Archive: November 2006 October 2006 September 2006 August 2006 July 2006 June 2006
ANNUAL HOLIDAY PARTY MIXER IS DECEMBER 7th
The Mason Chamber’s biggest member
mixer event, our annual Holiday Party, is Thursday, December 7th in
the Ingham County Fairgrounds Community Building from 5 to 8 PM. As in
past years, it is a great time to greet all your friends and neighbors in the
community and wish them the happiest of holidays. Admission is just $5 per
person for members and $7 per person for non-members.
Chamber volunteers have worked hard again this year to bring you a Holiday Party brimming with good food, live music, door prizes, auction items, and a whole lot of fun. The Committee has been led by Jeff Haueter of Mason A&W Restaurant, assisted by Patti Davis of GCC Technologies and Robin King of Independent Bank. Other volunteers include Kathy Smith, Jeanie Prince, Karla Spoor, Mary Tressel, Jon Grocki, Pat Weiler, and Martha Joy. Thanks to them, you’ll enjoy a great evening.
You’ll enjoy the delightful live holiday music of harpist Kelly Yoakam. You’ll enjoy door prize drawings throughout the evening. You’ll enjoy the 50/50 raffle. But you’ll especially enjoy the wonderful food of the "Taste of Mason." This year, our food is provided by these 13 area restaurants and caterers: Mason A&W Restaurant, Eldorado Golf Course, Darb’s Tavern & Eatery, Merindorf Meats, City Limits Grill, Baja Grille, Gordon Food Service, Nairda’s Country Catering, Lawrence’s Westside Deli, Mike’s Firehouse Grill, Mason Jar Pub & Grub, Darrell’s Market, and Bestsellers Books & Coffee Co. Thanks to each for their sponsorship.
Don’t forget to bring your holiday gift buying money with you. Inside this "Mason in Motion" Newsletter (scroll to the bottom of this page) you’ll find a catalogue all of the auction items we have received to date. Most items are available through a silent auction, but some will be auctioned live at the Party. For your convenience, items can be paid for with cash, check, VISA or MasterCard.
Area businesses and individuals have provided loads of auction items – most at a "50/50 consignment." That means half the proceeds go back to those providing the item. That helps us offer some of the very best and most desirable items to you that evening. Come to the party and snap up some really great gifts. Get a little something for yourself, too.
Please note those who provided auction and door prize items. Our thanks go to them for their sponsorship and we hope you’ll patronize their businesses throughout the coming year.
You can start bidding on silent auction items during our previewing in the Chamber office starting the Monday, December 5 through Wednesday, December 7. The Chamber office hours are 9 AM to 3 PM. Your preview bids will be carried over to the Party on December 7. If you can’t make the Holiday Party, this is your only chance to participate. You don’t need to be present if you’re the highest bidder, since we’ll notify you on Friday the 8th.
NEW MEMBERS JOIN
Welcome to the
following new Chamber members!
Mason Orchestral Society
P.O. Box 473
Mason, MI 48854
Phone: (517) 676-3871
masonorchestras@lycos.com
http://masonorchestras.tripod.com
Sue Domrase, President
The Mason Orchestral Society is a non-profit community organization with an overall goal of supporting an orchestra program in Mason. Its purpose is to cultivate an appreciation of orchestral music. The Society has two orchestras: the Mason Community Orchestra and the Mason Youth Symphony.
Goodwill Industries
556 N. Cedar Street
Mason, MI 48854
bobh@migoodwill.org
www.mihgoodwill.org
Bob Holderbaum, President/CEO
Goodwill Industries helps individuals who have barriers to employment – by providing training and/or employment. Revenues from our retail store help fund those services.
Steamaway Carpet, Tile & Upholstery Cleaning
311 W. Cherry Street
Mason, MI 48854
Phone: (517) 648-6272
fitzgerald_greg@yahoo.com
Greg Fitzgerald
Steamaway is a truck-mounted steam cleaning system for carpet, tile and upholstery – commercial and residential. Owner-operated and fully insured, Steamaway offers free estimates.
MACC GIFT CERTIFICATES MAKE GREAT HOLIDAY GIFTS
- Does your spouse, parent, or adult child expect a special gift -- and you can never seem to pick the right thing?
