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WELCOME TO THE

Crisis Response Fund - COVID-19

Tory began by explaining how the Crisis Response Fund was established. A couple weeks ago, Tory and Amy were all on a call with Western New York Funders talking about emergency funding for WNY. Both understood that an Emergency Response Fund was sorely needed specifically for this region too.

The United Ways and Community Foundations of Chautauqua County are working with direct service organizations and government agencies to identify critical needs and resource gaps and the best approach to disseminate emergency funds with the appropriate sense of urgency.

The goal of this initiative is to ensure these funds are flexible enough to be used effectively, while achieving the highest degree of impact, transparency and accountability. Awards will complement the work of government and expand local capacity to address all aspects of the outbreak as efficiently as possible.

Over $835,000 has been raised to date for the Chautauqua County COVID-19 Crisis Response Fund. An amazing number! 13 different local funders contributed seed money of over $700K. Many of these Foundations convened all of their trustees in emergency fashion to help seed the initial amount.

Funders are:

Carnahan-Jackson Foundation
Chautauqua Region Community Foundation
Cummins Foundation
Holmberg Foundation
Lenna Foundation
Northern Chautauqua Community Foundation
Ralph C. Sheldon Foundation
Ralph C. Wilson, Jr Foundation
United Way of Northern Chautauqua County
United Way of Southern Chautauqua County

The grants are only available to 501c3 organizations, groups fiscally sponsored by a 501c3 or other charitable organizations able to receive a tax-deductible contribution (schools, faith-based organizations and other public entities).

There is a small group of people from the community who are reviewing the applications as they come in. Our very own Vince Horrigan chairs this sub-committee and Kathy Burch is a member of the sub-committee. We have many Rotarians who are involved in this process which is wonderful. Thank you to all Rotarians who have helped in this effort.

Amy shared that there is a level of unprecedented collaboration between funders and local organizations. It’s been amazing! The interesting idea about this fund is you can also become a fundraiser as well. As a family or business, you can become a fundraising team raising money for the Chautauqua County COVID-19 Crisis Response Fund.

There will no more than a seven day turnaround to get funds after an application has been submitted. This truly is a well thought out process to get the funds to the right places at the right time.

The Chautauqua Region Community Foundation and the United Way have been working together in quite unprecedented ways. Applications that have been submitted so far are organizations that are feeling the financial hardships immediately.

This whole initiative is really connecting people. The fund will use local dollars to compliment FEMA funding and the CARES Act funding. The Chautauqua County COVID-19 Crisis Response Fund money will be used to act as a bridge to further funding that will be available from other sources.

For more information about the Chautauqua County COVID-19 Crisis Response Fund, please visit, https://www.uwayscc.org/chautauqua-county-covid-19-response.

Our Community coming together in trying times is a wonderful thing. Thank you Amy and Tory for your leadership!

Special Message from President Cheri Krull

If you cannot see the video below, please click on the link above...

Justin Hanft - Chautauqua County Education Coalition

Posted by Chris Anderson on Mar 09, 2020

Pictured (L to R): Joni Blackman and Justin Hanft

Our very own, Justin Hanft is a Chautauqua County native, and has been serving as the Executive Director for the Chautauqua County Education Coalition for the past three years.

Prior to taking on the Executive Director position with the Chautauqua County Education Coalition, Justin spent four years as Industrial Services Manager for the Manufacturers Association of the Southern Tier.

While working at MAST, Justin served as Coordinator of the Dream It Do It program working with school districts to eliminate the misperceptions around manufacturing careers.

Justin is also a board member on the JCC Foundation and is past President Chautauqua Leadership Network.

The Chautauqua County Education Coalition is a dynamic public-private partnership made up of 125 stakeholders representing 70 organizations and is the catalyst for collaboration around four components within Chautauqua County’s educational system: Early Childhood, Middle School to High School Career Pathways, Current Employer Needs and Community Collaboration.

The Chautauqua County Education Coalition’s mission is to align resources and build capabilities to meet the evolving workforce requirements of Chautauqua County. Together, CCEC and the greater community identifies resources to fill gaps in youth services and help solve complex social problems related to education. A current focus is matching local curricula to the needs of local employers.

The Chautauqua County Education Coalition is more of a movement so to speak. Justin’s role is to bring together a unique cross-section of industries and provide connections to the local educational system. The Chautauqua County Education Coalition aligns resources and build capabilities in Chautauqua County’s learning system.

