Author: Jodi Hartley

The Chamber Ambassadors and the Sheridan WYO Rodeo Board will kick off 2019 Sheridan WYO Rodeo Week with the annual Boot Kick-Off event on Tuesday, July 9, from 5 to 7 p.m. at Whitney Commons Park.

Sponsored by the Historic Sheridan Inn, the Sheridan WYO Rodeo Boot Kick-Off includes stick horse barrel races for kids up to age 8 and a boot kicking competition for those 9 years and older. Space is limited to 20 competitors in each age group and registration begins at 4 p.m.  Chamber Bucks will be given for 1st, 2nd and 3rd place in each of the categories.

The event will culminate with the Ambassador Challenge between the Sheridan County Chamber Ambassadors and the Sheridan Jaycees. 

Boot Kick-Off will be held on the west side of Whitney Commons Park, near Jefferson Street. Food and beverage vendors will be available on Jefferson Street. A portion of Jefferson Street will be closed for the event for food vendor space as well as patron safety.

The Sheridan Trolley will be providing free safe rides from Downtown Sheridan to Whitney Commons for the Boot Kick-Off.

Free downtown parking is available at 103 N. Gould St. and at the Park & Shop lot located on the 200 block of N. Gould St. The Trolley will make continuous loops from Black Tooth Brewing Company (corner of Alger and Broadway) to Pony Grill and Bar (corner of Loucks and Gould) to Whitney Commons, from 3 to 8 p.m. The free safe rides are provided by Black Tooth Brewing Company, Pony Grill and Bar and Sheridan Media.

Advanced Communications Technology (ACT) was selected as the grand prize winner of the 2019 Sheridan WYO Rodeo Window Decorating Contest. Sheridan Stationery Books & Gallery was named runner up.

A panel of anonymous judges chose the winners based on the best use of the theme, “Saddle Up for the Sheridan WYO Rodeo.” This year’s window decorating contest was coordinated by the Sheridan County Chamber of Commerce in partnership with the Sheridan WYO Rodeo Board.

ACT received a “WYO Rodeo Bucket of Fun,” containing four tickets to the Wednesday Sheridan WYO Rodeo performance, a signed copy of “Rodeo Time in Sheridan” by Tom Ringley, an official WYO Rodeo Contestant Back Number, WYO Rodeo Whisky and two Whisky Glasses, two WYO Rodeo Coozies, two WYO Rodeo Caps, a WYO Rodeo Flask and $75 in Chamber Bucks. Sheridan Stationery received a WYO Rodeo Whisky Package containing WYO Rodeo Whisky, two Whisky Glasses, a WYO Rodeo Flask and $25 in Chamber Bucks. Prizes were provided courtesy of the Sheridan WYO Rodeo and the Chamber.

“The competition was fierce again this year, giving the judges quite a task from what I understand,” said Dixie Johnson, CEO of the Sheridan County Chamber of Commerce. “The rankings were very close. We thank the participating businesses for showing us such great Sheridan WYO Rodeo spirit, and I encourage everyone to visit all of the businesses who participated!”

Window decorating contest participants were:

ACT, 290 N. Brooks St.

Cottonwood Kitchen + Home, 234 N. Main St.

ERA Carroll Realty Co., Inc., 306 N. Main St.

First Northern Bank, 29 N. Gould St.

Foot of the Bighorns, 104 N. Main St.

Kennon, 2071 N. Main St.

Kid Curious, 129 N. Main St.

Once Upon A Story, 13 N. Main St.

Payless Tax & Business Solutions, 100 S. Main St.

Rocky Mountain Sign Design & Print, 611 Coffeen Ave.

Sheridan Stationery, 206 N. Main St.

Wyoming’s Rib & Chop House, 847 N. Main St.

For more information, contact the Sheridan County Chamber of Commerce at (307) 672-2485.

