June 2015 - Visit Perquimans County

June 2015
Perquimans Chamber Newsletter
GRAND OPENING FOR HERTFORD BAY MARINA
Mayor Horace Reid cuts the ribbon on the new Hertford Bay Marina.
Hertford Bay Marina opened in grand style May 22 with local dignitaries and boats
from Albemarle Plantation Marina and a ribbon cutting by the Perquimans Chamber
of Commerce. The 9-slip marina is a welcomed addition to the downtown's riverfront.
The marina offers free electric, pumpout, fresh water, mobile repair service, is pet
friendly, and offers tennis, restaurants, groceries, shopping, playground, and museum
nearby. For information on boat slips, call the town office at 252-426-1969. For
more photos of the ribbon cutting, click HERE.
IS YOUR BUSINESS PREPARED FOR DISASTER?
Michael Twiddy presents useful information on disaster preparedness.
Michael Twiddy with the Small Business and Technology Development Center
conducted an informative and helpful workshop recently on how to prepare your
small business for possible disaster. If you missed this workshop and need
information, call the Chamber office at 252-426-5657 to receive a free notebook
complete with printed materials. To see more photos from the workshop that was
sponsored by the Perquimans Chamber of Commerce, click HERE.
Disaster preparedness information for businesses is available at the Chamber office.
May's Chamber Conversations Was Taxing!
If you missed our Chamber Conversations Over Coffee in May, you may have missed
discovering tax tips that may save you money! Kristi Parrotte, CPA with Gregory &
Associates, CPAs, presented lots of good, helpful information to help local small
businesses. We thank all of you who have supported our free continental breakfasts
held during our Chamber Conversations this year. We will take a break over the
summer months and resume holding Chamber Conversations Over Coffee on the third
Wednesday morning in September! Chamber members with ideas or suggestions for
Conversations are encouraged to give us a call at 426-5657. Enjoy your summer and
we look forward to talking business with you again in the Fall!
Participants enjoy an ice breaker while getting to know one another.
Chamber President Susan Cox (far right) shares a laugh before the
good times begin.
Kristi Parrotte
Small Business Tip of the Month
This month's Small Business Tip comes from the
Small Business and Technology Development Center
Small Businesses Need to Plan for Disasters
Did you know that 40-60 percent of small businesses fail after a major emergency
like experiencing a fire or flood? And did you know that declared disasters have
more than doubled in recent years?
Michael Twiddy, director of the Small Business and Technology Development Center
(SBTDC) located on the campus of Elizabeth City State University, has provided
the Chamber with helpful and useful information on disaster planning for small
businesses because small to medium-sized businesses often are most susceptible to
the long-term effects of an emergency. Making plans ahead of the game helps
recovery from business disruption, financial losses, loss of market share, and
damages to capital assets, equipment or inventory. Make sure you have your
insurance policy and information stored safely preferably off site so you can easily
access that information if a disaster occurs. We have several notebooks complete
with more helpful information at the Chamber office if you want one. The SBTDC is
administered by NC State University on behalf of the University of North Carolina
System and is operated in partnership with the U.S. Small Business Administration.
A Word from Director Sid Eley
Chamber's Activity Report January-April 2015
Welcomed 670 visitors to the Visitor Center from: North Carolina, California, Virginia, Delaware,
Maine, Massachusetts, Ohio, New York, New Jersey, District of Columbia, Idaho, Michigan,
Rhode Island, Pennsylvania, Wyoming, and Florida;
Mailed county, town, and museum brochures and other information to requests from the
following areas:
Individuals - Mississippi, Tennessee, North Carolina
Visitors Centers - (all in NC) Pelham, Dobson, Kitty Hawk, Waynesville, Mars Hill, Moyock
Created and distributed brochure for Belvidere sites and historic districts;
New Board of Directors took office and meet monthly;
Annual Fundraising Banquet & Auction held successfully;
Sponsored Ribbon Cuttings of Hertfordshire Antiques & More, Country Shack Restaurant;
Held 2 Chamber Conversations Over Coffee breakfast meetings with more than 20 attendees at
each session featuring special guests who presented information pertinent to small business
needs;
Sponsored and attended 3 small business educational seminars on social media marketing;
Sponsored and attended a workshop on sales tax changes for non-profits conducted by the
North Carolina Department of Revenue with over 25 attendees;
Created and distributed 4 monthly newsletters to 280 members in either digital or printed
format;
Created and distributed approximately 20 digital Eblast emails to 305 promoting Chamber
members and community events;
Promoted Chamber members, community events and other information approximately 600
times to over 500 social media followers via Facebook, Twitter and Google+;
Promoted Perquimans County and two towns on national social media sites;
Updated county and towns' information on the state's tourism site VisitNC (process is
continuing);
Attended local, regional, and state meetings regarding Chamber, Tourism, and Economic
Development;
Referred visitors and residents to various other small businesses especially Chamber members
in area;
Provided information and direction to county residents and newcomers daily on such items as
post office phone numbers, where to pay their water bill, location of town and county
departments, and where to buy license plates, among others;
Provided Chamber boardroom for monthly meetings of three county non-profit organizations;
Created and distributed Welcome Packets for new prospective Chamber members. Welcomed
13 new members and welcomed back 5 whose membership had elapsed.
