June 2011 COMMERCE

• REPRESENTING BUSINESS TO GOVERNMENT

• PROMOTING THE COMMUNITY

The Napa Chamber Foundation in partnership with Mechanics Bank hosted the 2011 Napa Valley Community Awards with a luncheon at the Napa Valley Marriott on Tuesday, May 24. For the past five years, the Napa Chamber Foundation and Mechanics Bank have recognized local community leaders, individuals and businesses for their outstanding leadership, contributions and/or achievements toward the betterment of the communities of Napa Valley with this annual award ceremony. Nominations from the public are reviewed and selected by a panel of volunteers from the Napa Chamber Foundation and The Mechanics Bank. On Tuesday 230 people turned out to applaud this year’s community heroes.

Mindful of everyone’s busy schedule, the proceedings were orchestrated for maximum efficiency while allowing thoughtful time for award winners to acknowledge their honors. Awards were presented in eight categories; nonprofit employee, public safety officer, community booster, hospitality tourism professional, healthcare professional, teacher, student and nonprofit organization of the year. All but the nonprofit organization were announced prior to the event giving time for friends and family of the honorees to attend.

Nonprofit employee of the year, Kristina Young, Executive Director of Arts Council Napa Valley, was introduced by ACNV Board vice-president, Olivia Everett. Ms. Everett praised Young for her boundless energy and critical role in bringing art to the fore in downtown Napa and for breathing life into such projects as Art on First, Napa ARTwalk, approval of a Public Art Ordinance for the City of Napa; as well as last year’s inaugural Napa Valley ARTS 2010 celebration. “I am both humbled and proud to be recognized, but this really belongs to my whole team,” said

COMMERCEJune 2011 • VOL. 22 NO. 6 YOUR SUCCESS IS OUR BUSINESS.

NAPA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE • CONNECTING COMMERCE TO COMMUNITY1556 First Street | Napa CA 94559 | 707.226.7455 | napachamber.com

2011PRESIDENT’S CIRCLE

PREMIER SPONSORS

DIAMOND LEVEL SPONSORS

Exertec Health & FitnessNapa Recycling & Waste Services

Hawthorn Suites by WyndhamBank of Marin

Republic ServicesTravis Credit Union

Golden State WarriorsMark Coleman, State Farm

Napa Planner Financial Group

Markstein Beverage CompanyRedwood Credit Union

ComcastNapa Valley Marketplace Magazine

Silverado Resort and Spa

Net-Flow CorporationAccelerated Marketing Group

Influence Internet

The Valley’s Daily News Source

EIGHT OUTSTANDING HEROES WORK TO UNITE OUR COMMUNITY

See HEROES on page 2…

• MIXER at Alkar Human Resources• Member Spotlight: Vista Broadband Networks, Inc.• Tony Rubleski Talks About Chamber Memberships

• NCC Wins NBB BEST OF • Welcome New Members• NCC Partners with QponomicsINSIDE

CalChamber Releases Annual Job Killer List

See JOB KILLER on page 4…

Executive Director Cynthia Dempsey accepts the award for Outstanding Nonprofit Organization of the Year on behalf of CyberMill Technology Center.

The California Chamber of Commerce recently released its annual list of proposed legislation that threatens to hurt California’s job

climate and hamper economic recovery. “The first step in an economic

recovery program is to do no more harm to the economy,” said Allan Zaremberg, President and CEO of the California Chamber of Commerce. “Proponents of anti-business legislation who think California’s economy can withstand additional pressure from new regulatory and legislative burdens are simply

June 2011 | COMMERCE | | napachamber.com

HEROES continued from page 1...

Lorena Hernandez, Regional Director of Community Investments for Comcast presents Karla E Gomez with $1,000.

Mechanics Bank Vice Chairman Michael Downer and Napa Chamber Foundation Chair Randy Martinsen applaud the past Outstanding Nonprofit award winners.

D.D. Felton, Chairman of the Board, Mechanics Bank kicks off the event with opening remarks.

Past Nonprofit award winners were asked to come to the stage for a surprise award and donation of $500 to their organizations. Pictured L-R: Jennie Thayer, NEWS; Kathleen Dreessen, NV Community Housing; Adele Cotter, Napa Valley Hospice & Adult Day Services and Joelle Gallagher, Cope Family Center.