All Sheridan County businesses are encouraged to show their Sheridan WYO Rodeo Spirit by signing up for the Sheridan County Chamber of Commerce’s 2019 Sheridan WYO Rodeo Window Decorating Contest.

The contest is free to enter. The Grand Prize winner will receive a “WYO Rodeo Bucket of Fun,” containing four ticket vouchers to the Wednesday Sheridan WYO Rodeo performance, a signed copy of “Rodeo Time in Sheridan” by Tom Ringley, an official WYO Rodeo Contestant Back Number, WYO Rodeo Whisky and two Whisky Glasses, two WYO Rodeo Coozies, two WYO Rodeo Caps, a WYO Rodeo Flask and $75 in Chamber Bucks. The Runner Up will receive a WYO Rodeo Whisky Package containing WYO Rodeo Whisky, two Whisky Glasses, a WYO Rodeo Flask and $25 in Chamber Bucks. Prizes are provided courtesy of the Sheridan WYO Rodeo and the Chamber.

To enter the contest, register with the Chamber by Friday, June 28, at (307) 672-2485 or  info@sheridanwyomingchamber.org. Businesses should have windows decorated with the theme, “Saddle Up for Sheridan WYO Rodeo,” by Friday, July 5, for judging. Winners will be notified on Monday, July 8.

Thank you to everyone who attended the Chamber’s 2019 Ignite Your Business Professional Development Conference!

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

The Chamber’s 5th Ignite Your Business Professional Development Conference drew 120 attendees from a broad spectrum of local businesses. Many thanks to our amazing presenters and everyone who helped make this year’s conference successful.

Two drawings were held as part of the conference. The prize for the first drawing was a 2020 Ignite Conference registration and gift basket from Manufacturing Works. Those participating in the Wrap-Up Session at the end of the day were eligible for the drawing. The winner of the first drawing was Brian Allred of Teton Therapy. Congratulations, Brian! The Chamber also held a drawing for those submitting their surveys, and Daniel Bennett of First Federal Bank & Trust won $50 in Chamber Bucks. Congratulations, Daniel! Thank you to all who submitted surveys.

THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSORS!

FIRST NORTHERN BANK OF WYOMING

ESSENTIAL SCREENS

HAMMER CHEVROLET

NORTH MAIN ASSOCIATION

PEAK CONSULTING

SOCIETY FOR HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

TETON THERAPY

AlphaGraphics

Cloud Peak Energy – Spring Creek Mine

Elevate, the Financial Planning division of Frontier Asset Management

HUB International Mountain States Limited

Morrison-Maierle Inc.

Qdoba

Security State Bank

SWCA Environmental Consultants, Inc.

The Sheridan Press

Thrivent Financial – Krista Huntley

Trihydro Corporation

WWC Engineering

Wyoming Technology Business Center

The winners of the second annual Sheridan County Youth Business Ventures Competition, coordinated by the Sheridan County Chamber of Commerce Ag & Natural Resources Committee, were announced Wednesday, May 8, during the Sheridan County Chamber of Commerce’s Lunch.

Braden West and Jhett West were selected as the recipients for the competition. Both are in the Senior Category for Ages 13-18. With the funds, Braden plans to create Opportunity Genetics, LLC, an elite swine production company focusing on raising hogs from farrow to marketing either as weaned elite swine genetics for show or as finished farm-to-table pork.

Jhett’s existing business, Code Blue, is a skin and hair health stimulator that increases the hair growth on animals. He plans to use the competition funds to expand his sales to additional consumers and with more efficiency and create an app for online product orders.

The competition was open to any Sheridan County youth ages 8 to 18.

Braden and Jhett each received $500 in seed money, with possible access to additional funding over the next year based on the success of the businesses and need. In addition, the selection panel members are available to the youth throughout the next year to act as mentors.

