Month: December 2010

High Street or bust!

I’m hitting the road now to head to Pottstown, where I will do some window-gazing and actual shopping. 🙂

Thanks for all the replies regarding the Happy Hour. We’ve got at least 28 revelers, who will be hanging at The Brickhouse tonight from 5-7 pm. If you’re inclined to get out of the cold before heading home, no need to RSVP at this point, just show up!

For the many folks who can’t make it, I look forward to seeing you at the next event: Friday, January 28th, location TBD. In the meantime, enjoy the holidays, be safe, and I hope 2011 is good to you and your loved ones!

SCORE Scholarships

I’ve now added a tab at the top of the blog for folks to easily find the info and application for two SCORE scholarships – each valued at $100 – for the January Small Business Workshop Series. The scholarships are for anyone running a Pottstown-based business who would like to learn, or brush up on, solid skills needed to succeed.

I have also been contacted by a donor who has offered $100 toward another scholarship. Depending on how many applications we get, we may use it now or use it for the next workshop series in April/May. It would be great if we can get a couple different donors for each series and keep this going to support local business.

Happy Hour this Wednesday!

The December Positively!Pottstown Happy Hour is taking place this WEDNESDAY, Dec. 15 from 5-7 at The Brickhouse. We received a donation of a Happy Hour from Katy Jackson (thanks, Katy!) AND we didn’t want to interfere with the Friday night Hometown Holiday Celebrations happening downtown this month.

The fun at The Brickhouse means there are discounted appetizers and drinks in the bar area. So… there’s no $5 cover charge (you’re on your own!), but Positively!Pottstown will buy appetizers until the petty cash from the last event runs out. Get there early to take advantage 🙂 Look forward to seeing you there!

If your life is particularly nuts this time of year and you can’t make it, mark your calendar for the next Happy Hour, which will be held Friday, Jan. 28th from 5-8 pm. Grumpy’s Handcarved Sandwiches will provide the food. I’m still trying to nail down the location, but hoping it will be the Farmers’ Market.

Overwhelming Number of Things to Do!

Seriously. I hope no one still thinks there’s nothing to do in Pottstown on Friday or Saturday night. I’m going to give a quick overview, but you can also check the calendar for details.

Everyone is talking about Pottstown’s HIT MUSICAL – “A CHRISTMAS CAROL,” now at the Tri-County Performing Arts Center. There’s a show tonight at 8pm, 2 shows on Saturday (matinee & evening) and a Sunday matinee. Tickets are going fast; you won’t want to miss it.  STAGE Magazine gave it a nice review here. For tickets, go here.

There’s the Teeny Tiny Holiday Show at The Gallery, the Winter Instrumental Music Festival tonight at The Hill School, Mad Poets Society at Churchill’s tomorrow night and the Coventry Singers at Emmanuel Lutheran on Sunday. The Historic Pottstown by Candlelight Tour is also on Sunday from 1-6 pm.

And the madness continues now – this very minute –  with the Hometown Holiday Celebration: chestnuts roasting, Santa, carriage rides, a beautifully lit downtown. There’s still time – turn off your computer and go out now!

SCORE Scholarships Available

POSITIVELY!POTTSTOWN
SCORE SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM
January 10, 17, 24 and 31, 2011

Positively!Pottstown, a community blog dedicated to promoting Pottstown, is offering two $100 scholarships for an upcoming Small Business Workshop Series taught by members of Pottstown SCORE. Positively Pottstown scholarships are available to anyone who is already running a business in Pottstown or who is planning to open a business in Pottstown.

SCORE is the Service Corps of Retired Executives, a nonprofit association sponsored by the U.S. Small Business Association. Course instructors are experienced practitioners who teach practical, real-life skills and strategies for those interested in starting a business or learning how to run their business better. By attending a SCORE workshop, entrepreneurs will also be introduced to a network of supportive professionals who want to see you succeed.

The next workshop series will be held on January 10, 17, 24 and 31, 2011. Registration begins at 6:45 pm for all workshops, which then run from 7-9:30 pm. The course includes a manual on preparing a business plan.

January 10 – Sources of Information, and the Tax and Legal Implications of the Different Legal Structures
January 17 – The Business Plan and The Business Loan
January 24 – Sources of Market Information and Marketing
January 31 – It’s All About Profit

For more detail, visit SCORE’s website at http://www.pottstownscore.org. Please note: The January workshops will be held at the Tri-County Chamber of Commerce Conference Center, 152 E. High Street, Suite 360, Pottstown, PA 19464.

To be considered for a scholarship, please cut-and-paste and fill out the application below in Word or an email. On a separate page, write a few paragraphs about your current business or your business plans; include some information about your past business/work experience. You do not need to submit a résumé.

