Congratulations to Dale Woodard Gent McFate Law Firm on your recent merger! Thank you for allowing us to celebrate with you at the Business After Hours Mixer last night, January 11th at Wanango Country Club.
Chamber Announces the 2013 Business and Partner of the Year
Chamber honors Wagner Family Eyecare, Oil City Area School District
From staff reports
The Venango Area Chamber of Commerce has named Wagner Family Eyecare, located along Route 257 in Seneca, as the 2013 Business of the Year, and Oil City Area School District as the 2013 Partner in Business. The two recipients will be honored May 16 at a Chamber mixer at Cranberry Mall. (By Jerry Sowden)The Venango Area Chamber of Commerce has chosen a local eye care practice and a public school district to receive top business-related honors in 2013.
The chamber has named Wagner Family Eyecare as the 2013 Business of the Year and Oil City Area School District as the 2013 Partner in Business.
The annual awards recognize “excellence in business…and responsible business leadership.”
A mixer to honor the recipients is set from 5 to 7 p.m. May 16 at the Movies at Cranberry in the mall.
Business of the year
David Wagner joined the practice of Tracy Sepich in 1999 as an extern while completing his education at the Pennsylvania College of Optometry. Three years later he become a partner with Sepich and the next year become the sole owner of Wagner Family Eyecare.
(By Jerry Sowden)In 2011, Wagner purchased the former Black’s Bakery building on Route 257 and did extensive renovations to the structure. In addition to a growing staff, Wagner Family Eyecare has enjoyed a steady growth of patients, an increase of more than 800 percent over the past 10 years.
Stephen M. Reinsel, an Oil City native and board certified optometrist, joined the Wagner practice a year ago. The two professionals treat pediatric eye issues and specialize in low vision eye care and the evaluation and treatment of major eye conditions such as cataracts, macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy, hypertensive retinopathy and glaucoma.
Wagner Family Eyecare is one of a select few practices nationwide to offer services provided by a Heidelberg Spectralis OCT (ocular coherence tomography) imager with autofluorescence technology. In January, the business joined Vision Source, North America’s largest network of private practice optometric offices.
The center works closely with the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry’s Bureau of Blindness and Visual Services and Office of Vocational Rehabilitation to match patients’ eye needs with specific devices to enable them to continue living independently. It also is a new provider for the Veterans Administration.
Wagner said his business is able to compete in the marketplace by offering “superior customer service and state-of-the-art technology.”
He traveled a year ago on a mission trip to Haiti to set up an eye care clinic and said he plans to make the project an annual event.
Wagner and his wife Jodi are the parents of an eight-year-old daughter.
Wagner Family Eyecare will hold an open house and chamber mixer May 23.
Partner of the year
Oil City Area School District has the largest enrollment of any school district in the region and is one of Venango County’s 10 largest employers. The district employs more than 300 people with one-third of those staff members under 40, and the district lists an annual budget of $28 million.
The chamber award recognizes the school district’s effort to “work with the business community in assuring a quality workforce for the future.”
District superintendent Joe Carrico launched a business education round table forum that invites business leaders from across the county to meet with local superintendents.
Carrico said the district’s responsibility is “to be a public servant and to foster relationships with the business community in the region at-large, preparing students for integration into the community and to encourage students to invest in their community.”
To that end, students and staff serve in positions on local boards and councils and volunteer at events and in community projects.
While the school district’s impact is most strongly felt in the immediate community, there is evidence of a much larger reach within the region. The district recently took the lead in the coordination of the Regional Emergency Response Protocol for Venango County that provides a plan for school districts and emergency responders to have standard procedures in case of emergencies and public safety threats.
School facilities have been available for a variety of regional events such as the American Cancer Society’s annual Relay for Life.
The district is committed to using local vendors and businesses for renovation, construction, events and activities, said Carrico.
When asked about the most recent challenges facing the district, Carrico said, “There is a fine art in recognizing, embracing and celebrating education as a business.”
More of the Same but Different!
In our recent member survey we confirmed that one of the top reasons members belong to the chamber is for networking and business connections. While the Venango Chamber has long offered many networking events, 2013 started full tilt with four consecutive weeks of business after hours mixers. While the theme has been the same, four great local businesses inviting you to see their digs, while enjoying refreshments and the company of other Chamber members, they have offered great variety!