Young.Police Chief Richard Melton introduced

the public safety officer of the year, Officer Omar Salem. Praised for his work with at-risk youth, Officer Salem had created his “Hoops to Stop Youth Violence” event in his first year on the force. Now a veteran of more than three years, this New Tech High grad has continued to show leadership in the field of youth work. Chief Melton said, “He just hit the ground running. He’s committed to working with the youth in our community; it just permeates who he is.”

NapaLearns Board member, Dorothy

Salmon, introduced Vineyard 29 proprietor, Chuck McMinn, as Booster of the Year. “Nothing short of a miracle worker” is how Mrs. Salmon describes the McMinn effect. Whether with his championing of the Napa Valley Vine Trail bike path, his work with NapaLearns bringing state-of-the-

future education to Napa, or fundraising $34 million for St. Helena Hospital’s Coon Joint Institute, Mr. McMinn has had deep, swift and meaningful impact on his adoptive home of Napa Valley. Mr. McMinn was unable to attend but had recorded a video acknowledgment for his award.

Charles Henning, managing director of CIA in St. Helena, introduced Clay Gregory, president and CEO of the Napa Valley Destination Council, as Hospitality Tourism Professional of the year. Mr. Gregory was pleased to report that Napa’s reputation in the tourism industry is growing by leaps and bounds as evidenced at the recent “PowWow” travel conference. He thanked the five valley communities for coming together to support the concept of an umbrella industry organization and was “humbled to be in the company of all the other honorees.”

The next award went to Adele Cotter of Napa Valley Hospice. Previously manager of the Queen of the Valley Breast Care Center, Ms. Cotter is known for her extraordinary sense of caring and true calling to the profession of nursing. She has navigated so many patients through the hardest of times; our community is the richer for having her. As if nursing in Napa

was not enough, she has also returned frequently to New Orleans to assist with post-Katrina rebuilding efforts. She received the first standing ovation of the day as she proceeded to the lectern and was feted with flowers from radiologist, Dr. Andrew Nicks.

Napa County Superintendent of Schools, Dr. Barbara Nemko took great pleasure in presenting the Outstanding

Teacher of the year, Jennifer Castelazo as someone who not only teaches Chemistry, but has chemistry. The Vintage High School teacher has brought her subject up from the lowest to the highest pass rate in her school. She

has introduced many teaching creative initiatives and when the funding was not there she applied and won grants to bring Chemistry to life for the over 150 students

a day that she teaches. True to the form of a gifted teacher, Castelazo says, “The true reward is when a student makes the connection that hard work brings success.”

Dr. Edna Baehre-Kolovani, Napa Valley College president, introduced the Student of the Year, Karla Gomez. Gomez has a remarkable success story rising up from a scarce 1.7 GPA on entering High School to graduating with a 4.1. From there she was

unstoppable and is now set to graduate from NVC with a 4.0 GPA and a list of extracurricular activities and community involvements that set her apart from her contemporaries. She has become a leader in the Hispanic community and is a youth coach with the LAYLA organization. Gomez brought the house to tears as she thanked her mother for her strength and support through it all. Comcast Director of Community Investments presented Gomez with an award check for $1,000 in recognition of her outstanding contributions.

Interspersed throughout the award presentations emcee Barry Martin introduced each nominated nonprofit organization, building excitement towards the final surprise award of the day. Mechanics Bank Vice Chairman, Michael Downer, announced an unprecedented celebration of the five year history of the Community Awards by presenting each

See HEROES on page 4…

Lisa Batto, ACEPresident/CEO, Napa Chamber of Commerce

Chairman and CEO FOCus

Ryan Gregory, Vice President, Riechers Spence and Associates

2011 Napa Chamber of Commerce Chairman of the Board

In a world loaded with marketing options and information overload I’m often asked by new and existing business owners for a simple, inexpensive way to increase their local visibility and marketing efforts to produce more opportunities and sales. Without a doubt, I always ask a stunningly simple question, Are you a member of your local chamber of commerce? I get one of three answers:

1. Yes2. No, but tell me more 3. We used to be a member Now I know every person has opinions

but I’d like you to take a moment to read this brief article to discover seven reasons why I strongly feel that every business and non-profit organization should be a member of their local chamber regardless of the size of their organization, marketing budget, years in business, or even if they’ve heard or possibly had a negative chamber experience in the past. In light of the current challenges in the economy, this article is even more relevant than when I first wrote it two-years ago. 1. Visibility. Yes, you’ve heard it said time and time again, that out of sight means out of mind. This is not a smart strategy for any business, especially when times are good. A market can change quickly. As Jim Collins says, good is the enemy of great. This is a great statement, but I’d like to add to it as it relates to marketing. While good is the enemy of great, complacency and short term thinking is the enemy of sustained marketing breakthroughs.

