The Rutherford County Chamber of Commerce is guaranteeing every sold ticket is a winner this year at the annual Reverse Raffle. How? You might ask…because ten percent of the net profit on the Raffle goes to local charities and community projects. The remaining ninety percent of the proceeds is spent on operating the Chamber of Commerce, promoting the county to visitors and those seeking to come here with a business or to set up residence.  The Raffle also collects toys for the Salvation Army’s Christmas Cheer program.

Each ticket, and there are only 500, has a one in 500 chance of winning $10,000 cash and if prize contributions match past experiences, each ticket has a one in five chance of winning something!

The 2011 Annual Reverse Raffle Premier sponsors of the event are First National Bank, Rutherford Life Services and Thera-ssage.

WCAB’s Jim Bishop will be our MC for the evening. Tuscany Italian Grille has been selected to carter the event. Guests will be greeted by servers with an assortment of hot and cold appetizers that include the popular Puff Pastry Stuffed with Blue Cheese and Raspberry.  Dinner will be served at 7 PM and includes a Pasta station featuring Angelina’s Butter Cream Chicken, Penne ala Vodka and the Vegetarian pasta dish, Hand Carved Stuffed Holiday Pork Lion – Stuffed with Golden raisins and cranberry balsamic, Italian fresh Herb Bread Crumb Stuffing accompanied with Roasted Red Bliss Potatoes and Hari Corvere Vegetables. To round out these Italian delights the guests will be invited to help themselves to the traditional Italian Pastry Parade which includes Napoleons, Cannolis, Italian Cookies, Triamisu and many more!

A separate room will be set for music and dancing featuring The Sound Connection. Guests will be treated to the popular Zumba dancing from Lifestyles Wellness Center throughout the evening. Guests are encouraged to join in and try out the Zumba.

Those attending the Raffle will be treated to one of the best entertainment evenings of the year.  One ticket costs $100, admits two people, and covers all food, drinks, dancing and a chance at the grand prize.

Lend your support to this community effort and have a lot fun in the process. Join us at the Reverse Raffle.  For ticket info, call the Chamber at 287-3090.

The Rutherford County Chamber of Commerce has begun its search for a new Director. Donna McCann, President of the Chamber, stated “The new Director should be able to guide the Chamber into the future; enhance membership value; build strong relationships in the business community, and further position this Chamber as an indispensable asset to the area businesses.”

The Board of Directors is likewise looking for a person with strong ties to the community and a commitment to the mission of the organization. We are focused upon increasing membership by continuing to reach out to the business community and emphasizing the importance of chamber membership, as well as its many benefits.

The Rutherford County Chamber of Commerce is a nonprofit organization committed to promoting and supporting member businesses. The Chamber currently has more than 450 members.

All applications, resumes’ and salary requirements must be submitted to info@rutherfordcoc.com. No phone calls please.

Click here for job application.

Click here for job description.

On Tuesday December 14^th, Rick Austin, Executive Director of the Rutherford County Chamber of Commerce met with the senior project managers for Rosendin Electric, the primary electrical contractor for the Facebook construction project.

Austin and Rosendin managers discussed ways to ensure  electrical jobs to Rutherford County residents, union questions, and having to travel to Asheville in order for applicants to be interviewed.

After the meeting,  Austin stated that he was assured by Rosendin management that no one had to join a union in order to be employed on the job site, and that as of Tuesday, no one would be required to travel to Asheville to apply for the electrical jobs in Rutherford County.

“The folks from Rosendin were great people and seem sincerely interested in hiring as many qualified people from Rutherford County as possible. However, our people need to apply for those jobs, and now that travelling to Asheville is no longer required, this will make it much easier to do so.”

In fact, on Thursday December 16^th, at 6:00pm Rosendin is having an “industry night” at their triple wide construction trailer at Construction Gate #2 on the Facebook site, at 1271 Old Caroleen Rd, in Forest City.

Rosendin is going to be the largest employer on the site and will hire 120- 150 people in the electrical trades, from qualified electricians, to “ditch diggers”. 

“Rosendin is looking for hard working, conscientious, quality employees who either are qualified electricians, or who want to learn the profession.  Rosendin will train the right people and will also provide workers with proper certifications, so that they can bring those skills that they learn on the Facebook site, to other future employers once the Facebook project is complete.  I would encourage anyone who wants to apply, to show up on Thursday night to the Rosendin construction trailer”, said Austin.

November 27, 2010 has officially been declared ‘Small Business Saturday”!!!!

“Merchants this just may be the start of a great movement.”

In an effort to raise public awareness of local independent merchants, November 27, 2010 has nationally been dedicated to small independent sellers that create jobs, boost the economy and preserve our neighborhoods, who must contend with the large national retailers on Black Friday and Cyber Monday.

Although this is a campaign originally created by American Express and other social networks, including Facebook, this is an excellent opportunity to bring more awareness to our own local small businesses that may not have a relationship with American Express or Facebook.

We are asking that all of Rutherford County Small Business Owners; the heartbeat of our communities and local economy, who normally would not be open on Saturdays, to open your shops and restaurants on November 27, 2010 to give our friends and neighbors an opportunity to reinvest their money close to home. Our goal is to remind all Rutherford County citizens, instead of taking their business elsewhere, to shop Rutherford County first.

Citizens of Rutherford County need to remember that these are hard economic times and the merchants of our county need the support of the citizens. Although our small business merchants may not be able to match the door buster prices that bigger merchants may offer, they can offer something more, the personal touch with their service.

The Rutherford County Chamber of Commerce encourages every citizen to make at least one purchase from a local merchant on Saturday, Nov. 27, 2010, and in doing so, honor the dedication shown by the entrepreneurs that run these businesses.

For those people who are American Express card members, the eligibility is there to earn a $25 statement credit on any purchase of at least $25 on Small Business Saturday at any locally owned independent small businesses that accept American Express. To redeem the offer, the American Express Card can be registered at https://enroll.amexnetwork.com/US/sbs or www.facebook.com/SmallBusinessSaturday.

Small Business Saturday can help small business owners with opportunities that can help increase the requests for their products. Business owners who sign up on the Web site www.facebook.com/SmallBusiness Saturday will receive $100 that will go towards advertising credit on Facebook. This in turn will make customers aware and will encourage them to spend their money at their business on Nov. 27. For complete details about this offer go to www.facebook.com/SmallBusinessSaturday.

To help promote YOUR ‘Small Business Saturday’, Rutherford County Chamber of Commerce is encouraging members to submit their ‘specials’ to our website here: www.rutherfordcoc.com/news/?p=38

Mark your calendars and remember the date of Saturday, Nov. 27, 2010. Support your local small businesses on Small Business Saturday.