Prevea Health announced six new physicians who will be joining the Prevea Health Family Medicine Residency Program as residents in June 2018. As part of this program, the residents will receive specialized, family medicine training for three years at the program sites in Eau Claire and Augusta. They will work under the supervision of experienced faculty physicians and community preceptors to provide direct medical care to patients. Incoming resident physicians include:

• Owen Beck, DO, is from the Southwestern United States. He graduated from Pacific Northwest University of Health Sciences College of Osteopathic Medicine.
• Kiesha Bullock, MD, is from Alexandria, Minn. She graduated from University of North Dakota School of Medicine and Health Sciences.
• Cody Howe, DO, is from White Bear Lake, Minn. He graduated from Des Moines University College of Osteopathic Medicine.
• Laura Padhye, MD, is from Rochester, Minn. She graduated from University of Minnesota Medical School.
• Yuliya Perepelitsa, MD, is from Prior Lake, Minn. She graduated from St. George’s University School of Medicine.
• Clayton Wagner, MD, is from Belle Plaine, Minn. He graduated from St. George’s University School of Medicine.

Prevea Health partners with the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Medical College of Wisconsin (MCW) and HSHS Sacred Heart Hospital in Eau Claire to operate the Prevea Health Family Medicine Residency Program.

Security Sales & Integration (SSI) presented Per Mar Security Services (permarsecurity.com) the SAMMY Award for Best Website Design at the 23rd Annual SAMMY Awards ceremony. The award ceremony kicked off the electronic security industry’s International Security Conference & Exposition (ISC West). The SAMMY Awards recognize installing security integrators, dealers and monitoring providers for their marketing, installation and overall business excellence. A panel of industry experts judged the nearly 130 entries. 

Mayor Brendan Pratt, City Administrator Mike Golat outline successes, challenges at the Chamber's Eggs & Issues Breakfast

A crowd of 120 business and community leaders filled Altoona's new River Prarie Center on Friday, April 20,  to hear about the city's remarkable growth, improving qualify of live, and ongoing challenges. 

Just elected to his second term, Mayor Brendan Pratt kicked off the meeting talking about the challenge of having sufficient affordable housing, which he called "a critical need" if the city is going to have continued success in bringing in new people.  With few homes on the market at the lower end of the price scale, he said he plans to take action, including proposing an affordable housing initiative within the next few weeks.

On a bright, sunny morning, with the glass walls of the River Prarie Center highlighting its location in that outdoors-oriented setting, City Administrator Mike Golat brought participants up to date on the city's continued growth and business development. He centered his remarks around the "Power of 10," drawn from principles of placemaking that Altoona has used as an active and deliberate part of its economic development efforts. 

"Reasonable application of regulations" was the first of 11 principles he credited for part of Altoona's record of over-10% growth for three years in a row.  He noted that government's attitude can either be, "why we can't do this," or "how can we get something done" while still maintaining the necessity of sound regulations. He said Altoona's attitude is the latter, since, with developers, "there's something else they could be doing with their time and resources." 

Among new businesses opening in Altoona this year are 44 North Gastropub, Cabin Coffee, Crossfit River Prairie, Physician's Weight Loss, Oral Surgery Associates, and others.  The other key principles highlighted by Golat included:

• Focusing on our natural assets
• Collaborating with our neighbors
• Planning for the future
• Investing in infrastructure
• Keeping our community safe
• Providing excellent schools
• Keeping our financial house in order
• Engaging our citizens
• Fostering an industrious and fulfilled workforce
• Promoting and investing in quality of life

Altoona is promoting it's first P10 Festival [rescheduled to June 16], and Golat told attendees they can look forward to a new series of music-focused outdoor events on Wednesday evenings during the summer. 

Friday was also timely because the City of Altoona was awarded the Chamber's Community Development Award at the Chamber Annual Meeting the previous Tuesday, April 17.

Thanks to our sponsors: The Eggs & Issues Series is a Chamber Business Advocacy event. Advocate level sponsors are Xcel Energy and Miron Construction; Supporter level sponsors are Banbury Place and Eau Claire Energy Cooperative. 

See more at...
Youtube video of the Eggs & Issues presentation
Mayor: Altoona needs more homes (Leader Telegram)
Rapid growth: That’s what continues to happen in Altoona’s River Prairie (Leader Telegram)

Posted by Scott Rogers, Governmental Affairs and Workforce Director, April 23, 2018

At Royal Credit Union, our story is your story!