Let’s look at a real world example of chamber complacency in action. Having worked with hundreds of chambers throughout North America, I’m simply baffled that within many communities how few real estate agents and automotive sales reps are either non-existent or barely active within their local chamber. In these two highly competitive and crowded markets you’d think these folks would do anything to stand out from the competition and fully leverage the chamber to get an edge. Nope. It’s as if they have no idea the local chamber exists and how it can benefit their business.

7 REASONS WHY YOUR BUSINESS SHOULD BE A MEMBER Of THE CHAMBER Of COMMERCE

2. Access. Unless you’re crazy or like consistent rejection, no one enjoys making cold calls all day long. It’s a painful, tedious process that often wastes far too much time and mentally drains even the most upbeat and friendly person after a while. When you join a chamber and actively get involved you’ll discover that meeting prospects who may have an interest or who can refer you to key contacts you’re trying to reach, is a huge benefit of membership. From being on committees, serving as an ambassador, or attending specific events where prospects are likely to be, you’ll find yourself in situations where you can identify and meet decision makers face-to-face versus making cold calls.

3. Ongoing training and education. Unless you have the luxury of a training budget or can afford to bring in local, regional or nationally known experts on different topics, I firmly believe that there’s no other organization in America that delivers timely programs at such an affordable price as the local or regional chamber of commerce. By spreading costs among fellow members through registration fees and sponsorships, members can stay updated, informed and educated at a bargain price. 4. Networking. From seminars, leads groups, luncheons to business expos and various business and community committees, there’s absolutely no excuse for not being able to meet new contacts, referrals and people who can help you with ideas and additional ways to grow your business.

The old adage, out of sight, out of mind, is so true when it relates to networking. The chamber gives your several different venues to meet new people. My entire career I’ve utilized the power of networking in my home chamber’s ranging from serving as co-chair of the ambassador league to sponsoring and speaking at different events. The positive outcomes on the bottom line and great people I’ve met have been great. In addition, doing business with fellow member who offer wonderful products, services, and ideas has also been a big plus.


See 7 REASONS on page 4…

5. Low cost advertising opportunities. As far as visibility at the local level, a chamber offers a wide range of affordable advertising options and sponsorship packages for just about every business or non-profit, regardless of how big or small their budget may be. I’ve bought and sold traditional media and I can tell you it’s not cheap. For the price of a few ads within a major media outlet, you can often sponsor an entire program with the chamber, give a short commercial about your company, meet new prospects and follow up with the list of attendees who may have a need for your offering. This is a wonderful way to hold your marketing dollars accountable and see them working hard right before your eyes.

A common area to get low cost or free advertising is submitting updates or news briefs for possible inclusion within the chamber “Member News’ section of the newsletter or eletter. Amazingly, a lot of members do not take advantage of this wonderful free marketing opportunity provided with their membership. The chamber is always on the lookout for member related news. I make it a goal to get

over a small news update or announcement at least every two to three months to my local chambers because I know many times it will get printed and read by key people in the business community. 6. Advocacy. A foolish belief among large companies, especially national retail outlets, is that they’re too big or not local enough to care about getting involved or joining their local chamber of commerce. A few things they should think about: Are their employees and customers local? Are taxes and school systems important to finding and retaining a high quality work

This article recently came to our attention and we’d like to share it with you. It’s written by Amazon.com bestselling author Tony Rubelski.


Napa Chamberambassadorsare busy supporting members!

