areas of primary responsibility include: ribbon cutting ceremonies, luncheons, routine member visits and phone calls, and hosting at other Chamber events.
 

Membership Meet & Greets are held every first Wednesday of the month from 5-7 p.m. Join us to meet Chamber members, shake some hands, talk about your business and learn how the Chamber might support your business from those in the community who know first-hand about the benefits - other Chamber members.

Everyone is invited to this no-program event held each month at different locations across our Chamber membership. This is no charge to attend - we are at the courtesy of our host each month.

Insurance Basics

Industry expert Danny Harvey will discuss insurance in a broad format while providing enough detail so the average attendee will leave with enough information to make sound decisions about their individual and family needs. Participants will leave understanding the importance of protecting themselves and their families, with life and health insurance. How do I determine how much life insurance do I need, should I get term or permanent insurance, and the various options for health insurance will also be discussed. At the end of the lecture, participants will have the opportunity to ask questions of one of the leaders in the industry. 

Register Here

Business Retention and Expansion committee meets on the 1^st Thursday of each month. 
 

Hailed as the "Monty Python" of the music world, this brass septet combines Austrian humor and slapstick with classical, pop, jazz, and brass music. Formed in 1992, this group performs 120 concerts worldwide each year.

Come out to the Texas Paw Party in Old Town Spring on March 7-8, 2015!

We will have pet adoptions, service providers, vendors, dock dogs, weiner dog races and much more! There is fun for all 2 and 4-legged family members!

THE BIGGEST PARTY IN TEXAS FOR PAWS!

www.TexasPawParty.com

FREE SAT Math Prep Classes open to High School Juniors and Seniors. Saturdays, 10:00am - 1:00pm Instructed by Dr. Nal (Ph.D. in Economics, Rice Univ.) who serves on the Business Faculty at North American University. Please submit your name, mailing address, phone number and high school name to info@na.edu

MW Cleaners is helping to make the wishes of young ladies in the area come true with the special MW Cleaners Prom Dress Drive Benefitting The Giving Gown Foundation on March 7. For the drive on that day, MW Cleaners will accept donations of prom dresses and accessories at all of their Houston-area locations. The gowns collected will be cleaned free of charge and subsequently delivered to The Giving Gown Foundation, a 501(c)(3) non-profit community service organization that collects donations of new and like-new formal gowns and accessories. Once collected and cleaned by MW Cleaners and delivered to The Giving Gown Foundation, the prom dresses will then be provided to area high school girls who would otherwise be unable to attend their formal events. Each girl will be greeted with a personal shopper and be able to choose a prom gown, shoes and accessories, have on site alterations, attend a self-esteem seminar, have a boutique lunch, and receive a swag bag of hygiene and beauty products. All of this is free of charge to the girls. ?You could count special moments in a person?s lifetime on one or two hands; certainly, one of those has to be your high school prom,? MW Cleaners CEO Mike Nesbit said. ?At MW Cleaners, we are continually looking for ways to make a positive impact in the community that we serve. Providing these gowns to young ladies that may not be able to attend prom is just a natural extension of what we do each and every day; serving others.? Nesbit has been instrumental in community awareness and outreach for more than 30 years. Along with all 35 Houston area MW Cleaners locations, the following locations will also be accepting dresses, shoes and accessories on March 7: The Woodlands Mall (Information Desk) ? 12:00 p.m.-6:00 p.m. Deerbrook Mall (Information Desk) ? 12:00 p.m.-6:00 p.m. Willowbrook Mall (Information Desk) ? 12:00 p.m.-6:00 p.m. Invitation Solutions (638 W. 20th St., Houston) ? 10:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m. Both MW Cleaners and The Giving Gown Foundation understand what an important tradition and milestone prom is for many teens. ?The expenses can be overwhelming for some families, and we want to help these young ladies have a momentous experience and be taken care of in a special way,? Cassie Miller, Co-Director of The Giving Gown Foundation said. ?Our mission is for every girl to know she is beautiful and loved. We are dedicated to promoting confidence and self-worth, and we strive to teach our princesses that they are valuable just as they are. We anticipate the success of this drive to increase awareness for our annual Boutique Day, which will take place on April 10 and 11.? To find the nearest MW Cleaners, visit www.MWCleaners.com. For more information on The Giving Gown Foundation, visit www.GivingGown.org.

