“It was one of those March days when the sun shines hot and the wind blows cold: when it is summer in the light, and winter in the shade.” – Charles Dickens, Great Expectations
Not only was the sun shining hot and the wind blowing cold in March, but it was also a flurry of activity. Looking back, the chamber had over ten meetings to attend on top of the normal monthly meetings.
The month started with the community meeting in Meadows of Dan regarding the bank. Things look promising for a new bank to start up in the coming months in that community. It is so needed for the residents and the businesses in the area. Growth is happening in Meadows of Dan as well, as they ended March with a ribbon cutting for The Mayberry Trading Post. The Fraizer family has restored and reinvested in opening this historic focal point of the community as a gathering place and place of commerce.
The chamber is also helping to circulate the Healthy Patrick County survey that is being done by the Department of Health. This survey is important to all residents as it helps the health department work on the community’s needs. The chamber is also assisting the Blue Ridge Library system with circulation of their patron survey. Again, please take a few minutes to complete these surveys. They help organizations learn where the needs and gaps are and then work to help fill them.
Many of the meetings this month were also working to lay the programming for later. The chamber plans to offer our PCVA Business Builders bootcamp for entrepreneurs later in August. Dolly Parton Imagination Library is rolling along with sign ups and getting everything set up in their system. We also want to take a moment and thank James Houchins and the department of Tourism for presenting a wonderful Tourism Summit at Fairy Stone State Park on March 27. It was a great event to learn about all the state level organizations and how they assist with tourism for our county.
We also attended the Blue Ridge Rising meeting with other local leaders. This meeting was part of the gateway communities along the Blue Ridge Parkway. The funding arm, the Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation, is learning how they can assist the National Park to help the local communities. We look forward to working with them in addressing the needs of the parkway in our area.
April is our Pick Up Patrick campaign month. We are encouraging groups, teams, and individuals to help pick up trash in the county. We are also holding drawings for $500 to those groups that help make Patrick County a better place. Along with the trash pickup, we are excited to announce that we will be hosting a Meds and Shred event on Saturday, April 22, 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. at the Rotary Field, 420 Woodlawn Drive, Stuart. This drive-through event is a drop off for your paper files to be shredded and to also properly dispose of your unused prescription medications.
Later that day (Saturday, April 22nd), the Transfer Station, located at 171 Transfer Station Lane, Stuart, will be open from 1 to 5 p.m. for the Tire Take Back program. New chamber members for March 2023 include Stop 8 Convenience Store.
For more information, check out our website at www.patrickchamber.com or call us at (276) 694- 6012.
(Adcock is the executive director of the Patrick County Chamber of Commerce.)