Sat 6/4 at 3pm: Ribbon CuttingNapa Valley Kitchen Gallery925 School Street in the Napa Square Building

Tues 6/7 at 2:30pm: Ribbon Cutting Napa City/County Library Grand Re-opening Celebration580 Coombs, Napa

Sat 6/11 at 5pm: Ribbon CuttingEiko’s Restaurant and Bar1385 Napa Town Center, Napa

Tues 6/14: Committee Meeting & Visit Redwood Retirement Residence

Thu 6/16 5:30-7pm: After-Hours MIXERRabobank, 700 Trancas Street, Napa

With 17 new members joining in May and many members celebrating re-openings, our Napa Chamber Ambassadors are Springing into Summer with a full calendar!

Watch your email for our bi-weekly Enews... Napa BusiNess Focus for full stories and photos of the Napa Chamber Ambassador events!http://www.napachamber.com/businessfocus/

coming up in June*...

*Dates and times subject to change without notice.

of the past recipients of the Nonprofit Organization award with a donation check of $500. Napa Chamber Foundation Board Chair, Randy Martinsen, then announced the winner for 2011 as CyberMill Technology Center. The second standing ovation of the day sent up a roar of approval. CyberMill provides programs to help students learn the technology skills they need to compete in the 21st Century. They are committed to closing the technology gap in low income families and support a pc-to-home program which nurtures an in-home learning environment. CyberMill executive director, Cynthia Dempsey, was completely surprised, “It takes a whole community of people to get the things done that happen at CyberMill. Best of all is seeing the kids pay it forward when new students come in. Thank you.”

The Napa Valley Community Awards drew to a close amidst congratulations and well wishes. The Napa Chamber Foundation is proud to honor those going above and beyond to make Napa Valley an enriched cohesive community working together to build a sustainable future. ■

HEROES continued from page 2...JOB KILLER continued from page 1...

force? These are key areas that the chamber researches, lobbies and routinely discusses with local and regional government units, politicians and the media to keep people up to date on central issues of importance pertaining to their membership and the community.

What happens to your local employees and customers does have an impact on your business even if you’re a national chain. In addition, missing out on networking, sponsorship and other business building news and benefits, I think it looks incredibly tacky if four or five local businesses are active in the chamber and a national firm in the same market area won’t even join. In my mind this sends an incongruent message to the market when the national company claims to be ‘a good corporate citizen’ but they won’t join and get involved with their local chamber of commerce. 7. Money saving discounts. If you fully leverage the cost saving discounts ranging

from health insurance, office supplies, to discounted phone service to other items your business currently uses or will need, it’s not uncommon for a small business to easily find enough savings in the first 30-60 days upon joining with endorsed providers or member to member discounts to recoup most, if not all of their membership dues. Being a small business owner, I can attest to the fact that being a member of the chamber and shopping around for discounts and services available makes joining achievable for any company regardless of how limited their marketing budget may be.

Well, there you have it! Seven great reasons to join or get more involved and fully leverage the benefits that your home town or regional chamber of commerce can provide your business or organization.

© 2011 by Tony Rubleski. Tony is a #1 Bestselling author with Amazon.com and currently the president of Mind Capture Group. For additional information including blogs, articles, free resources and his newly released book visit: www.MindCaptureGroup.com. ■

7 REASONS continued from page 3...

unwilling to accept the unfortunate reality that California has the second highest unemployment rate in the country.”

This year’s list of “job killers” includes 28 proposed laws which threaten California employers with new costly workplace and employee benefit mandates, economic development barriers, regulatory burdens and inflated liability costs.

“More regulations will lead to more litigation, worsening California’s reputation throughout the world,” said Zaremberg. “We simply cannot allow California to continue to be ranked as having one of the worst business climates in the country.” Bills are categorized in article as follows:

• COSTLY WORKPLACE MANDATES• ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT BARRIERS• EMPLOYEE BENEFIT MANDATES• INFLATED LIABILITY COSTSand Cumulative Job Killer Vetoes

What can you do?The leadership at the Napa Chamber

participates each week on a Legislative Conference Call with the California

Chamber of Commerce. In many cases the Napa Chamber of Commerce has written a letter to our legislators oppposing these bills. You can help by writing to Sentator Noreen Evans and Assemblymember Michael Allen to opppose the job killer bills before them, add your name to a coalition of businesses, or go to Sacramento and testify against a bill. For contact information of your legislators, please visit napachamber.com/legislators.html; to listen in on the CalChamber Legislative Conference Call, please conact Lisa Batto at 707-226-7455.