- Have a friend that you need to buy something for and you just don't know what to get?
- Want to purchase a gift certificate for someone, but you can't decide on just one place to buy it from?
- Are you an employer trying to decide what to buy your employees?
If you answered "yes" to any of these questions, the Mason Area Chamber of Commerce has the perfect solution for your gift giving needs! Mason Area Chamber of Commerce gift certificates offer the gift recipient the option to choose what they want, instead of settling for a gift they don't really like or receiving a gift certificate only redeemable at a single place. From restaurants to entertainment; from office supplies to specialty shops; from automobile repair to retail items – a MACC gift certificate offers you a truly unique gift that is right for everybody.
Mason Area Chamber of Commerce gift certificates are a great way to promote "Mason Values" and the importance of buying locally. Just go online at www.masonchamber.org or check the Mason CRG phone book to see hundreds of choices.
Give the gift of choice – MACC gift certificates are accepted at so many different types of businesses. Give the gift of variety – choose any denomination, it is a gift that fits any budget! Give the gift of convenience – certificates can be purchased at the Chamber office and redeemed by any Chamber member. For more details, please contact the Chamber office at (517) 676-1046 or masonchamber@masonchamber.org by e-mail.
NEWS FROM OUR CHAMBER MEMBERS
Mason Jewett Field will host a Holiday Open House at the airport’s terminal building at 655 Aviation Drive off Eden Road on Friday, December 1st from 4 to 7 PM. Members of the community are welcome to come see the airport facilities and enjoy good food and drink.
Mason businesses are invited to have a Museum display. Randy Gladstone of the Mason Area Historical Society tells us they have six "wall cases" at the Museum that are 22" x 36" in size. They would like to display materials from the history of current businesses that have been in the Mason area 50+ years, regardless of changing ownership. Contact Randy at 676-9090 or info@masonmuseum.com. The first six businesses get the exposure!
On Tuesday, December 5th, the Mason Library will hold its Holiday Open House from 4 to7 PM at the library. Enjoy refreshments, children’s crafts, holiday music provided by the Mason Orchestral Society, and a Friends of the Mason Library book sale. Live reindeer will be in the library driveway from 6 to 7 PM. The library is located at 145 W. Ash Street.
The Mason area community will hold a Chris Colligan Family Fundraiser on December 3rd. Many within our community knew Chris Colligan, especially through his recent work for the City of Mason. He died September 23rd of this year when he was assisting a stranded motorist and was hit by a drunk driver. You are invited to participate in a fundraiser for the Colligan family. The event is scheduled for Sunday, December 3, 2006 from 11:00 AM until 8:00 PM. The event is being held at the Mason Bowling Center located at 801 North Cedar Street, south of the intersection of US-127 and Cedar Street in Mason. The Bowl-A-Thon starts at 11:00 AM. There will also be bumper bowling for the little ones. Anyone can participate with the Bowl-A-Thon. The Chamber office has copies of the form to use and bring with you. There are to be raffles and auctions through the day. This event has been organized by Chris Colligan’s City of Mason friends and colleagues to assist his family: Joan Colligan and four daughters Lexi (12), Nikki (10), Natalie (5) and Lizzi (4). Santa will be at this event for a few hours to have photo's taken with the young ones. There will be a small fee charged which will be donated towards the Colligan fund. There will be six to eight bands playing through the day in the "City Limits" restaurant, connected to the bowling alley. You will be able to hear a variety of music and eat lunch or dinner. A percentage of the meals and drink that you purchase goes toward the Colligan fund. If you would like to make a direct contribution, that is most welcome. If you would like to participate by donating raffle items or silent auction items, that would also be welcome. You can purchase items that can be used for the raffle, provide gift cards for auction and gifts, or if you have tickets to sporting events or theater tickets, they make for great silent auction items. Most importantly, just show up Sunday, December 3rd and participate in some of the activities, relax and have some fun. Consider this event as a great opportunity for sharing in a positive setting to enrich all our lives in Mason while we help out those within our community. Call City Hall at 676-9155 for more details.
