What WelcomeMat Services is all about…
Scott owns Welcomemat Services here in South Metro Denver. Welcomemat is a marketing and software company that connects new, loyal customers to locally owned businesses. Their clients are consumer-oriented business owners seeking a simple, affordable, turnkey system for reaching out to new movers (the demographic most likely to form new business relationships).  Their comprehensive approach consists of highly targeted direct mail, data analysis, social media promotion, and a mobile loyalty app that includes e-mail capture.

New residents are a unique market segment - a group of consumers who are trying to find businesses and retail venues to serve them. Since 2003, Welcomemat Services has worked with many of the nations leading retail brands, organizations and cultural institutions. And so community businesses that use Welcomemat and greet these newly relocated customers with special invitations are putting themselves ahead of the competition by creating the beginning of a loyal business-to-customer relationship. 

What “Executive Talk” was all about…
Scott was invited to be a guest as a subject matter expert for marketing consultants on a recent episode of ‘Executive Talk’ – a weekly, business-centric radio show in the Denver Metro Region. The episode was titled ‘New Resident Marketing.’

Scott says…
“It was such a wonderful experience to be invited to be a guest on the program. As a local marketing expert I find that it is important for any business to understand the importance of reaching out to new residents as potentially long- term customers.”

Watch the full episode here...

For more information on Welcomemat Services, click here.
For information on becoming a Chamber Ambassador, call us at 303.795.0142.

Centennial, CO. (March 17, 2016 ). The Chamber’s Nonprofit and Business Partnership presented the inaugural The Tank program on Wednesday, March 16, 2016 from 3 – 5:30 PM at the Denver Botanic Gardens. This “Shark Tank” inspired event provided Chamber nonprofits the opportunity to compete for funding awarded by ‘Sharks’ – which were comprised of business leaders and interested community members. The event was a huge success, with over $17,000 donated by the Sharks. “We had a goal for the inaugural event of $15,000,” said Non-Profit and Business Partnership Chairman Steve Bocher, “to exceed that goal in the first event really shows that businesses are committed to supporting our community.” The event was emceed by Brian Vogt, CEO, Denver Botanic Gardens, which was also one of the program sponsors.

The event really accomplished two objectives. First, it provided the non-profits with the opportunity to receive needed funds for their programs. Second, it provided them with a forum to showcase the important work that they are doing for our community.  The standing room only crowd of over 90 people were impressed by the passion, enthusiasm and the great work that these non-profits are doing to serve our community.  Bocher noted, “You could see people reacting very positively to the presentations and see how touched they were. We are really fortunate to have such quality organizations doing such important work caring for so many different types of people—feeding seniors, supporting developmentally disabled children in schools, helping mentally disabled people return to work, providing mentoring to low income teens, and the need for 3D printers for STEM education are just some of the examples of the programs that were pitched to the Sharks. Participating nonprofits included: LifeSpark Cancer Resources, Best Buddies Colorado, Arapahoe/Douglas Mental Health Network, American Cancer Society, Littleton Public Schools Foundation, TLC Meals on Wheels, South Suburban Park Foundation, Friends First, Boys Hope Girls Hope of Colorado, Audubon Society of Greater Denver, and Colorado/Wyoming Optimists.
 
A panel of three VIP Sharks (Colbert Callen, Footers Catering; Jeremy Friedman, The Falls Event Center; Justin Vaughn, Vaughn Law Offices) were tasked with asking compelling questions about budgetary needs and clarifying the pitches made by the non-profits.
 
Sharks included: Steve Bocher, Catch Fire Marketing; Colbert Callen, Footers Catering; Bob Golden, South Metro Denver Chamber of Commerce;  Carla Hamre, Jeni & Louis Hamper; Jeremy Friedman, The Falls Event Center; Kevin Kostoff/Derek Handley, Nova Home Loans; Sarah Lampard, Avalue Insurance; Bill Lindsay, Lockton; Dave Marcus, FirstCal Colorado; Mary McGlone, Curt Merrill, Multisource Document Services; Holly Mullins, Farmers Insurance; Kris Tower American Portfolios Financial Services; Alan Wyngarden, Applewood Our House;  Mark Alpert, Brian Vogt, Denver Botanic Gardens.
 