Education Committee Meeting

For those individuals involved in the Livable Center Study and other key stakeholders interested in improvement of the Cypress Creek Parkway corridor.

Join Congressman Ted Poe for Congress After Hours An Informal, Come and Go Event

Task force by invitation to explore implementation strategies for Grow NW project.

FREE SAT Math Prep Classes open to High School Juniors and Seniors. Saturdays, 10:00am - 1:00pm Instructed by Dr. Nal (Ph.D. in Economics, Rice Univ.) who serves on the Business Faculty at North American University. Please submit your name, mailing address, phone number and high school name to info@na.edu

Get your green on and come celebrate St. Patrick's Day! Run or walk this course - it's flat, straight, and fast, so be ready to chase down the Leprechaun and a PR. The race is down a closed off FM 1960 parade route. Event will be chip timed. Stay after for the 1960 St. Patrick's Day Parade!

This Integrated Business Planning course is designed for senior executives and all members of the leadership team who are involved in elements of the integrated management process for their company. This in-depth look is also an excellent opportunity for a team implementing this process to ensure that the senior management to whom the team reports understands what is being done and how it benefits them.

"Customer Service Is Everything"

19th Annual Judge J. Kent Adams Chairman's Cup Golf Tournament Planning Committee        

Our guest is Loyd Smith, Manager of Support Services, Harris County Public Infrastructure Department-Architecture and Engineering Division.  He will discuss long terms plans for mitigation of congestion points in our primary service area on our roads.  

Committee meeting - rescheduled meeting date

To give you a leg up on potential new areas of demand planning advantage, our business forecasting course includes discussion of developing trends in best practices - where the next improvements or even breakthroughs are likely to appear. Course design accommodates discussion and idea sharing among participants as well as hands-on practice. Small team workshops and assignments build to a full multiple-view consensus demand planning exercise in the second half of the course.

This 2-day course provides the tools you need to ensure that all processes -- Integrated Business Planning (Advanced Sales and Operations Planning), demand management, long-range resource planning, rough-cut capacity planning, finishing or final assembly scheduling and master scheduling -- interact properly. Throughout this master scheduling course, you'll learn the methods needed to develop these processes to a high level of performance in order to plan, communicate, and direct overall company activities, including marketing, sales, manufacturing, materials, engineering, and finance, and create a working master production schedule.

This newly developed course positions Product & Portfolio Optimization in the context of an organization?s business strategy as well as the supply chain, and explores the benefits of fully integrating it with the Oliver Wight Integrated Business Model. Having a strategic approach to the way new products are selected, reviewed, and evaluated is critical in today?s fast-paced, consumer-driven society.

FAMILY VIOLENCE.  Our speaker will be Sheryl Johnson, Director of family violence and representatives of both Pct 4 Constables and Harris County Sheriff's Office who specialize in Family Violence.  This is so important!  How prevalent is it?  What is our responsibility when we see it?  How is this handled by the authorities?

Informal lunch event by invitation only to commercial real estate brokers and agents, commercial developers and commercial property managers.
This quarter's event will focus on the commercial office market in northwest Houston presented by Jack Russo and Blake Virgilo of the Caldwell Companies.

Please join us at 8 a.m. on Friday, March 20, 2015 for the New Member Appreciation Breakfast hosted by Uncle Wankie's Restaurant. This is an opportunity for you to meet with your Chamber President, Barbara Thomason, and learn how to jump-start your membership. Membership benefits are discussed over breakfast.

FREE SAT Math Prep Classes open to High School Juniors and Seniors. Saturdays, 10:00am - 1:00pm Instructed by Dr. Nal (Ph.D. in Economics, Rice Univ.) who serves on the Business Faculty at North American University. Please submit your name, mailing address, phone number and high school name to info@na.edu

Provides the basics of offshore drilling operations. Explains the environment, logistics, equipment, procedures, safety requirements, emergency response, and regulations unique to petroleum exploration, drilling, and production activities offshore. Includes an overview of petroleum economics and investment decision making specific to the offshore industry. Recommended for new employees; attorneys; insurance, finance and administrative personnel; and anyone who needs basic knowledge of offshore operations.