Some examples of what the Coalition has accomplished:

The Chautauqua County Education Coalition secured $238,000 to support a program called Parents as Teachers that is run by the Jamestown Community Learning Council. The goal of the Coalition is to support the learning system from cradle to career. The Parents as Teachers program falls into that bucket. This grant was made possible by assistance from the Cummins Foundation and the Ralph C. Wilson Jr Foundation. Parents as Teachers is not only operating in Jamestown school districts but is also operating at 8 different districts in Chautauqua County thanks to this grant.
Designation by the Lumina Foundation. Justin will attend a conference in April to network and get a seat at the table, so to speak. The conference is a gathering of other community areas from the country. The goal of the Lumina Foundation is to achieve 60% degree attainment for all Americans. Justin hopes to be able to receive funding at some point from the Lumina Foundation. It is important to be involved in the process.
The Chautauqua County Education Coalition also acts as a facilitation and management organization for the National Grid STEM grant. The Coalition acted as a pass through and provided 30 micro-grants to area organizations (Prendergast Library, JCC, etc.).
The Chautauqua County Education Coalition supports the Dream It Do It efforts of working with school districts to eliminate the misperceptions around manufacturing careers. This includes the annual STEM Wars & Manufacturing Career Fair. This event has grown to involve 18 school districts, and between 900-1,000 students each year.
The Chautauqua County Education Coalition also supports the development of the Workforce Readiness Scholarship, which Dr. Tim Piazza spoke about last week.

Justin also talked about the local P-Tech (Pathyways in Technology) program as well. This program, based in Dunkirk, offers an educational culture focused on non-traditional, personalized and project-based learning. Students in this program will works a NYS Regents Diploma as well as earing a two-year science degree in Welding or Mechanical Technology, from Jamestown Community College.

Justin stressed that collective impact is the main idea behind The Chautauqua County Education Coalition. This program is a movement that is trying to break down silos in the community. We all need to work together to move our community forward!

5 conditions should be met in order to move the community forward:

All on the same common agenda
Follow the same type of measurements
Identify mutual activities that are beneficial to all
Continuous communication
Participate in United Way allocation committee

For more information on The Chautauqua County Education Coalition, please visit them on the web at www.educoalition.com.

Dr Tim Piazza - MAST & Dream It Do It

Posted by Chris Anderson on Mar 02, 2020

Pictured (l to r): Joelle Washer, Dr. Tim Piazza, and Justin Hanft

Our very own Justin Hanft introduced Dr. Tim Piazza from Dream, Do It Chautauqua. Dr. Piazza also works for the Manufacturer’s Association of the Southern Tier (MAST).

Dr. Piazza’s presentation was focused on STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Manufacturing) Workforce Development, which is focused on educating the next generation of workforce in advanced manufacturing.

STEM Workforce Development exists to the train the next generation by interacting with these students in secondary and post-secondary education.

It also involves training the incumbent workforce and serving as a manufacturing intermediary promoting various apprenticeship programs.

Manufacturing is the largest economic sector in Chautauqua County. 20% of county’s economic output and 18% of the work force is in manufacturing in Chautauqua County. Manufacturing truly matters in Chautauqua County and has a bigger footprint than healthcare and educational services.

Economic impact of Manufacturing in Chautauqua County:

$5.1 billion in shipments
$478 million in payroll plus benefits

Manufacturing Challenges:

260 manufacturing jobs are available today to backfill positions
Projected to be 17,000 manufacturing jobs available in WNY by 2023
There will be 3 million jobs to fill in the US by 2025

Manufacturing Job Opportunities:

Production jobs: $40,000
Welding: $45,000
Maintenance Tech: $45,000
CNC Operator: $48,000

Dr. Piazza also talked about the local educational opportunities for student who desire a career in manufacturing. Jamestown Community College extended the USA Scholarship into the technology programs as well which is a great idea. JCC is truly evolving as the needs change in our county.

Dr. Piazza also took some time to explain the Dream It Do It initiative. Dream It Do It Western New York is proactively responding to the workforce challenges faced by manufacturers. The Dream It Do It mission is to increase the skilled workforce pipeline entering manufacturing careers. DIDIWNY is the catalyst organization of the Dream It Do It manufacturing career initiative with a vision to provide Allegany County, Cattaraugus, Chautauqua, Erie and Niagara manufacturers with a labor force that has the skill and training levels required to meet their demands.

Manufacturing is a creative endeavor. Skilled workers take a piece of material and turn it into something else someone wants to buy.

Dream It Do It also exists to change the perception about manufacturing jobs to area students to get them excited about STEM.