Generated $39.33 in state and local sales tax from sales in the Chamber Gift Shop. (The gift shop
operates on reduced hours during January & February. The first three months of the year is our
slow season.)
Began a new benefit for our Chamber members regarding competitive rates on worker's
compensation insurance.
Helping to Spread the Word!
Wanted to let you know about the PR Perquimans County has received just in the last few
weeks. And, these are just the ones we have heard about...no telling how much more has been
written about this great county that we haven't even heard about!
1) The Daily Reflector in Greenville recently printed a column written by its executive editor on
day-tripping to Perquimans County! He describes all the historical and interesting places he
visited including the Jimmy "Catfish" Hunter Museum in Hertford. Not only was the column
printed in the newspaper, but it was also shared on its website and on its Facebook page which
was shared by other Facebook users several times. (See photo insert below.)
2) The Raleigh News & Observer recently included Perquimans County in its new series on daytripping in NC. The article focused on things to see in Northeastern North Carolina and included
three in Perquimans County including the Newbold-White House, the Jimmy "Catfish" Hunter
Museum, and Layden's Country Store in Belvidere. The article was printed in its Memorial Day
paper, placed on its website, and also shared via Facebook so thousands of others can enjoy!
Click HERE
3) The North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources recently shared a Facebook post and
historical blog on "This Day in North Carolina History" that features the story of Ann Durant, the
first woman lawyer in North Carolina. It focused on the area known as Durants Neck in
Perquimans County. Click HERE
4) The grand opening of the new Hertford Bay Marina was shared on the Facebook page US 17
Coastal Highway which is seen by 23,500 folks who like that page. The page is dedicated to the
localities located on US 17 from Florida to Virginia.
Good things are happening in Perquimans, and your Chamber is helping to spread the word!
Get Your Early
Bird Savings
Now for
October Expo
Early Bird Savings
are in effect from
NOW UNTIL
AUGUST 3 to help
you save money while
promoting your
business in the
upcoming 2015
Business Expo
"Cultivating Business Planting Seeds for
Success". Sign up
today to participate in
the popular Expo
slated for Thursday,
Oct. 8, from noon to 4 p.m. at the county recreation center. We will have a Country Hoedown
(YEEHAH!) from 5-7 p.m. so grab your partner and make a date for some good fun, good food,
good music, and GREAT businesses! Chamber members can reserve a booth for only $125 with
the Early Bird Savings! Sponsorships on three different levels are available as well. Over 400
people enjoyed last year's Expo and we are hoping that even more folks will attend this year.
We are paying tribute to our area's agricultural heritage and have lots of plans to help make this
one of the best Expos ever! For more information, call 252-426-5657, email
[email protected], or download information from www.visitperquimans.com.
Click HERE.
Welcome New Members
A huge welcome to our newest Chamber members:
Albemarle Urgent Care, Inc.:
Emergency Medical Facility, Rene' Sawyer, 709 N. Broad Street, Edenton, NC 27932, 252-4826100, [email protected], www.albemarleuc.com
Tarheel Fireplace and Grill Shop:
Retail/installation/service, Roy Murray, 657 Ocean Highway, Hertford, NC 27944, 252-426-1426
(p), 252-426-1421 (fax), [email protected], www.tarheelfireplaceandgrill.com
Catfish Corner
Jimmy "Catfish" Hunter Museum
Welcoming over 1,063 visitors in 2015...so far
Edenton Steamer learns the "Catfish" history
Luke Cahill, a rising senior at Seton Hall University who will play with the Edenton
Steamers this summer, visited the Jimmy "Catfish" Hunter Museum recently to
learn about our native son and baseball hall of famer Jimmy "Catfish' Hunter. A
baseball pitcher himself, Cahill enjoyed the tour and learned how a small town high
school baseball player stepped off the high school pitcher's mound and onto the
Major League pitcher's mound! Cahill hails from New Jersey and is one of several
Steamer players who are staying with Perquimans County hosts this Steamer
season.
We hope all of the Steamers come to visit the museum this summer as well. For a
family night of fun, plan to attend a game and support the Edenton Steamers.
Perquimans County night at the Steamers is July 28! Check out their game
schedule and additional information on the Steamers
at www.edentonsteamers.com.
Chamber Director Sid Eley welcomes Luke Cahill, a Seton Hall University baseball pitcher from
the Big East who is playing with the Edenton Steamers this summer, to the Jimmy "Catfish"
Hunter Museum. Hertford residents Connie and Frank Jaklic brought Cahill to the museum while
showing him around Hertford.
Local Happenings in June
Library Summer Reading Program. Click HERE
Library Summer Movies. Click HERE
Chowan Hospital Foundation Golf Classic June 4. Click HERE
Recreational Summer Classes June 6, 13, 20, 27. Click HERE
Summer Breeze Concert June 7 Click HERE
Second Hand Saturday June 13. Click HERE
Picnic on the Perquimans June 13. Click HERE
Benjamin House Golf Tournament June 26. Click HERE
Camp Cale Summer Camp sign-up. Click HERE