The 2011 “job killer” bill list is available in full at: www.calchamber.com/jobkillers. ■

WE WON!The Napa Chamber of Commerce won “BEST

EVENT” in the 2011 NorthBay biz Reader’s

Poll for the fourth year in a row! Katherine Zimmer and Randy Martinsen accept the award from Joni Rosinski of

NBB (center).

WElCOmE nEW mEmbErs!


To learn more about membership benefits and see a complete listing of Napa Chamber members, updated daily, visit napachamber.com or phone us at 707.226.7455

mEmbEr bEnEFit bullEtin

Computer ServicesOn-Line Computer Services Kevin Cox, (707) 637-6879 [email protected] www.on-line1.comContractors - GeneralStagner Construction, Inc. Mike Stagner, (707) 226-2765 3045 Big Ranch Rd, Napa [email protected] www.stagnerconstruction.comDentists Glenn D. Giamo Dentistry (707) 252-3600 935 Trancas St Ste 5B, Napa [email protected] www.glenngiamodds.comSuisun City Dental Rosa Vega, (707) 429-8611 807 Main St, Suisun City www.suisuncitydental.comEmployment ServicesManpower Kathy Kolb, (707) 428-1823 1261 Travis Blvd Ste10, Fairfield www.manpower.comFinancial Advisors & Planners The Loftin Group, Inc. Randy Loftin, EA, (707) 294-2439 625 Imperial Way Ste 5, Napa www.LoftinGroup.netLimousine ServicesNapa Limousine LLC Susan Altamura, (707) 637-4399 1436 Second St Ste 134, Napa [email protected] www.napalimousine.com

Support Services for the Disabled Community Connections Royce Howell, (707) 494-3456 2800 Jefferson, Napa www.community-connections.netWine Tasting Rooms1313 Main Al Jabarin, (707) 258-1313 1313 Main St, Napa [email protected] www.1313main.comWineries Amuse Bouche Winery Cindy Maramba, (707) 251-9300 1040 Main St Ste 100, Napa www.amusebouchewine.comAu Sommet Winery Cindy Maramba, (707) 251-5820 1040 Main St Ste 100, Napa [email protected] www.ausommetwine.comCoup de Foudre Winery Cindy Maramba, (707) 253-8300 1040 Main St Ste 100, Napa [email protected] www.coupdefoudrewine.comNichelini Winery Kenny Wainwright, (707) 963-0717 2590 Sage Canyon Rd, St. Helena [email protected] www.nicheliniwinery.comPharaoh Moans Winery Cindy Maramba, (707) 251-8070 1040 Main St Ste 100, Napa [email protected]/ www.pharaohmoanswine.com/TwoDog Wine Russell D. Erickson, (801) 725-1122 1895 S 200 West, Bountiful www.twodogwine.com

Mortgage ServicesiServe Residential Lending, LLC Judy Bickell, (707) 252-5972 2001 Jefferson St Ste A, Napa www.iservelending.comMotorcycles Sales / RepairNapa Valley Classics Ron Kane, (707) 253-8185 820 Third St, Napa www.napavalleyclassics.netMusicMuzak Jeremy Snyder, (415) 601-4912 www.muzak.comRentalsSierra Property Services Mindy Wyman, (707) 265-6556 1827 Clay St Ste 100, Napa www.sprents.comRestaurants Cuvee Victor Jigalin, (707) 224-2330 1650 Soscol Ave, Napa [email protected] www.cuveenapa.comLa Taquiza Napa Patrick Aguirre, (707) 224-2320 2007 Redwood Rd Ste 104, Napa www.lataquizanapa.com Tourist Information Napa Tourist Information Center Susan Altamura, (707) 252-1000 1310 Napa Town Center, Napa [email protected] www.napatouristinfo.com

Info screen or mini-billboard!

Show Map!Directions! Website!

Save as favorite!

Call!

Offers!

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Your advertising reaches customers when they are in close proximity to you and allows you to give them access to great deals in your store. The Napa Chamber of Commerce has partnered with Qponomics to bring the many benefits of mobile marketing technologies to our members with a simple and affordable solution. Learn more online...

