John Tutle

SERVPRO has been named Vendor of the Year by the New River Valley Apartment Council. SERVPRO is a cleaning and restoration company for property damage emergencies such as fire and flooding. Here is a press release from SERVPRO:

The New River Valley Apartment Council named SERVPRO of Montgomery & Pulaski Counties as “Vendor of the Year” at its recent Annual Awards Dinner. John Tutle, Marketing Representative for SERVPRO of Montgomery & Pulaski Counties has served as Vendor Director for the New River Valley Apartment Council, since January of 2009.

The New River Valley Apartment Council recognizes the established principles of business practice, friendly and honorable competition while subscribing to a Code of Ethics to promote, employ, and maintain our unequivocal support of the basic principles, honor and integrity in business and to provide the best in housing in the New River Valley Virginia Areas.

The Roanoke Regional Chamber of Commerce is holding its Business Technology Expo on April 19. Today’s the last day to save money with early exhibitor registration. Here is more information from the chamber:

2011 Business Technology Expo

Tuesday, April 19, 2011
Roanoke Civic Center’s Special Events Center
3 – 7 PM – NEW TIME!

FREE BUSINESS AFTER HOURS! 5 – 7 PM
To say ‘Thank You’ to our friends in the business community, we invite you to come and enjoy heavy hors d’oeuvres and networking on us!

What’s New for Expo in 2011?

• Job Fair – In an effort to reach out and help a large segment of our unemployed business community, we are running a job fair in conjunction with Expo.  Come and find employment leads while networking with our exhibitors!
• New Time – We’ve listened to our exhibitor’s feedback and in an effort to help with staffing and time management, we’ve moved our show hours to 3 – 7 PM.
• Small Business Section – For home-based and new start-up businesses, we have partnered with the Roanoke Regional Small Business Development Center to offer a low-cost option to make Expo affordable for our smaller businesses.

For more information on these exhibits, please contact Tom Tanner at 540.983.0717 x 223 or ttanner@roanokechamber.org. Read more »

Dollar General has opened a new store on Alleghany Spring Road in Shawsville. Here are the details from Dollar General:

Shoppers in Shawsville have a new place to shop for everyday essentials at low prices.  Dollar General recently opened a new store at 246 Alleghany Spring Road and is hosting a grand opening celebration Saturday, March 5, at 8 a.m.

At the grand opening event, customers will enjoy special deals and free prizes. The first 50 shoppers at the store will receive a $10 Dollar General gift card and the first 200 shoppers will receive a Dollar General tote bag, among other giveaways.

The new store features a fresh layout, designed to make shopping simple for customers.  Seasonal products are displayed in the center of the store, and departments are easily recognizable with visible signage.  Coolers conveniently located at the front of the store.

Dollar General stores offer convenience and value to customers by providing a focused selection of national brands and private brands of food, housewares, seasonal items, cleaning supplies, basic apparel and health and beauty care products.

The store employs approximately six to ten people.  And, anyone interested in applying for a job at Dollar General will find more information and a job application at www.dollargeneral.com in the Career Center. Read more »

The Roanoke Bar Association has announced the second You and the Law program, which educates the public about the legal system. Here is a press release from the bar association:

The Roanoke Bar Association is proud to announce the second series of a public education program designed to educate the public about the legal system in order to make citizens’ interaction with the system more efficient and less frustrating for the public, the courts and the lawyers. The 2011 series consists of four presentations called You and the Law that will be made on four Wednesday evenings in March, beginning March 9, at the Roanoke Higher Education Center, beginning at 7:00 p.m. You and the Law will cover some basic information relating to practices and procedures in the general district courts and the circuit courts, as well as covering substantive issues in specific areas of the law.

The presentations will have a particular emphasis on educating the public regarding issues and facets of the courts and the law where there may be public misperceptions or a lack of understanding, and presenting judges, lawyers, and law enforcement will draw from their personal experiences to give citizens a better idea of how the law and the legal system works. You and the Law will not provide legal services or legal advice concerning specific cases or issues in which citizens may be involved.

Guest speakers include Circuit Court and General District Court judges as well as local attorneys and members of law enforcement who specialize in each of the topics covered.

In 2010, the Conference of Local Bars, a division of the Virginia State Bar, awarded the Roanoke Bar Association an Award of Merit for the You and the Law program. We ask that the media refer to this program as You and the Law as that is how the information is listed on the RBA web site and how the registration phone line will be answered. Also, please include this statement each time you report on You and the Law: These seminars are free to the public, but seating is limited and registration is required. Anyone wishing to attend should call 540-265-8111 to register. Registrations for each seminar will be accepted beginning the Thursday prior to that seminar. Information and scheduling is attached and is also available on the Roanoke Bar Association web site at www.roanokebar.com, including any notification of weather cancellations. Read more »

IHOP restaurants are giving away free pancakes on March 1 in exchange for a donation to a local Children’s Miracle Network hospital. Here is a press release from IHOP:

WHAT: In celebration of National Pancake Day, IHOP restaurants nationwide will offer each guest a free short stack of buttermilk pancakes in an effort to raise awareness and funds for Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals.

This year, IHOP is hoping to stack up more donations than ever before, with a goal to raise $2.3 million, for a total of more than $7.65 million over six years with its National Pancake Day fundraising effort. To find a local IHOP or to donate online, visit www.ihoppancakeday.com.