Some initiatives include:

Educating students about manufacturing careers
Getting professionals into the schools
Getting students into local manufacturers for tours
Getting students to the Manufacturing Training Institute to work on making parts
Getting students to produce items – STEM Clubs, STEM Wars, Girls in Manufacturing, Fridays at MTI

STEM WARS 2020 is where Middle & High school students are invited to participate in a fun and educational event, which will feature Technology events, a local business and manufacturing career fair, and on-site team building/leadership skills competitions.

This is a small part of what Dream It Do It does!

For more information on the Dream It Do It program, please visit their web site: www.didiwny.com.

Northwest Arena News from Keith Martin

Keith Martin, Executive Director of the Northwest Arena, with Cheri Krull and John Lloyd of the Rotary Club of Jamestown

John Lloyd introduced Keith Martin, Executive Director of Northwest Arena. Keith is a native of the area, who graduated from Falconer High School, JCC and Eastern Connecticut State University. He enjoyed thirty years in athletics, both as a student and as a coach at Eastern Connecticut and then at JCC. He was employed at JCC for 19 years, ultimately as Athletic Director. He has been at the NW Arena for the last year and a half, but the Arena has been a major part of his life from its beginning. His daughter has been figure skating in the skating program for 10 years.

20 years ago there was a vision for a focal attraction downtown, bringing people from inside and outside the community. The Arena has been a great success. Last week 31 youth hockey teams participated in a 4 day tournament. The ice arenas can be “flipped” in ½ hour to a venue hosting birthday parties, curling leagues, and then back to ice to welcome 300 local families and youth for a free skating day. There are also bumper cars and bubbles.

The Greater Jamestown AM Rotary hosted the first event at the Arena. There have been world youth hockey tournaments, concerts, comedy shows, weddings, and corporate outings and team building. The turnstile numbers average 250,000 a year. This has a significant economic impact. There are 3 hockey events over the course of a few weeks. These 3 events bring in $875,000 to the community.

And the community supports the Arena. In November last year Keith made the decision to launch bumper cars. He bought 12 for $72,000 on faith that he could raise the money. In two weeks each car had a sponsor! Over Christmas, 900 young people rode the cars. One was 97 years young!

The new craze is backyard curling. Normally stones cost $800 each. Keith found someone who would make them using two dog dishes cemented together. There were 32 local teams in the first year and this year it’s a 40 team league with 2 tournaments-one in January and one in March. March is already sold out. The Director of Development and Competition of the World Curling Federation saw the Post-Journal article about the January tournament and posted it on their website which has over 30,000 followers.

And so, on to the new, exciting development—the 3 story addition. The 3^rd floor will be National Comedy Center offices and the 2nd floor, a kids interactive fun zone brought to life by Cortina, the group responsible for the NCC. The 1^st floor will be the Standup Comedy Hall of Fame. The first class induction will occur in May, with Netflix and Funny Business, Inc. as the partners. The Standup Hall will be free standing from NCC but people will be able to buy a ticket to both with an upcharge.

What is on this spring's calendar? The AM Rotary is hosting the East Side YMCA on March 6. District 7090 Jamestown Youth Rotary weekend will also have a special day. Additionally, Wits and Giggles is March 28 and the Beer and Wine Festival called Grapes and Hops will be March 21. March 28 is the JRC Garden Fair, the Skating Club show is May 9 and August 7-8 the NCC comedy shows return. 9,000 people attended 4 shows last year.

The reference to curling reminded Russ Diethrick that Harold Griffith used to practice curling in Allen Park before going to Canada to compete.

On a very special note, on Friday a person looked Keith up at the Arena and asked him the significance of the date. It was the anniversary of the hockey “Miracle on Ice” when the US hockey team beat the USSR. Two Jamestownians were there: Jim Riggs and Roger Edborg, who passed away last week. The person who Keith talked to was a friend of Mr. Edborg and had a copy of the video tape he had made at the game. He gave Randy Anderson one for the Sports Hall of Fame, and Keith one for the Northwest Arena. What a legacy!

Shane Hawkins - Infinity Visual and Performing Arts, Inc.

Posted by Chris Anderson on Feb 10, 2020

Pictured (l to r): Kirk Young, Shane Hawkins, and Cheri Krull

Kirk Young introduced our speaker today.

Infinity is a multi-faceted arts program that fuses arts education, talent showcasing opportunities, and mentorship for young people into one complete experience. Infinity is a place to “Explore! Experience! and Excel!” Infinity serves more than 2,000 students per year and provides a unique environment and experience for local students with a network team of dedicated mentors.