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Connect with us...


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Our Third Thursday event in May was a MIxER held at the Alkar Human Resources. There were great connections made, wonderful food for sampling and a fun and relaxed environment to unwind and network after hours.

PLAN AHEAD: Don’t miss this month’s Napa Chamber after-hours MIxER on June 16th at Rabobank in Napa. Members and prospective members welcome! ■

Mixer at Alkar Human Resources

s

Alkar was packed full of our magnificent networking members!

Delicious food courtesy of Kinyon Catering! Pictured here: Daughter and

Mother duo Amanda and Terri Garza.

The lovely ladies from Shear Design, Maria Lynch & Cindy Smith.

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The dessert was a big hit! Cupcakes & devil-cake pops, yum.

s Our wonderful hosts - Alkar!Jason Lewis, Carina Hurtado,

Gytahnna Loffgren and Lucy Garcia.

s

Sally Craig of Staging & Design by Sally and Roman Montanez from

Quinto Patio Taqueria.

• PROVIDING NETWORKING OPPORTUNITIES

Linda BauschLinda Bausch brings

sixteen years of local hospitality management, sales and marketing to her position of Events and Membership Retention Manager at the Napa Chamber of Commerce. The Chamber could not ask for a better background for someone responsible for coordinating the 80+ events mounted by the Chamber each year. With deep connections in the community Linda has been able to forge relationships and encourage Chamber membership in the retention aspect of her responsibilities.

Prior to joining the staff team at the Napa Chamber a year ago Linda had been a member in good standing for fourteen years. Her belief in the Chamber mission of promoting a strong local economy coupled with the value she places on membership, as attested by this long involvement, makes her a strong Chamber advocate when approaching current members evaluating their enrollment.

Those in the know will also make the drive to Budge Brown’s Cleavage Creek Winery in Pope Valley where Linda has an on-going exhibit and is the artist-in-residence. A fine art painter committed to painting each day, Linda has exhibited her work in many local installations, including recently at the Napa Library. She has been happily married for 34 years and is the proud parent of two young adults.

As a local, there is not much people do not know about Linda, except maybe that when she was a child John Wayne rescued her from a red ant attack! Wayne was a neighbor at her uncle’s ranch where the drama ensued. True to form Wayne rode to the rescue and impressed the young girl for ever after. When asked which three people with whom she would most like to have dinner, Linda paused, “My husband, son and daughter every time!”

The Napa Chamber of Commerce is very pleased to have someone of Linda’s caliber join the team, even more so to have her attention on continuing the legacy of meaningful, impactful business networking events for which the Chamber has received multiple awards. To contact Linda please email [email protected] or call 707.226.7455. ■

Look for more Napa Chamber Staff Spotlights in upcoming editions of COMMERCE.

INSIDE THE CHAMBERGetting to know...

Visit our FB page for more photo albums of fun! facebook.com/napachamber

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...see page 8...

WE FOCus On businEss

Napa Chamber of Commerce Presidents Circle member, Vista Broadband Networks, Inc., has been in the business of providing wireless internet service in the North Bay since 2000. CEO and proprietor, Scott Mindmann, began his tech career as a circuit designer fresh out of business school in Dallas, Texas. He started his first ISP business there in the early 1990’s. Quickly realizing that business service was the client he most wanted to serve, and wireless was the way to go, he set up that city’s first wireless, microwave technology ISP connection. He was the first private start-up to file for frequencies eventually leading his businessoto grew to 17 cities. He successfully sold that business to MCI in1999. The upside of his business model was that the telephone companies could not compete, or woo his clients away. He owned all the necessary equipment, service was not reliant upon a copper or fiber line connection and issue resolution was rapid fire – both pleasing and building his customer base.

A year later and in Santa Rosa for a consulting job he fell in love with the area and moved his family to California. The home he moved to did not have internet service available at the time so he set up his own personal microwave internet connection. Word spread and soon he was in business again with Vista Broadband. Scott says the versatility and speed available through a microwave internet connection far surpasses that of DSL, cable or other ground services, as it is not bound by the geography of live telephone service. Their first client in the Napa area was the Napa Airport and from there local business boomed. Vista has been able to provide direct connections to many of Napa’s wineries and has transformed their internet experience. The business boost of a fast connection in today’s online world need hardly be detailed, whether from a sales, back office or marketing perspective, the customer interface is increasingly an internet experience.

