May/June 2013
Mount Pleasant/ Titus County Chamber of Commerce Newsletter
Business Report
www.mtpleasanttx.com 1
From the CEO Everything Texas Fest & Rodeo The Everything Texas Fest & the Mount Pleasant Rodeo Association Rodeo are finally here! May 30-June 1, 2013 there will be non-stop action at the MPRA’s Priefert Arena. This year starts the beginning of an awesome new adventure. In the past, the Chamber has hosted the Moonlight Festival in conjunction with the City of Mount Pleasant. It was always a great event! However, with the new branding campaign that the Chamber started in 2011, Mount Pleasant is Everything Texas, it is the perfect time to move in a new direction. That new direction has lead to a brand new festival and a partnership with the Mount Pleasant Rodeo Association. The Everything Texas Fest & Rodeo is going to be a great time for all! All the actions kicks off on Thursday, May 30 at 5:00 pm with vendors, food court, carnival, a concert by Taylor Heard and then the opening night of the Longhorn Trailer Sales Rodeo. The rodeo arena is in tip top condition for three nights of rodeo action. The Fest is ready for the crowds with a grand entrance provided by Diamond C Trailers, Rychlik’s Raceway and shopping galore. The Fest & Rodeo will be fun for the entire family! To read all the details, go to the Everything Texas Fest & Rodeo story later in this edition of the MPBR or go to www.everythingtexasfest.com. A special thanks goes out to the Fest’s presenting sponsors: Republic Services, Capps Insurance, Mount Pleasant Eye Care, Herschel’s Restaurant, Aep-Swepco, Pilgrim’s, Super 1 Foods, Hampton Inn & Suites and Rychlik’s.
Mission:
To build economic prosperity by engaging businesses and the community.
Vision: We will be "Everything Texas."
www.mtpleasanttx.com
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Table of Contents
From the CEO……….………………………………………………………………………..…….…...2 About our Members…………………………………………………...…………………..….…….5 Everything Texas Fest…………………………………………………….………………..….….6-7 Spotlight Member ….………………………………………………………………………..……...8 Ribbon Cuttings….…………………………………………………………………………….……….8 Business Spotlight Table/Ribbon Cuttings…...……………………………………..…..10 NTCC Sports………………………………………………………………………………………..…..12 Eat Local Results/Ribbon Cuttings………..………………………………………..…..12-13 Economy/Ribbon Cuttings……………………………………………………………..………..14 Calendar….…………………………………………………………………………………….……....15
Officers: Chairman: Martin Bell, Guaranty Bond Bank Chairman Elect: Shannon Norfleet, Titus Regional Medical Center Vice Chairman: Stephen Currey, Capps Insurance Treasurer: Brian Niblett, American National Bank Past Chairman: Jason Snodgrass, Stansell’s City Cleaners Directors: Beverly Austin, Northeast Texas Small Business Administration David Hooper, Echo Publishing Diana Kennedy, Century 21 Landmark Matt Klump, Expert Computing Brad Lowry, Pilgrim Bank Dennis Newman, Newman’s Electronics Colby Parker, Mount Pleasant Industrial Foundation Tommy Shumate, Sisk Motors Wes Welch, Welch Gas Richard Witherspoon, Herschel’s Restaurant Jey Yancey, Offenhauser Insurance 3
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Renewing Members The Alamo Mission Museum
Greene Title
Mount Pleasant Lions Club
Applebees Neighborhood Bar and Grill
Hansen’s Collision Specialist
Pilgrim’s
Big Tex Trailer Mfg., Inc.
Heav’nly Foods
Pleasant Springs Healthcare
CASA Lake County
Housing Authority of Mt. Pleasant
Priefert Complex Designs, LLC
Chambers Home Health and Physical Therapy
IHOP Restaurant #3232
Servpro of Paris
Cox Concrete Products
Ivan Smith Furniture
Superior Mortgage
Designin’ Women
J.D. May Charities, Inc
The Sign Express
Echo Publishing Company
Larry Lawrence Construction
The Space Place Storage Center
Expert Computing Solutions, Inc.