19th Annual Judge J. Kent Adams Chairman's Cup Golf Tournament Planning Committee        

The Houston Northwest Chamber Foundation Board meeting meets on the fourth Thursday of the month and only meets on designated months.

Join Abby's Catering for light bites as we showcase our catering services and unveil our newest facility at Lone Star College- University Park's East Dining Hall. Please RSVP for you and the number of guests that would like to attend at the email listed below.

The life of British author and scholar C.S. Lewis is the basis for this inspiring play of love, faith and family. Lewis, a confirmed bachelor, Christian author and Oxford professor finds himself relearning the true meaning of life.

The Career Services Office at North American University cordially invites all Chamber members to our Second Annual Spring Career Fair. Please mark your calendars for Thursday, March 26, 2015 from 1:00-4:00 PM in the University Main Building for an opportunity to recruit leading candidates in Business Admin, Computer Science and Education (teaching majors). www.na.edu

Join Trout Payment Systems on Thursday, March 26, 2015 from 2:00 to 5:00 pm as we discuss the importance of defining your competitive edge in business, and evaluate funding solutions specifically designed for the small business owner or start-up operation. Our highly qualified panel of speakers will share their thoughts on these topics and field questions from the audience. The seminar will also be a fantastic opportunity to meet and mingle with fellow Houston area business owners, entrepreneurs, and service providers. Topics Covered Small Business Funding SBA Loans Micro Loans Receivables Factoring Identifying Competitive Strength Competitive Strategy Agenda | Thursday, March 26 2:00-2:30 pm check in and open networking. Introductory remarks by Napoleon T. Butic, Trout Payment Systems 2:30-3:30 Funding Small Business Growth: SBA Loans, Micro Loans, Factoring, and Small Business Banking. Panelists: Bruce Hurta, Business Lending Manager, Members Choice Credit Union. Richard Mikeska, Vice President, Lift Fund. Wayne Coker, President, Advantage Business Capital. 3:30-4:00 Networking Break 4:00-5:00 The Importance of Competitive Edge in Business. Panelists: Ken Jones, Associate Director, Wolff Center for Entrepreneurship, University of Houston. Jere Ames-Johnson, Former CEO & COO. Jay Raman, Managing Director, Ashoka Lion Fund. 5:00-6:30 Networking Reception. Complimentary drink ticket and hors d'oerves included.

Northwest Houston Works! The 2015 Economic Outlook Forum Presented by: Houston Methodist Willowbrook
 

"What's In It For Me?" - A closer look at Northwest Houston's growing markets, industry insights, bridging gaps in your workforce, making connections.
Program:

Breakfast Keynote "Precinct 4 - No Place Like Home," featuring Jack Cagle; Commissioner, Harris County Pct. 4

Growth in Northwest Harris County featuring Pat Guzeman; President, Population and Survey Analysts and Sal Mira, Executive Director, LSCS Small Business Development Center
Education Works in Northwest Harris County featuring David Thompson; Attorney, Thompson & Horton LLP, Peter Beard; Sr. V.P. Workforce Development, Greater Houston Partnership, Dr. Marshall Schott; Assoc. Vice-Chancellor, Lone Star College System

Workforce Growth featuring Bill Gilmer; Director, Institute for Regional Forecasting, C.T. Bauer College of Business at U of H and Aaron Demerson; Director, Office of Employer Initiative, Texas Workforce Commission (Invited)

The National Perspective featuring Ted Poe; Congressman, District 2 (Invited) and Kevin Brady; Congressman, District 8 (Invited)

Luncheon Keynote featuring David Stover; President and CEO, Noble Energy
 

Reserve your Place Today!

All Day (includes Breakfast and Lunch) - $80

Early Bird (on or prior to March 16, 2015) - $70

Lunch Only - $40

The life of British author and scholar C.S. Lewis is the basis for this inspiring play of love, faith and family. Lewis, a confirmed bachelor, Christian author and Oxford professor finds himself relearning the true meaning of life.