“Through the Youth Business Ventures Competition, we hope to encourage entrepreneurism in our local youth and provide them with the tools for success with seed money, mentorship and Chamber resources,” said Dana Pearce, vice chair of the Chamber’s Ag & Natural Resources Committee. “The process of developing a business plan, financial statements and a marketing plan helps participants with their future careers, goal setting and gives them the foundation for starting and growing a business.”

The funding for the Youth Business Ventures Competition was made possible by sponsorships from AgTerra Technologies, Inc., Three Peaks Real Estate, Sheridan Local Foods and the Sheridan County Chamber of Commerce Ag & Natural Resources Committee.

For more information about the competition, call the Sheridan County Chamber of Commerce at (307) 672-2485.

THE SHERIDAN PRESS: COMMUNITY PERSPECTIVES
by Dixie Johnson, CEO, Sheridan County Chamber of Commerce

Happy Small Business Week! For more than 50 years, the President of the United States has issued a proclamation announcing National Small Business Week, which recognizes the critical contributions of America’s entrepreneurs and small business owners.

To put the importance of America’s small businesses into perspective, the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) states that more than half of Americans either own or work for a small business, and small businesses create about two out of every three new jobs in the U.S. each year.

During Small Business Week the SBA recognizes the best of the best small businesses in each state. This year, Sheridan’s Ryan Gregory, who owns Wyoming Roofing with his wife, Bonnie, was selected as Wyoming’s Small Business Person of the Year. Congratulations, Ryan!

Along with celebrating Ryan’s success, we recognized two young entrepreneurs who won this year’s Youth Business Ventures Competition. Braden and Jhett West each received $500 in seed money for their businesses. They will have the opportunity to receive additional funding later this year. Best of luck, Braden and Jhett!

The very core of the Chamber’s mission is to help businesses prosper, and we love to see successes like Ryan, Braden and Jhett. The Chamber provides numerous resources for our business community. One of those is our 5^th Annual Ignite Your Business Professional Development Conference on Thursday, May 23, at Sheridan College. The conference is a full-day opportunity to gain relevant takeaways from top-notch trainers right here in Sheridan.

Many business owners, if they can find room in their budget, go out of town for training and conferences. This incurs not only the cost of the conference, but also the cost of the travel, lodging and meals, plus multiple days out of the workplace. Providing the professional development needs our businesses desire locally is a huge cost and time savings.

Sheridan has some tremendous professionals who are asked to share their knowledge on statewide and nationwide platforms and within their industry trade groups. We’re pleased to have them join us.

This year’s presenters include Ryan Charest, Insight Leadership Group; Kristen Czaban, The Sheridan Press; Chance Harris, Harker Mellinger CPAs, LLC; Scott Lee, Scott Lee Leadership Consulting; Laura Lehan, Peak Consulting; Matthew Melinkovich, Timberline Training; Tyler Neeriemer, First Federal Bank & Trust; Scot Rendall, Wyoming Technology Business Center; Jesus Rios, Ptolemy Data Systems; Stacia Skretteberg, PHR, Peak Consulting; Wendy Smith, Northern Wyoming Community College District; Luke Thorkildsen, Weatherby; Kristin Wilkerson, Morgan Stanley; and Jason Wille, Range Companies.

They will be presenting these seminars: “5 Dysfunctions of A Team,” “Communicating (You!) With Confidence,” “Blockchain and Cryptocurrency,” “Culture: What Is It and How Do I Create It?”, “Navigating A Changing Media Landscape,” “Think Like A Hacker: Understanding the Anatomy of A Hack,” “The Weight of Supervising,” “Expanding Your Presence,” “Understanding and Utilizing Financial Statements to Make Business and Tax Decisions,” “Photoshop 101,” “Lean Business Practices” and “Dream Managing Fuels Employee Engagement.” Plus, we’ll have two bonus sessions.

I urge all business owners to take advantage of this conference for yourself and your employees to gain valuable tools for success. For more information, visit www.sheridanwyomingchamber.org or call (307) 672-2485.