Living Truth Fellowship
Titus County Farm Bureau
Firmins Office Supply
McDonald’s of Mt. Pleasant
Two Senoritas Restaurant
First Baptist Church
Minadeo Eye Center
Wal-Mart #0131
First Federal Community Bank
Morrison Supply Company
First Presbyterian Church
Mount Pleasant Burgers and Fries
Individuals:
Flanagan and Flanagan
Mount Pleasant Computer Tech
Alecia Stringer
Goodwill Industries of Northeast Texas Inc
Mount Pleasant Healthcare Center
Bob & Delores Walker
New Members Pleasant Oil Company
Redfearn Property Management
Chuck Barkow
Tri-J’s Supply, Inc.
Lesher & Associates
Trinity Mother Francis Hospitals and Clinics
Jerusalem Gate
Fast Trac Medical Clinic
The Home Depot
Kahuna’s BBQ
Kelly Produce
Lady Mujaji
Doodlebugs
Rickey Crane DDS
Michael Mayben, Agent for Century 21Premier
AA’s Tree House Learning Center
It’s A Small World
Group
ETMC—Pittsburg
Vaughan’s Catfish on the Lake
Apples for the Teacher
Arci Salon 1&2
People Communication, Inc.
Mount Pleasant Ear, Nose and Throat Clinic
Day & Night Foods
Cannaday Business Services
755 East 16th Street Mount Pleasant, TX 75455 903.572.2500
lmpconcrete.com
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Everything Texas Fest Mount Pleasant will have quite a crowd this summer as the town hosts the Everything Texas Fest & Rodeo May 30 through June 1. With events ranging from concerts and a rodeo to a car show and the world-famous Texas Championship Outhouse Races. There is sure to be something for everyone to enjoy. The fun gets underway Thursday, May 30 as vendors of all kinds open their shops at 5 pm. The booths will showcase a variety of products and services ranging from arts and crafts to retail and education. The Taste of Everything Texas food court will also showcase a variety of different foods as they offer visitors a Taste of Everything Texas presented by Pilgrim’s. The first evening of the festival kicks off the Moonlight Concert Series, presented by Herschel’s at 6 pm. The opening act is Taylor Heard, 2012 Texas Country Music Hall of Fame winner and a local artist from Omaha, TX. The night continues with excitement and action as the Longhorn Trailer Sales Rodeo gets underway at 7:30 pm. Voted the United Pro Rodeo Association’s Rodeo of the Year in 2011, the MPRA Rodeo showcases the best cowboys and cowgirls around. Pro rodeo announcer Dave McMahon will once again be calling the action from horseback while nationally known PRCA Rodeo Clown Cody Sulsbee will be protecting the riders and entertaining the crowd. Wing Ranch Rodeo will once again be providing the best stock available for the rodeo. The rodeo will feature nightly Chuck Wagon races as well as nightly mutton bustin’ and a calf scramble. Each performance will also feature a “kiss cam” and a live camera search for the “best cowboy in the crowd.” Thursday night will be “Family Night”, Friday night will be “Everything Texas” night and Saturday will be “Veterans Night” with all veterans getting in for free.
Ali Dee www.mtpleasanttx.com
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Friday features more of the festival, carnival and food alley as well as another Rodeo performance at 7:30 pm. Friday night’s Moonlight Concert Series includes a performance by Ali Dee , star of the reality show Texas Women, an award winning performer and the voice of the Dallas Mavericks. The Everything Texas Fest continues Saturday morning with the Everything Texas Farmer’s Market starting at 8 am. Local growers will have the chance to show off and sell their best produce as the second day of the festival gets underway. The fun continues at 9:00 am with the Bronc Bustin’ 5K run and Stick Horse Relay. The race features a 3.1-mile course across flat terrain. For those who are not quite ready to run the full course, 2-person teams can use a stick horse to brand their team and race the course Bart Crow relay style. The festival continues with the Kid’s Horseless Rodeo at 10 am. Open to kids ages 10 and under, the horseless rodeo features all of the best rodeo events and lots more. Make sure and bring your stick horse and join in the action! The NTCC Carroll Shelby Automotive Car and Bike Show will get underway at 10 am, featuring classic cars and trucks of all makes and models. Some of the categories include: Modern (1996-present), Late Model (1974-95), Classic (1973 and before), Import, Truck, Motorcycle, Most Outrageous and Custom Paint. Festival goers will have the chance to get a look at the MPRA Rodeo Queen Competition at 11 am as the Speech and Modeling competition will take place on the main stage. The competition is broken down into four divisions: Queen, Junior Queen, Princess and Sweetheart. The winners of each division will receive a saddle and a buckle as well as many assorted prizes. Those looking to show off their fine motor skills can compete in the Horseshoe Pitching Competition beginning at 1 pm. This backyard sport will be brought under the big lights at the Everything Texas Fest. The real fun gets underway at 4 pm with the start of the ever-popular Texas Championship Outhouse Races, presented by Rychlik’s. The competing outhouses will be on display all day at the NTCC Car Show. There will be numerous heats throughout the afternoon with the finals starting at 6 pm. The first-place winner will receive $150 in prize money with $100 going to second and $50 for third. At 7:30 pm, the final performance of the Longhorn Trailer Sales Rodeo will start. The rodeo will end with the fourth annual “Saturday Night Fights” MPRA Bullfight Challenge. After the rodeo, the Moonlight Concert Series will conclude with a concert by the Bart Crow Band at 10 p.m. For more information on the Everything Texas Fest and Rodeo, go to www.everythingtexasfest.com or call the Chamber at 903.572.8567.