WHY: For every delicious short stack of buttermilk pancakes served on National Pancake Day, IHOP guests are invited to make a donation to the Children’s Miracle Network. Donations made at IHOPs in the Roanoke area will benefit the Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals’ programs at Carilion Clinic Children’s Hospital.

WHEN: TUESDAY, March 1, 2011, 7 a.m. – 10 p.m.

WHERE: Participating IHOP restaurants nationwide.

National Pancake Day Fun Facts:

• IHOP served four million free pancakes on National Pancake Day 2010 and pancake lovers donated more than $2.1 million to children’s charities, far exceeding the fundraising goal.
• All of the free pancakes served on National Pancake Day 2010 would have created a stack more than 31.5 miles high.
• Since the inception of National Pancake Day in 2006, IHOP has raised more than $5.35 million and given away more than 10.1 million pancakes to support charities in the communities in which it operates.
• National Pancake Day 2010 was IHOP’s largest one-day event in the company’s 52-year history.

VT KnowledgeWorks is inviting interested executives to an informative lunch about the President’s Council, a network of executives who meet to exchange ideas. Here is a press release from VT KnowledgeWorks:

VT KnowledgeWorks is pleased to host its sixth consecutive year of Presidents’ Council, private networks of experienced executives working together to increase energy, share insight, reduce risk, and improve leadership skills.

Jim Flowers, Director of VT KnowledgeWorks, would like to invite interested company founders and executives to learn more about Presidents’ Council over lunch on March 15, 2011 at Noon, in the Lakeview Conference Room of VT KnowledgeWorks in the Virginia Tech Corporate Research Center.

Please RSVP to Christine Pushaw at 540-443-9100, extension 3 or via email at christine.pushaw@vtknowledgeworks.com.

Presidents’ Councils deliver

• a safe haven
• enduring personal relationships
• private, continuing consultation
• enhanced self-knowledge
• an extended national network of peers

Monthly half-day meetings

• are moderated by a mature business leader
• are scrupulously confidential
• follow a programmed agenda
• permit in-depth exploration of important issues

The Neathawk Dubuque & Packett advertising agency is now working with Search Associates, an international school placement organization. Here is a press release from ND&P:

Advertising agency Neathawk Dubuque & Packett (ND&P) has begun work with Search Associates, a recruitment organization that places teachers, administrators and interns in international schools throughout the world.

“We’re really excited to work with a company that takes such a personal approach to the services they offer,” said Denise Rushing, ND&P vice president and Chattanooga office director. “Search Associates has helped thousands of candidates to find suitable jobs overseas, and we look forward to helping them by developing effective tools to support their work.”

ND&P will work with Search Associates to completely redesign their website, focusing on a user-friendly site that will serve the needs of countless numbers of recruiters and candidates (teachers and school administrators) worldwide.

Search Associates placed over 1800 administrators, teachers and interns last year alone making them the largest of the International School placement organizations with offices spanning the globe.

J. Crew is expanding its distribution center in Lynchburg. Here are the details from the Associated Press:

Gov. Bob McDonnell says an expansion of J.Crew Group Inc.’s distribution center in Lynchburg will create 177 jobs.

McDonnell said Friday that the apparel retailer plans to expand the facility by 100,000 square feet.

J.Crew senior vice president Tony Brown says expanding the Lynchburg center will enhance the company’s commitment to customer service and support current and future growth.

J.Crew operates 249 retail stores and 85 factory outlet stores nationwide, a catalog business and online businesses jcrew.com and madewell.com.

Virginia Secretary of Commerce & Trade Jim Cheng will be attending the 2011 Virginia Small Business Summit in September. Here is a press release from the Virginia Small Business Partnership:

The Virginia Small Business Partnership is proud to host the 2011 Virginia Small Business Summit, which will bring together entrepreneurs and small business leaders from across the Commonwealth, who will focus on developing commonsense, business-friendly ideas for Virginia lawmakers.

The Partnership is excited to announce that Secretary of Commerce & Trade for the Commonwealth of Virginia, Jim Cheng will be serving as a speaker at the 2011 Virginia Small Business Summit. Jim Cheng is a successful businessman and former CEO of a government contracting firm based in Virginia. Jim has been actively involved in the community and has served on the boards of non-profits, state-level and community organizations. He was a former board member of the Virginia Small Business Finance Authority. Read more »

Sweet Briar College placed first in a statewide competition in which 15 college teams debated ethics and privacy. Here is a press release from the Virginia Foundation for Independent Colleges:

Sweet Briar College won the 12th Annual intercollegiate Wachovia
Ethics Bowl competition held February 13 and 14 on the campus of Virginia Wesleyan College in Norfolk, Virginia. A program of the Virginia Foundation for Independent Colleges (VFIC), this year’s Ethics Bowl theme was Ethics and Privacy and featured student teams from 15 independent colleges and universities in Virginia deliberating case studies with ethical dilemmas within the topic of privacy. The teams presented their analysis, positions and recommendations to panels of judges comprised of business, professional and educational leaders from across Virginia.

Sweet Briar College’s student team won the championship and the Batten Trophy this year in a final debate against the team from Hampden-Sydney College. Members of the winning team from Sweet Briar College were: Kathryn Alexander, senior majoring in Government; Samantha Britell, senior, Philosophy and Religion major; Catherine Marcks, freshman undeclared major and Jennifer Will, sophomore majoring in Philosophy; and Faculty Coordinator Dr. Kevin S. Honeycutt. Read more »