Shane Hawkins, Executive Director, graduated from JHS and attended JCC and Fredonia. In 2004 a volunteer Board of Directors was formed and with guidance and support from the Arts Council and the Chautauqua Region Community Foundation, Infinity was incorporated on January 20, 2005. Federal IRS 501(c)(3) status was achieved October 4, 2005. Infinity’s founder, Ron Graham, retired in 2008 after 10 years of service to Infinity and long-time employee Shane Hawkins was promoted to the position of director in 2009. Shane has been affiliated with Infinity for 17 years. Her history with Infinity started as a parent volunteer in 2003 – this is when she joined and brought their kids in for lessons.

Since 2010, Infinity programming has expanded beyond music to include art, dance, theater and literature experiences and classes. In 2011, adult classes and birth to five year old music and art opportunities were added to Infinity program options.

Infinity provides a unique environment and experience for a broad cross-section of area young people. Program access is guaranteed to any student demonstrating a desire to pursue learning in the visual and performing arts, without regard to gender, ethnicity, social or religious background, prior experience, or ability to pay. Infinity is a place where creative growth is cultivated and nurtured by a networked team of dedicated adult mentors, community supporters and area music and arts professionals.

In 2014, in order to accommodate the growing number of students, the Infinity Center relocated to a new, custom-designed facility in the ground floor of the Lynn Building, at 301 East 2nd St. This move was made possible thanks to generous help and support from local and regional funders, private donations, and a grassroots community fundraising campaign. Shane also highlighted the fact that their staff of 3 employees and Board of Directors raised $250K for their capital campaign in 2014. An amazing accomplishment in just 7 months.

In 2020, Infinity will work with close to 2,000 students. Infinity also has over 15 offsite programs throughout the community. They continue to make a difference in the lives of local youths

Infinity also exists to help students get through emotional issues in their teen years. Infinity provides a place to belong and use new skills and is a welcoming place to build peer relationship. Infinity gives students a stage to shine on.

Shane shows great passion for her job and what Infinity represents. She has been honored to grow the program and cannot wait to see what comes in next and into the future.

For more information about Infinity, please visit their web site at https://infinityperformingarts.org/

Courtney Curatolo - Director - Small Business Development Center

Pictured (l to r): Kirk Young, Cheri Krull, and Courtney Curatolo.

Courtney started her presentation by showing appreciation for fellow member, Irene Dobies, who was the director of SBDC for over 30 years. Courtney also gave special thanks to Rotary for being so welcoming to her after moving from Naples to Jamestown. Her connection to Chautauqua County was that her family came to Chautauqua Institution during the summers.

Administered by the US Small Business Administration, the Small Business Development Center (SBDC) at Jamestown Community College works with regional businesses to help them succeed. The region includes Chautauqua, Cattaraugus, and Allegany Counties.

Since their start in 1986, advisors have worked with over 11,600 businesses, helping them to invest more than $135,700,000 into the area’s economy and create or save more than 6,100 jobs.

The SBDC delivers high quality business counseling and training to clients looking to start a business or improve the performance of an existing business. Services are confidential and free of charge.

SBDC Advisors can assist with:

Business plan development
Accounting guidance
Productivity enhancement advice
Export assistance
Marketing assistance
Small business start-up guidance
Financial planning
Procurement guidance
Cost-analysis assistance
Training programs
Organizational structure advice
Construction management assistance
Complying with permit, licensing, and other regulations
Loan information and packaging assistance
Internet marketing and social media assistance
Veteran business planning assistance

Small Business Development Center (SBDC) Programs

Women in Networking (2nd Thursday of every month, 11:30-1)
Social Media Internship Program (Fall Semester)

Some SBDC Courses from 2019 and 2020:

Business Basics (Online Course)
AgriTourism
OSHA
Understanding Your Financial Statements
Maximizing Your Business Tax Savings Under NY Tax Law
Understanding Basic IT
Google Your Business

In coming year, the SBDC will be working on a non-credit certificate in entrepreneurship.

The SBDC is also the only center in the country that has an online business academy. A course for each type of unique business experience. Some classes include Intellectual Property, Tax Law Updates, Understanding Your Financials, Zoning Law Basics, Succession Planning, OSHA, Agritourism, and Social Media marketing on different platforms and a full certification.

In 2019, the SBDC worked with 635 clients and helped secure more than 4$ million in funding. The SBDC helped create 96 jobs and save 25 jobs as well.

The SBDC had a very productive 2019. They want more people to know more about the services they provide and how they can help small businesses start and thrive in the local community.