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Member Spotlight Column: Diamond C Trailers Home-grown business success stories don’t come much bigger than Mount Pleasant’s Diamond C Trailers. Started in the back yard of Kim and Mike Crabb in 1985, Diamond C Trailers has gone from two employees at it’s inception to more and 100 in 2013. These days, Diamond C designs, manufactures, and markets more than 60 diverse models of open flat -bed trailers. As a custom manufacturer, they also offer many options for most standard models as well as ground-up, custom design and manufacturing. “We are an organization of professional people working in the name of progress,” Kim Crabb said. “We are a family owned and operated company that operates based on traditional family morals, including honesty, respect, humbleness and pure integrity.” The company grew quickly after starting up 28 years ago and, between 1985 and 1989, Diamond C Trailers went from a four-person operation to boasting 60 employees. Now, Diamond C maintains its position as an industry leader by continuously demonstrating excellent quality and value, cutting edge innovation, and superior customer service as the company distributes its products through a network of dealer partners across the United States and in Canada. “We're striving to build not just great trailers, but a great company and organization that offers everyone involved the tools they need to succeed and accomplish their goals,” Carbb said. To learn more about trailers at Diamond C, go to www.diamondc.com or call 903.572.8855.
Ribbon Cuttings
Heart to Heart Hospice Kahuna’s BBQ 413 South Greer Pittsburg, TX 75686 903.856.0000
www.mtpleasanttx.com
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201 West 20th Street Mount Pleasant, TX 75455 903.575.9111
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Ribbon Cuttings Empower Services 3318 Highway 49 Mount Pleasant, TX 75455 855.361.8472
Airport Collision and Paint, Inc. 200 Mike Hall Parkway Mount Pleasant, TX 75455 903.572.0300
Business Spotlight Table
One of the longtime staples in Mount Pleasant, Sears, at 1203 West Ferguson Road is a great place to find a little bit of everything. Locally owned and operated, by Carl Randermann, Sears carries all of the top 10 major home appliance brands, as well as consumer electronics, tools, lawn and garden equipment, mattresses and more! Go visit Sears today to meet all of your home improvement store needs. Sears is the sponsor of this month’s Business Spotlight Table at the Chamber. Stop by and see a few of the great items you can pick up at your Mount Pleasant Sears store. Sears is open Monday-Friday 9:00 am to 7:00 pm, Saturday 9:00 am, to 6:00 pm and Sunday 11:00 am to 4:00 pm.