Please mail or e-mail the application and your written statement by December 28, 2010 (e-mail & postmark deadline) to one of the addresses below. Winners will be contacted and announced here on January 3, 2011. Visit www. PositivelyPtown.com. Questions? Call 609-658-9043.

Sue Repko
c/o Positively Pottstown Blog
P.O. Box 1509
Pottstown, PA 19464
OR
positivelypottstown@gmail.com

POSITIVELY!POTTSTOWN
a community blog at http://www.PositivelyPtown.com

 

 

POSITIVELY!POTTSTOWN

SCORE SCHOLARSHIP APPLICATION

January 10, 17, 24 and 31, 2011

Positively!Pottstown $100 scholarships for SCORE workshops are available to anyone who is running a business in Pottstown or planning to open a business in Pottstown.

Please type or print clearly:

Name:___________________________       Phone:_____________________

Address:__________________________       Mobile: ____________________

City:_____________________________       E-mail: _____________________

State: ________________ Zip:________        Website: ____________________

Business Name:____________________     Phone:______________________

Address:__________________________       Mobile: _____________________

City:_____________________________       E-mail: _____________________

State: ________________ Zip:_______           Website: ____________________

The following information must accompany the application:

â–ˇ Write 2-3 paragraphs about your current business or your business plans; include some

information about your past business/work experience. You do NOT need to submit a

résumé.

â–ˇ Is your business or proposed business located in the Borough of Pottstown?

Circle one: Yes   No

â–ˇ Would you be willing to be quoted in future press releases about SCORE workshops or the

Positively!Pottstown scholarship? Please note: This is NOT required to receive the

scholarship. Circle one: Yes   No

â–ˇ I certify that the information provided in this application is true & complete.

Signature________________________  Date ­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­________________________

Send to:

Positively Pottstown Blog

P.O. Box 1509

Pottstown, PA 19464

Or

PositivelyPottstown@gmail.com

Must be postmarked or received via e-mail by: December 28, 2010

(Scholarships are non-transferable. Recipients will receive a certificate good for the

January 2011 Small Business Workshop Series, including manual.)

 

Economic & community development… To-do list

I feel like I’ve been neglecting this blog. On the other hand, because of this blog, the seeds of a whole bunch of ideas and activities were planted and now they need some cultivation & tending… which is happening out in the real world, not online. So, here’s my list of things to do ASAP. I will put up related posts as quickly as I can. Maybe by posting this & being held accountable to you, my readers, I can check some of these things off the list!

1) Announce SCORE scholarships! Two $100 scholarships for Pottstown-based business owners to attend the January workshops to be held at the Tri-County Area Chamber of Commerce. (Positively!Pottstown now has a Pottstown P.O. Box — 1509. I’m still trying to convince myself that that’s a lucky number…)

2) Highlight all the awesome things happening this weekend in P-town.

3) Finish my part of a grant app. to get visitors off the River trail and into the downtown. Marketing the arts, historic, recreational & culinary resources — yeah!!

4) Make edits to Community Land Trust powerpoint & get back out to working group.

5) Send out eVite for Happy Hour! This has been posted here (see right sidebar) for several weeks but I forgot to send out the eVite!! (Happy Hour is this Wed., Dec. 15, 5-7 pm at The Brickhouse. Take time out from the insanity of the holidays to hang out! Nothing fancy, just a good, old-fashioned Happy Hour. Reduced prices on drinks & appetizers. (Happy Hour certificate donated by Katy Jackson – thanks, Katy!) I have some petty cash from the last Happy Hour, so get there early to take advantage of some free appetizers until the $$ runs out!

6) Housing data analysis… totally unrealistic to think I’m going to get to this today… but it goes on the list!

Is this insane? I don’t know. I learned to multi-task while waitressing, scooping ice cream and washing dishes at The Cup at the corner of Charlotte & Wilson way, way back in the day. You had to do everything… always with a smile. 🙂 (I would love to see that place open again.)

Hometown Holidays draw crowds

Last Friday night, there was so much going on downtown that there was no way I could take it all in. Fortunately the action continues this coming Friday, Dec. 10 and the following Friday, Dec. 17. Here’s what I did do…

Remembering Rev. H. L. Butler
I actually kicked off my Hometown Holiday Celebration by dropping in on the tail end of the Pottstown Firebirds luncheon at Brookside Country Club. The reminiscences were in full swing. I just love hearing stories about antics from days-gone-by and this crew had plenty of them. Later, there was more schmoozing with the team at The Gallery’s Open House. You might want to consider purchasing a poster, “Hometown Heroes,” which honors that championship team and was painted by local artist, Mary Ellen Christ. The Gallery also has a wealth of unique gift items in every price range. Last year I got my mom a stained glass cross that hangs in her kitchen window, catching the morning light. It’s something to reflect on every single day. I’ll be back in town this week to do some shopping & I can’t wait; you never know what you’ll find!