Beginning with H&R Block, a long time local business but in a new space, members new and old visited and exchanged business cards. Next we warmed up at Tropical Tanning, with only a few of the same attendees but another well attended event. Last week we enjoyed a packed house at the new offices of Representative Lee James in a joint mixer with the Franklin Area Chamber of Commerce. And this week we do it again at Miller’s Design in Seneca!
How does it go? If you’ve seen one mixer…you’ve seen one mixer. We believe that if you join us for one or all of these fun and energizing events, you should feel great about business in Venango County. Let’s all support these committed chamber members and network our way to a few new relationships while we’re at it!
Wasting Our Time?
Last Thursday members and guests of the Venango Chamber were treated to a very special event. We honored our 2010 Business of the Year and Partner in Business at a mixer hosted by Hagan Business Machines. This was no ordinary mixer. Attendees streamed into the Movies at Cranberry, enjoyed refreshments and filled the theater seats to watch the program planned to honor the nights awardees. Nineteen businesses were recognized for opening or expanding businesses in the region.
The following day we gathered at Hagan’s new location in the Cranberry Mall to celebrate their opening with a Ribbon Cutting. This kicked off a great day for the 2010 Venango Works Trade Show. It was a couple of long days for Chamber Staff and all those in attendance.
The Derrick, our local newspaper, provided excellent coverage of the weeks events. On Saturday morning I ran into a community member (not a chamber member) who remarked about my very busy schedule, as chronicled by the paper. He pointedly quizzed “ Is it really worth it, all the time and effort?” I have never found it easier to respond, “Absolutely!”
There is little more satisfying about Chamber work than honoring our members who are successful. The Business of the Year Mixer provided the opportunity to celebrate what’s working in Venango. One new small business remarked to me, “Seeing my business name on the big screen in the few moments as I walked to the front of the theater to accept my Visionary Award, more than justified my annual chamber dues!” As we began our day with the ribbon cutting on Friday, the pride shown by Hagan’s staff was priceless. Tired and weary at 9:00 pm on Friday, I asked one of the vendors if they had found the Trade Show beneficial. The enthusiastic affirmation he gave provided me the energy I needed to finish out the week on a high note.
It is critical that we continue to evaluate the value of our events and we are constantly doing so. When you consider the last thing you put time and energy into, how will you answer “was it worth it?”
Venango Works! 2010 Trade Show
Registrations have been coming in for the Annual Venango Works Trade Show, Sponsored by Clarion University Venango Campus, to be held on Friday, April 23rd at the Cranberry Mall from 10:00 am until 9:00 pm. It can be difficult to know what the best way to promote your business may be but exhibitions provide a great opportunity because they are face-to-face. Most adults are visual learners. Exhibiting is a visual medium – the exhibit, products, the graphics, collateral materials and promotional products are visual elements. Buyers are also experiential. Trade shows and other face-to-face events provide an experience through the dynamics of the display process. Has it been a while since you’ve been face to face with perspective customers and networked with other local businesses? The Venango Works Trade Show is just the place to do this. Register today by completing this form and returning to the Chamber.
Also be sure to join us at The Movies in Cranberry for a mixer sponsored by Hagan Business Machines and the Cranberry Mall, where we will celebrate the Business of the Year, Northwest Savings Bank and the Partner in Business, Clarion University – Venango Campus. The mixer will be held from 5-7 pm.
Registered Exhibitors
Alliance Of American Manufacturers
Barr’s Insurance
Belles Lettres Club
Changing Times Telephone Service
Clarion University-Venango Campus
Communications Center, Inc
CS Technologies Plus
Gonstead Family Chiropractic
Hagan Business Machines of Meadville, Inc.
Identity Studio & Design
Kellner’s Fireworks
Longaberger Consultant
Northwest Savings Bank Northside
Schaeffer’s Specialized Lubricants
Sherwin-Williams Co.
Singleton Family Chiropractic
Small Business Development Center
UPMC Northwest
Venango Training & Dev Ctr
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