A huge thank you to our sponsors:  Denver Botanic Gardens, Footer’s Catering, and Kimberly Alexander.
 
The Non-Profit and Business Partnership mission is to help businesses and non-profits engage together as the Chamber believes that a prosperous community that allows business’ to thrive should also be one were businesses actively support those that are in need. This active group at the chamber has done other events including the B.I.G. Day which is an annual event that allows the business community to serve at various non-profits and quarterly educational events that bring for profit and not-for-profits together.
 
For more information, visit: http://www.bestchamber.com/the-tank.html or call 303.795.0142
 
The South Metro Denver Chamber provides value to its members and the community through being action-oriented in business transformation, economic development, and public policy, providing members the opportunity for community involvement and a platform to build strategic partnerships and remarkable relationships.

On the morning of March 14, 2016, the South Metro Denver Chamber held a STEM Policy Forum in partnership with Colorado Succeeds at the Capitol.

Policy met practice at the Colorado State Capitol on March 14 when Colorado Succeeds co-hosted STEM Day at the Capitol. Nearly 100 leaders from business, education, and government gathered in the Old Supreme Court Chambers to promote science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) education and impart the growing need to increase STEM learning opportunities at the state level.

Attendees had the opportunity to hear from a panel of local STEM education experts and champions including:

• Dave Gingerich, Senior Staff Engineer in Space Exploration Systems at Lockheed Martin
• Gretchen Morgan, Associate Commissioner for Innovation at the Colorado Department Education
• Clay Abla, Director of Secondary Education at Littleton Public Schools
• Lowell Matthews Jr., Policy Director of College and Career Readiness at the Foundation for Excellence in Education

Why the focus on STEM? Because by 2020, nearly 55 percent of Colorado’s top jobs will require STEM skills. Yet far too few students receive the education and training needed to enter these well-paying and growing careers. That’s why we partnered with the South Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce to put on this event, and it’s why we continue to work with the legislature and our partners to close this talent gap and ensure that Colorado’s kids are ready for our state’s abundant STEM jobs.

STEM in Colorado: Current Practices
It’s important to remember that, while there is still a lot of work to be done to expand STEM education in Colorado, some districts and schools across the state are already working to integrate STEM into their curriculum.
 
Clay Abla of Little Public Schools (LPS), gave attendees an inside look into district-level to efforts to incorporate STEM. Four years ago, LPS began focusing on expanding its STEM curriculum when the district asked businesses, parents, and teachers what students need to graduate and embark on post-secondary opportunities. As a result, LPS revised its middle school curriculum to incorporate more STEM programming and now offers STEM centers in its middle schools. Abla stressed the importance of providing STEM opportunities to all of the district’s 3,000 students and their goal to expose students in its elementary schools.

This is just one example of the STEM initiatives being implemented in Colorado schools and districts. Key to the success of these programs is understanding what industry is looking for when it comes to their future employees. Lockheed Martin’s Dave Gingerich shed light on this: “We need people who come into Lockheed Martin and are enthusiastic about building things. We need to begin teaching all students that it’s okay to experiment so they enter the workforce engaged and ready to explore.”

Gingerich also mentioned that businesses and industries can do more to partner with Colorado schools to help students receive quality STEM experiences. One public-private partnership that is working is P-TECH (Pathways in Technology Early College High School). This model fosters a strong partnership between a company, school, and community college to create seamless college and career pathways for students. “All of the stakeholders in these kinds of partnerships gain a great amount,” Gingerich said.
 
P-TECH isn’t the only model that encourages strong business engagement in schools. As Lowell Matthews Jr., of the Foundation for Excellence in Education pointed out, several states have adopted and seen success via the industry certifications model. This model provides incentives for students to earn technical certifications in high-growth industries, and allows business to weigh in on curriculum design and evaluation. According to Matthews, “Students who participate in this type of program get work skills and also receive college credit. That means students have a real choice when they graduate high school.” Colorado Succeeds has worked to introduce legislation this session to bring this successful model to our state.