For more information, please visit www.sbdcjcc.org.

Please click here to download a copy of Courtney’s presentation!

Jamestown's Baseball Sense-sation--The Tarp Skunks

Rotarians John Lloyd of the Speaker's Committee and President Cheri Krull welcome speaker Frank Fanning, the Tarp Skunk General Manager.

John Lloyd introduced today’s speakers with a personal anecdote. In 1959 he was playing baseball for Penn State Behren. One game they played at JCC, he got a home run because they couldn’t find the ball in the tall grass of the outfield!

John then introduced Greg Peterson to tell us about Jamestown baseball. Greg reminded us that baseball first came to Jamestown in 1939. Last Wednesday, Jamestown’s new baseball franchise had a press conference to announce their name. Within minutes, Jamestown’s Tarp Skunks were the rage on twitter and other social media. All the stations in Buffalo announced the name. Sirius Radio also talked about it. In 4 days, more paraphernalia have been sold than any prior season. Even Greg was sporting a “Don’t funk with the Skunk” t-shirt.

Greg went on to relate the unlikely story of how baseball returned to Diethrick Park in 2020. The Jamestown Jammers were owned by Mike Zimmerman for 4 years. The team was in a collegiate league for amateurs, the Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League. The team won the championship in 2018. Even so, Mr. Zimmerman decided to sell the franchise. This left Jamestown without baseball in 2019. With nothing to lose, Mayor Teresi asked Mike Zimmerman to give Jamestown the franchise—and he agreed! His stipulation was that it must be a community group and Jamestown Community Baseball LLC, a non-profit, was born with Russ Diethrick leading the way. A slate of investors provided the funding necessary to get the team off the ground. “This is the first time since the 1960’s that there has been a locally owned franchise, owned partially by Russ Diethrick.” Mr. Peterson observed.

Greg pointed out another interesting connection. In the early years, the team was known as the Falcons and was owned for a time by the Braves. Jim Fanning was Director of Minor League Operations for the Braves. Jim then moved to the Montreal Expos as general manager when that expansion team was founded. While there, he bought the Jamestown franchise.

To tie these interesting facts to the present, Greg announced that Frank Fanning, son of Jim Fanning, is now the General Manager of the Jamestown Tarp Skunks. He introduced Frank and also Ripley native Kyle Hammond, Operations Assistant.

Frank immediately began to regale the group with Tarp Skunk successes to date.

The impact of Wednesday, January 22, when the name was announced, is huge. 2.4 million people were reached on social media! Big name sports media professionals, such as Darren Rovell of the Action Network tweeted about the new franchise and its name. Sports Logo.net and Politico carried it. The web site went down on the 23^rd due to volume. It helped that there was even a live skunk at the rollout.

Where does the name come from? Howard Ehmke, a pitcher who pitched in the 1929 World Series, was from Silver Creek. He was the father of the infield tarpaulin. He founded a company to make the tarps, Ehmke Manufacturing Company. And tied to the tarps in Diethrick Field are the skunks that like to hide out in them when they are rolled up. So, it just seemed fitting to the new management that they should celebrate a local baseball great who also invented a major item of baseball paraphernalia and a cute furry animal that has often caused consternation and amusement at the ball park. Plus, it would make a splash and launch a new era for Jamestown baseball like no other.

Anyone who would like can buy “Skunk Junk” at the Jock Shop right now. It is shipping everywhere. Check out #dontfunkwiththeskunk. In one day paraphernalia sales outstripped the entire 2016 season.

The Team Manager is Jordan Basile and he has put together a roster of 30 already. Check it out on-line. He will fill out the roster just before the season starts on May 29.

The Jock Shop is working on the uniforms right now, and they will also create a stir. The Tarp Skunks are proud that all their merchandise is made in Jamestown. They are committed to supporting the local community. The management team is planning quite a promo schedule. The mascot will start making public appearances in April. Overhead Door has agreed to sponsor 25 appearances of the mascot for non-profits to help them with their events.

With the amazing digital exposure, local companies are clamoring to join in the effort. Ecklof Bakery is working on a Tarp Skunk cookie. Forte has launched a Tarp Skunk drink. There will be much more to come. The team is reaching out to businesses within an hour to attract funding and fan enthusiasm.

Mr. Fanning reminded us that this is a New York league. It is well established with 13 teams, all with collegiate players. 1,300 players have gone on to play in the majors. There will be 27 games at home starting May 29 and going through July. Go to Tarpskunks.com or call 716-705-5600 to see the schedule or to buy season tickets.