Art Ochoa, the Director of IT at Asenctia Wine Estates and an avid Vista

Chamber Member Spotlight:

customer says: “I have been with Vista since 2002 and they have received more and more of our business every year for their incredible talent at getting things done on time and on budget. I have countless of examples of where I have given Scott and his team unrealistic deadlines and budget constraints for links and he has come through EVERY time. I have had him put in a link in Templeton, CA, with a two week deadline VISTA had no presence at that location but he came through in spades. The Bell companies could not and would not facilitate the bandwidth needed or the timelines placed on them months prior. The examples are a plenty and the network performance is also top notch I have slowly reversed the

popular standard of copper first and wireless second simply because I have much more bang for my buck with the wireless service being primary. Scott’s staff is very knowledgeable, professional, prompt, courteous and above all respectful to their clients. If there are questions or concerns they are

addressed in an orderly fashion and this has always been the case for our account even when we only subscribed to a handful of services. I would vouch for VISTA and what they stand for any day of the week! My hat’s off to you guys!”

As in the Dallas predecessor, Vista owns all their own components giving direct access between provider and user with no third party to call for help-line or service calls. Scott’s commitment to service goes above and beyond most people’s concept of the word. In 2004 he was out in the field personally


servicing a wireless tower when an auto accident critically injured his back. Since then he has been less able to be so hands-on, but his team has taken his leadership style to heart. With eight employees, four part-time and many tech sub-contractors, Scott attributes Vista’s success to his staff as in the aftermath of the accident he has learned the art of delegation.

With regard to his decision to join the Napa Chamber’s President’s Circle Scott says, “We joined the Napa Chamber as soon as we started seeing business in Napa Valley. I make it a priority to join the Chambers in the areas we service, but the Napa Chamber was a night and day difference from our other experiences. Over the course of time we have belonged to up to 8 separate Chambers at a time and in Napa they offered us a level of recognition we hadn’t seen before. We became PC members our first year. We attend all their events because they are relevant and provide great networking opportunities. The staff recognizes us, so we are not continually re-introducing ourselves. They represent us well to potential enquiries and have a personal touch that is so missing in

other areas.” Vista Broadband is a sponsor of the Napa Chamber’s annual Golf Tournament, which benefits the Chamber Foundation, and is a frequent nonprofit supporter. They provide a free portal to the Santa Rosa chapter of Amateur Radio Emergency Services (ARES) which is a federally regulated piece of the National Emergency Services system. They also support Little League, County Wildlife Rescue and many more organizations with IP service, installations, or other technical needs.

Vista Broadband services include: Speeds from 1Mbps to 10Gbps, Domain, Web, and

Email Hosting, Dynamic or Static IPs, SPAM filtering, VPN & VoIP Ready, 24x7x365 technical support, Disaster Preparedness Solutions, Co-location services, custom transport builds, Multi-tenant Building Set-Ups, VistaHD –Highly Diverse Redundancy Solutions, Remote Video Surveillance, Event Services, Remote Data Backup Services, Service Level Agreements, and more.

For more information visit www.vistabroadband.com, or email [email protected]. ■

VISTA BROADBAND NETWORKS, INC.

Scott Mindmann


NAPA CHAMBER 2011 OffICERSRyan Gregory, Chairman of the Board ................ Riechers & Spence Associates, Inc. Debra Dommen, Chair-Elect ......................................................Treasury Wine EstatesCherie Knox, Vice-Chair Advocacy ........................................... Redwood Credit UnionKent Kuhlmann, Vice-Chair Resources ........................ Kuhlmann Associates FinancialRichard Rybicki, Vice-Chair Membership ................................ Rybicki & AssociatesPamela Gleeson, Treasurer ..........................................................................Santen Inc.Randy Martinsen, Immediate Past-Chair ....................... Accelerated Marketing Group

Napa Chamber of Commerce

M I S S I O NAs the membership organization for business, we promote our community’s economic vitality and quality of life through leadership development, advocacy, facilitation and education.