The American Heart Association (AHA), and Houston Methodist have teamed up to offer free life-saving training to Houstonians. This training is focused on increasing bystander CPR rates in and around the Houston Area by training potential lifesavers with Hands-Only CPR. Free bilingual instruction for Hands-Only CPR training will be offered at each location. In addition, we are offering five training times per location. Participants will also take home one of the American Heart Association?s revolutionary CPR Anytime® kits designed to teach core skills in CPR in just 30 minutes. The individual kits contain materials needed to learn basic CPR, Automated External Defibrillator (AED) skills and choking relief in any setting.

?Roar Your Life: A Gathering for Women Leaders? is hosting a presentation seminar from 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, March 28, at Main Street America. The keynote speaker at the seminar will be Donna Wick, PhD. and owner of Donna Wick Public Relations. ?The target for this wonderful event is for those ?lionesses? who wish to invest in their business? success. They will hear a variety of strategies and how-tos from a long-time professional expert who is prepared to share secrets of the trade,? Wick said. Presentation pieces for this series include the law of attraction, the power of referrals, move sales from customers to clients and how to position for longevity in business success. Donna Wick has been a nationally syndicated talk radio host with ?Vision for America?, a Monday-Friday drive-time broadcast and was heard all over the world with her online simulcasts and MSN features. She has also been a Houston-based television talk show host with ?You Make a Difference? and hosted "Donna Wick Live! Intelligent Radio for Women" on local Houston Radio. Wick has also been a featured expert on NBC?s TalkCity?s Tony Robbins Dreamlife.com, Belief.net and SpiritualityToday.net. She has completed and facilitated Anthony Robbins? Unlimited Power Weekend firewalk programs and was a graduate and trainer for Dale Carnegie. Roar colors pink, black and white, should be represented in business attire. Early bird tickets are $35 and $45 for admission. ?Roar Your Life: A Gathering for Women Leaders? will be held from 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, March 28, at Main Street America, located at 18750 Interstate 45 Spring. For more information on Roar Your Life or to purchase tickets, visit roaryourlife@gmail.com, or call 832-827-4618.

FREE SAT Math Prep Classes open to High School Juniors and Seniors. Saturdays, 10:00am - 1:00pm Instructed by Dr. Nal (Ph.D. in Economics, Rice Univ.) who serves on the Business Faculty at North American University. Please submit your name, mailing address, phone number and high school name to info@na.edu

The life of British author and scholar C.S. Lewis is the basis for this inspiring play of love, faith and family. Lewis, a confirmed bachelor, Christian author and Oxford professor finds himself relearning the true meaning of life.

The life of British author and scholar C.S. Lewis is the basis for this inspiring play of love, faith and family. Lewis, a confirmed bachelor, Christian author and Oxford professor finds himself relearning the true meaning of life.

Ribbon Cutting for Oasis Career Planning        

Please join the Special Angels of The Woodlands (SAW) for our annual Touched By An Angel Banquet. The purpose of this fundraiser is to supplement our clients? tuition, and to support their Center's annual operating expenses. Since SAW receives neither government support nor entitlement funding, the Special Angels rely upon the generous support of our community. SAW currently provides daily activities for 34 adults with intellectual disabilities. We are proud to announce that our featured speaker is Nelda Luce Blair, named "Hometown Hero? of The Woodlands, as well as one of ?Houston?s 50 Most Influential Women of 2009? by Houston Woman magazine, and a ?Citizen of the Year 2009? by the Greater Houston Women?s Chamber! As you know by her actions, Nelda is the vibrant breath of community involvement. Sponsorships Levels and Tickets (Table of 8 Guests) Archangel- $2500 and Above Cherubim Angel - $1000 to $2500 Seraphim Angel - $500 to $1000 Friend of Angels - up to $500 Individual Tickets - $50 You can read more about the Touched By An Angel Banquet and RSVP on our website www.specialangelsofthewoodlands.org. Or you can contact Mary Poillion at 832-515-3472.