www.mtpleasanttx.com
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NTCC Sports Another successful sports season is winding to a close at Northeast Texas Community College. The Lady Eagle softball team finished third in their zone and fourth in the conference this season. The team’s winning season was made possible my several strong individual performances. Jessica Miller led the team in batting average, hitting .457 in conference play this season while Alizabeth Autrey also hit above .400, boasting a .429 average. Hannah Holovach, Erica Graham and Brittany Avila all hit above .300 for the Lady Eagles during conference play this season. Freshman Katie Tapley led the Lady Eagle pitching staff with a 5-3 record in conference play with 35 strikeouts and a 2.16 ERA. The Eagles men’s rodeo team narrowly missed sending the entire squad to the College National Finals Rodeo after finishing third in the Southern Region this season, but four Eagles will be making the trip to Casper, Wyoming in June after finishing in the top-three in their individual events. Wacey Hathcock will be riding saddle broncs in Casper after finishing third in the Southern Region this season. The duo of Kyler Bramhall and Zack Bocco will be representing NTCC in the team roping competition as the pair each finished second (Zack as a heeler and Kyler as a header). Sadie Johnson will also be making the trip to Wyoming after finishing third in goat tying in the Southern Region this season. Bocco also finished second in the Southern Region’s Men’s All-Around Cowboy standings this season, just 14 points behind the winner and just ahead of teammate Dustin Jackson, who finished third. After winning a conference title a season ago, the Eagle baseball team had a rough season in 2013, finishing 16-31 overall and just 9-21 in conference play. Despite the tough season, there were some bright spots on the Eagle roster this season, including James Lacy, who hit .458 in conference play in 2013 and Hayden Martin, who finished with a batting average of .382. With the 2013 season in the books, the Eagles are looking to fall and spring 2014 to be big seasons!
Lady Eagle All-Conference Selections Alizabeth Autrey Katie Tapley Erica Graham Hannah Holovach
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Lady Eagle outfielder, Kelsey Kirkland
1st Team Infield 2nd Team Pitcher 2nd Team Infield 2nd Team DP/UT
Lady Eagle All-Region Selections Alizabeth Autrey Jessica Garza www.mtpleasanttx.com
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2nd Team Infield 2nd Team Catcher 12
Eat Local Results The Chamber of Commerce Eat Local Campaign helped drive more than $17,500 towards local restaurants in the month of April. Contestants turned in 1,130 receipts from local Chamber-member restaurants to the Chamber of Commerce as entries into the contest during the month, accounting for $17,544.65 in local sales. The 2013 total was quite an increase from that of 2012, when the contest brought in approximately $10,000 in receipts. The prize drawing for this year’s campaign was held at Herschel’s Restaurant (which accounted for the majority of the receipts turned in). Cody Wilson, who ate at Don Juan’s, was the winner of a big-screen television from Hess Furniture as his name was drawn by Herschel’s owner Richard Witherspoon. There was also a drawing for $170 to be awarded to a waiter, which went to Jason of El Chico.
Ribbon Cuttings Subway 2306 South Jefferson Mount Pleasant, TX 75455 903.572.4500
Pizza Hut 1902 South Jefferson Mount Pleasant, TX 75455 903.572.1902
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The Mount Pleasant Economy Unemployment Rate March 2013
February 2013
March 2012
Texas
6.4%
6.4%
7.0%
Titus County
6.9%
7.0%
7.0%
“In the last twelve months, the private sector added more than 317,000 jobs, and every major industry recorded positive annual growth,� said Texas Workforce Commission (TWC) Chairman Andres Alcantar.
Sales tax (April 2013) Net Payment
Comparable
This period
Prior year
400,579.09
344,143.72
Mount Pleasant
% Change
16.39%
2013
2012
To Date
To Date
1,604,814.75
1,450,757.31
% Change
10.61%
Ribbon Cuttings Barefoot Bay Marina 5244 FM 1520 Pittsburg, TX 75686 903.856.3643
Lescher and Associates 126 West 2nd Street Mount Pleasant, TX 75455 903.572.2889
www.mtpleasanttx.com
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Calendar of Events: June May 30-June 1: Everything Texas Fest and MPRA Rodeo June 1-June 30: GROW LOCAL month June 4: Tourism Meeting, Chamber of Commerce, 8:00 am June 4: Ribbon Cutting: Heritage Park Village, 1714 North Edwards, 10:00 am June 5: Ambassadors, El Chico, 12:00 pm June 7: Friday Burger Party, Chamber of Commerce, 11:30 am – 1:00 pm June 13: Everything Texas Fest Wrap-Up Meeting, Chamber of Commerce, 8:00 am June 13: Ribbon Cutting: The 80 Acres, 495 CR 3150 Cookville, 10:00 am June 19: Chamber Board of Directors, Chamber of Commerce, 8:00 am June 25: Ribbon Cutting: Super Plaza, 1210 West Ferguson, 10:00 am
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Mount Pleasant/ Titus County Chamber of Commerce 1604 N Jefferson Ave Mount Pleasant, TX 75455 www.mtpleasanttx.com info@mtpleasanttx.com (p) 903.572.8567 (f) 903.572.0613
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