Dart Bank is collecting non-perishable food items for the local food banks and toys for the Toys for Tots program through Dec. 15. New, unwrapped toys and non-perishable food items can be delivered to the lobbies of the Mason, Holt/South Lansing and Grand Ledge locations.
The Mason Holiday Home Tour, sponsored by the Mason Area Historical Society, will be held on Saturday December 9, 2006 from 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM. There are 6 homes on the tour this year. Tickets are $10.00 and are on sale at Ware’s Pharmacy, Bestsellers Book Store, Dart Bank main office and at the Mason Area Historical Museum. The day of the tour tickets can be purchased at the Mason Historical Museum from 10:00 AM to 3:00 PM. There is a good variety in the homes this year. Come and enjoy the homes and all the holiday decorations. Contact Marie Wingo, Mason Home Tour Organizer, at 676-4018 or at mariewingo@sbcglobal.net for more information.
The Mason Orchestral Society’s Mason Community Orchestra and the Mason Youth Symphony, under the direction of Conductor Nat Parker, will present its annual holiday concert on Friday, December 15th at 7:30 PM in the Mason High School Auditorium. This year’s selections will include holiday music such as Babes in Toyland, Deck the Halls, and The Messiah by Handel. The concert is free and open to the public. The orchestras have musicians from throughout the Mason area. They present four concerts per season. In addition to the holiday concert on December 15, 2006, there will be concerts held on March 4, 2007 and May 4, 2007.
The Mason Lions Club is continuing its generous tradition of distributing food gift certificates to needy families over the holidays. Also locally, the Lions are partnering with Habitat for Humanity on a "build" on Onondaga Road south of Stimson Road. In addition, they are also working on forming a "Leo Club," which is for high school students interested in helping their community. To help fund these and many other continuing projects, the club is selling raffle calendars. Many pages of the calendar are sponsored by Chamber members.
Grover Akers, a lifelong resident of Aurelius Township, has retired as their building inspector after 16 years of service. The Township Board wishes to thank him for his years of service and dedication to the Township.
NEW DIRECTORS ELECTED TO MASON AREA CHAMBER BOARD
The Board of Directors of the Mason Area Chamber of Commerce will have five brand-new members this coming year. The 13-member 2007 board will also retain two members who were serving out the unexpired terms of past board members. The Chamber elected five individuals to three-year terms that begin on January 1, 2007 and end on December 31, 2009. The other two will serve out remaining one-year and two-year terms.
At their November meeting, the Chamber board certified the election of Tom Botsford of EAA Chapter 55, Joe Dean of the City of Mason, Lance Delbridge of Mason Public Schools, Neil Kentner of Ingham County Fair, and Phil Preston of Gestamp U.S. HardTech. Also elected to the 2007 MACC Board of Directors for full terms are current board members Kim Gorrell of B-Dry Systems and Robin King of Independent Bank. Separate from the election, the Chamber board also selected Bob Warnke of Mason State Bank to serve the remainder of a resigning Board member’s term through 2007.
George Hayhoe of CAPEX Land Company, Jim Harvey of Mason Public Schools, Tom Schroeder of Mason State Bank, Donna Graham of Gestamp U.S. Hard Tech, and Pat Weiler of Dart Container Corporation will be retiring from the Board at the end of this year.
MHS CHOIR MEMBERS GOING TO CARNEGIE HALL
How do you get to Carnegie Hall? You go to Mason High School! Members of the MHS choir have been invited to take part in a performance of Stephen Paulus' "Songs of Meditation" May 26, 2007 at the famed Carnegie Hall in New York City. The choir members will join with other choruses to form a festival chorus, which will be directed by Dr. Sandra Snow, associate professor of music at Michigan State University.
"Not all of the time is spent in rehearsals, since there is so much history and culture to see in New York City," said Dr. Jonathan Griffith, principal conductor-in-residence for MidAmerica Productions. Griffith said the Mason choir received the invitation because of the high quality of its musicianship and exceptional recommendations given by colleagues of Helen Hansens, choir director.
Hansens said the group needs to raise $32,000 for the trip. The group will perform briefly at the MACC Good Morning, Mason! on Thursday, December 14th at 7:30 AM at the Fairgrounds Community Building. To contribute, contact Hansens at hhansens@mason.k12.mi.us by e-mail.