Pine Forge Academy Choir
After I left The Gallery, I heard the Pine Forge Academy Choir down at Smith Plaza and caught up with some folks – there was a very nice crowd there all night long. But before too long, my toes were going numb. No matter – I just hopped across the street to Churchill’s and got a melted cheese and tomato pannini. That hit the spot. Churchill’s is so beautifully decorated, and there was a steady crowd as people purchased tickets for the horse-drawn carriage rides. There was a line all night, so get there early this Friday, Dec. 10th so you don’t miss the chance for a charming ride down High Street.

Churchill's on Friday night
After that, I dashed up to St. Al’s, looking for my mom, and caught some of the Charlie Brown performance happening in Begly Hall. But, alas, no sign of my mom. I failed her again! (Like my father, I talk too much and then I don’t show up where I’m supposed to be at the right time.)

There are so many more things I need to do in the coming weeks… look at all the decorated storefronts and vote online at The Mercury, see A Christmas Carol at Tri-PAC – it is getting rave reviews! – take a carriage ride… and maybe sit on Santa’s lap. I’ve got some pretty big wishes for Pottstown for the coming year… maybe he can help. 🙂

Playing catch-up…

1. I feel like I’ve been put through the wringer. Put my last packet of writing for this term into the mail about an hour ago. Brain = fried.

2. The previously mentioned Holiday Hop must, unfortunately, be canceled. Wait. It’s actually it’s not that unfortunate because I will still be there! And I will still be hopping from one place to another and “laughing all the way,” as the song goes. But I didn’t have time to properly advertise it and get all the hoo-ha and goodies organized, and the few people I heard from who were interested in the Hop will be out on the town with their families, so we will run into each other here and there, but not Hop as a group.

3. PLEASE, PLEASE come downtown tomorrow night to check out all the fabulous decorations, fun activities, shopping and merriment!! The Mercury describes a lot of it right here. I will be at the Firebirds lunch tomorrow and The Gallery Open House beginning at 5 pm at 254 E. High Street before hopping around town.

4. Get your tickets for A CHRISTMAS CAROL! It opens at Tri-PAC at 245 E. High Street tonight and runs the next few weeks. I’ll put up a separate post later but get it on your calendar now. Here’s a sneak preview from The Mercury.

5. Last but not least: HAPPY HANNUKAH!! to all readers observing the holiday. May your latkes be crisp and your home filled with the glow and warmth of the Menorah candles.

Pottstown Firebirds return to the nest this Friday!

I was just a kid, but I remember the Firebirds home at the corner of Hanover & Third Streets, across from St. Al’s, if my memory is correct. I think there was a big sign that said something like, “Home of the Championship Pottstown Firebirds.” As a budding athlete, who was interested in all kinds of sports, there was a lot of pride in the community for that team. I’m really looking forward to attending the lunch and reception described below. Come out and meet some of the men who made it happen! More details can be found below and at The Gallery’s website.

Come Celebrate with the Pottstown Firebirds!

The Pottstown Firebirds are coming home, and you are invited to share the day with them! In celebration of the Gallery School of Pottstown’s second edition of the Pottstown Signature Series, which this year honors the Pottstown Firebirds, we will be holding a day of celebration leading up to our holiday party.

The day begins with a fabulous lunch at Brookside Country Club with the team members and managers of the Pottstown Firebirds. Enjoy a delicious menu and relive that time in our town’s history when the Firebirds were all the buzz. The lunch starts at noon and a reservation is required.

Scheduled to attend from the Firebirds: Bob Calvario — President; Al Cavallo — Program advertising; Neil Mahr– Printing /Programs; Jack Dolbin — WR (played for Denver Broncos); Greg Berger — DB; Leo Levandowski — C; Herb Nauss — DB; Dr. William Rakow — DB; Frank Mitchell — OT; John Land — RB; and Jim Haynie – QB.

Tickets are $100 and include lunch and your very own Signature Series poster. A $40 option is available for those only interested in lunch.

And… You are cordially invited to our Annual Holiday Party!
The evening will wind down at Gallery on High, where we will have our annual holiday party with the players and coaches as our special guests. The team will be on hand to sign both the Signature Series posters, which will be available for purchase at the party, or any other Firebirds memorabilia you may have saved over the years. There will also be a display with some Firebirds items from the players’ personal collections. Good food and good times with friends old and new.

Thanks to The Pourhouse for providing the food for this great event!

The party starts at 5pm and ends at 8pm, and there is NO CHARGE to attend. A small donation to the Gallery School for autographed items is greatly appreciated.

Please RSVP to info@galleryonhigh.com or 610-326-2506.

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