As Gretchen Morgan of the Colorado Department of Education noted, a shift is needed in the way we value and view post-secondary education and training opportunities. While a four-year degree remains the goal for many students, it is not the only path to success after high school. “There are many, many pathways from high school to careers that do not involve a four-year degree. We have to do more to make these pathways visible.” Indeed, industry certifications, workplace training programs, and associate’s degrees all offer students a pathway to self-sustaining careers and the middle class.

A huge thanks to Colorado Succeeds and Footers Catering for a highly praised and successful morning - and thank you to Sue Kenfield, See it Thrive, for your tremendous leadership in making this such a great event. 

Thank you, Colorado Succeeds, for this article. To view the original, click here.
For more information on the South Metro Denver Chamber's STEM initiative, click here.

Audubon Society of Greater Denver is a local chapter of the National Audubon Society. We have been serving the greater Denver community since 1969. Our goal is to connect people to nature through a wide variety of bird and nature programs for all ages. From birdwatching excursions in our local parks and open spaces, to education adventures for school groups at the schools and at our Audubon Nature Center at Chatfield State Park, opportunities abound for newbies and experts to explore. We are actively involved in education and conservation action to ensure we have healthy communities for people, birds, and other wildlife.

Want to learn more? Join us for our popular spring bird banding!
 
Bird Banding Station
May 1 - 29, 2016
7:30am-11:30am
Watch research in action and see a variety of songbirds up close at the bird banding research station (operated by Bird Conservancy of the Rockies). It is a unique opportunity to learn more about our local birds and get to know the Audubon Society of Greater Denver. Visit our website for more details and to watch videos about bird banding.
Location: Audubon Center at Chatfield (11280 Waterton Rd. Littleton CO 80128)
 
Support our great work in the community!
Spring Benefit 2016
Saturday, April 23
6:00-9:00pm
Inn at Hudson Gardens
Purchase Tickets

 Don’t have access to a retirement savings plan at work? Haven’t found an easy way to start saving? The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s myRA (my Retirement Account) can help you get on the path to retirement saving.

Why open a myRA account? Most people want to save, but haven’t found an easy way to get started. myRA was developed to remove common barriers to saving and to give people a simple, safe, affordable saving option.

Reasons to start saving with myRA include:
• myRA is a Roth IRA which offers certain tax advantages¹
• It costs nothing to open an account and there are no fees
• Contribute an amount you choose ($2, $20, $200 – whatever fits your budget!)¹
• myRA carries no risk of losing money
• No complicated investment options
• Your account safely earns interest²
• Withdraw the money you put in without tax and penalty²

myRA is a great way to start saving. Once you’ve built up some savings, you can move to a private-sector Roth IRA at any time to continue on your savings journey.

It’s easy to get started myRA makes it easy to sign up and start saving. It only takes a few minutes. There are three simple steps.
1. Open your account at myRA.gov. It takes only minutes to sign up.
2. Fund your account from your paycheck, checking or savings account, or federal tax refund. Set up automatic contributions from your paycheck, from a checking, savings, or another type of account. At tax time, you can also direct all or part of your federal tax refund to your myRA.
3. Access your account online and watch your savings grow. You can view your balance or manage your account by logging in to your myRA account at myRA.gov.

Why wait? You can start taking more control of your future today. Visit myRA.gov today to get started.

¹Annual and lifetime contribution limits and annual earned income limits apply, as do conditions for tax-free withdrawal of earnings. Limits may be adjusted annually for cost-of-living increases. To learn about key features of a Roth IRA and for other requirements and details, go to myRA.gov/roth-ira. ²Withdraw interest earned without tax and penalty five years after your first contribution if you are over age 59 1/2 or meet certain other conditions, such as using the funds for the purchase of your first home. Accounts earn interest at the same rate as investments in the Government Securities Fund, which had an average annual return of 3.19% over the ten-year period ending December 2014.