BENEfIT from being a member of the Napa Chamber of Commerce

For membership information call Sherrell Harper - 707.257.4598

Cathy Lavaroni Hall - 707.738.6763

• Creating a Strong Local Economy• Promoting the Community• Providing Networking Opportunities• Supporting a Sustainable Future• Representing Business to Government• Engaging in Political Action

COMMERCE editorial is exclusively produced by the Napa Chamber of Commerce, 1556 First Street, Napa, CA 94559. 707.226.7455EDITOR: Katherine Zimmer Please email submissions to [email protected]

Lisa Batto, ACE, President/CEO 707.226.7455 • [email protected] Zimmer, VP Marketing & Communications 707.254.1147 • [email protected] Harper, Membership 707.257.4598 • [email protected] Lavaroni Hall, Membership 707.738.6763 • [email protected] Wick, Customer Service Manager 707.226.7455 • [email protected] Page, Executive Assistant 707.254.1145 • [email protected] Mancuso, Marketing Assistant 707.254.1144 • [email protected] Sullivan, Administrative Assistant 707.254.1143 • [email protected] Linda Bausch, Events & Membership Retention Mgr. 707.254.1148 • [email protected] Chakerian, Communications 707.738.6053 • [email protected]

NAPA CHAMBER BOARD Of DIRECTORSDr. Edna Baehre-Kolovani, Napa Valley College; John Cardinale, State Farm Insurance; Ken Frank, La Toque; Clay Gregory, The Napa Valley Destination Council; Paul Hicks, Payroll Masters Inc; Cathy D’Angelo Holmes, Coldwell Banker Commercial; Bill Lockhart, Edward Jones; Barry Martin, City of Napa; Kevin Massie, Napa Ford Lincoln Mercury; Sherry McKillop, Follow Your Compass; Shawn Milburn, Napa Valley Marriott Hotel & Spa; Beth Painter, Balanced Planning; Linda Parks, Lixit Corp.; Dennis Pedisich, Napa Community Bank; Jaime Penaherrera, Queen of the Valley Medical Center; Suzanne Shiff, Napa Valley Coalition of Nonprofit Agencies; Don Shindle, Westin Verasa Napa; Brenda Speth, Napa Valley Register; Rex Stults, Napa Valley Vintners; Dr. Patrick Sweeney, Napa Valley Unified School District; Kevin Teague, Holme Teague Roche Anglin LLP; Jay Williamson, Williamson and Company.HONORARY DIRECTOR: Julian Weidler, Retired.

Napa Chamber of Commerce STAff

WE’ll mEEt yOu thErE!For more information call 707.226.7455 or visit our website at napachamber.com

EvEnt CalEndar

June 28Labor Law Workshop

Napa Chamber Boardroom1556 First Street, Napa8:00 a.m. - 9:15 a.m.

Reservations RequiredRegister online @ napachamber.comRSVP by June 24

$25 Members$55 Prospective Members

June 16

MIXERAfter-Hours Mixer

Rabobank700 Trancas St., Napa5:30 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.


June 15

Wake Up Your Business

Wednesday“Boomers, Xers, Millenials:

Getting the Most from Generation in the Workforce”Napa Chamber Boardroom

7:30 a.m. - 9:00 a.m.

$20 per person Bring a friend for free

Register by calling SBDC at 707.253.3210

August 5No First Friday in July,

See You in August!

First Friday BusinessDevelopment LunchCompadres Rio Grille505 Lincoln Ave, Napa

11:30 - 1:00 p.m.


July 1515th Annual Benefit

Golf TournamentSilverado Resort

Check in Opens 9:30 a.m.Putting Contest 9:30-11 a.m.Shotgun Start at 11:30 a.m.After Hours Mixer 5:30 p.m.

October 28

SAVE THE DATE!E3

Silverado Resort and Spa8:00 a.m. - 2 p.m.

Creating a Strong Local Economy

3 expectations

education economics

BENEFIT GOLFTOURNAMENT

JULY 15, 2011SILVERADORESORTSOUTH COURSE

15 ANNUALTH

Join us for Napa Valley’s BEST BENEFIT GOLF TOURNAMENT and After-Hours MIXER!

FRIDAY, JULY 15, 2011Individual Player Registration is Open!

register online at napachamber.com

napachamber.com

June 2011 COMMERCE

Documents

Transcript of June 2011 COMMERCE