Creating a positive impact in the lives we touch since 1964.

Royal Credit Union was made up of just 100 Members when we were organized in April 1964 to serve the employees of Uniroyal and their families. In November of 1972, Royal was granted permission to add other employee groups to its membership; and over the next two years we did just that, bringing 27 new groups into the family. That popularity told us we were ready for a community charter.

With more than 190,000 Members today, on the surface we don't really look like we did when we just occupied a small office in a tire plant. But there are many, many things that have remained true from day one. These things are highlighted in our Core Values, which you will find here and posted in each of our offices. More importantly, you will find these Core Values instilled in each of our team members, who make sure to listen to your story and help you in any way they can.
​

​What an amazing 104th Annual Meeting! On April 17, 680 attendees celebrated the accomplishments of our 1,215 members. This event was held at UW-Eau Claire Davies Center. The Chamber's leadership was transferred from Board Chair, Tim Benedict, Benedict Refrigeration to Laura Talley, BMO Harris Bank .  Pete Farrow, Group Health Cooperative of Eau Claire served as the emcee. ​

 
BOARD MEMBERS 
EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
Tim Benedict, Benedict Refrigeration-Board Chair 
Laura Talley, BMO Harris Bank - Board Chair Elect 
Terry McHugh, WEAU 13 News- Secretary/Treasurer 
Dave Johnson, EO Johnson Business Technologies - Past Chair

VICE CHAIRS
Scott Biederman, Musky Tank
Mark Faanes, Wipfli  
Paul Kohler, Charter Bank
Jerry Shea, Market & Johnson

BOARD MEMBERS 
Steve Anderson, Ruder Ware LLSC
Jason Craig, Mayo Clinic Health System
Ned Donnellan, Donnellan Real Estate
Anne Hargrave-Thomas, Oakleaf Surgical Hospital 
Scott Hoffmann, Wisconsin Independent Network 
Margo Keys, Chippewa Valley Technical College
Nicole Lasker, Lasker Jewelers
Paul Madsen, RainMaster Lawn Systems
Nick Meyer, Volume One 
Andy Neborak, Eau Claire Express Baseball 
Dale Poynter, SDS Architects
Daneille Strong, Weld Riley, S.C.
Lynn Thompson, Eau Claire Energy Cooperative
Jason Vance, Ken Vance Motors
Nick White, Live in Eau Claire
Amy Wolfe, Trubilt Collision Center
MaiVue Xiong, Weld Riley

NEW BOARD MEMBERS
Aaron Black, EO Johnson Business Technologies
Michelle Heinzen, Bremer Bank

AWARD WINNERS 

Small Business of the Year 
Boxx Sanitation
Rainmaster Lawn Systems

Woman of Achievement 
Emily Moore, Feed My People Food Bank

Ambassador of the Year 
Mary Glassbrenner, Group Health Cooperative of Eau Claire AND 
Marianne Klinkhammer, Gator Garb Promotions 

Chamber Volunteer of the Year 
Jenna Ziegler, Group Health Cooperative of Eau Claire

Outstanding Young Professional 
Aaron Black, EO Johnson Business Technologies

Public Employee of the Year 
Gregg Moore, Former Eau Claire County Board Chair


Thank you to our Sponsors: 

CORPORATE SPONSORS 
Group Health Cooperative of Eau Claire - Entertainment & After Party 
WEAU 13 News - Video Production 
Northwestern Bank - Printing

MAJOR SPONSORS 
Bauman Associates Ltd. 
Charter Bank Eau Claire 
Eau Claire Press Company 
Edward Jones 
EO Johnson Business Technologies 
HSHS Sacred Heart & St. Joseph's hospitals
Market & Johnson, Inc.
Marshfield Clinic
Prevea Health
Royal Credit Union 
Wells Fargo 
Xcel Energy 

AWARD SPONSORS
Rhom Construction - Ambassador of the Year
Royal Credit Union - Chamber Volunteer of the Year
Northwestern Bank - Community Development
Market & Johnson, Inc. - Outstanding Young Professional
B-Framed Galleries - Public Employee of the Year
Small Business of the Year - Charter Bank & Wipfli LLP
Woman of Achievement - HSHS Sacred Heart & St. Joseph's hospitals, Ken Vance Motors, and McDonough Manufacturing             Company

UNDERWRITING SPONSORS 
Festival Foods & Badger Liquor- wine 
Brent Douglas Flowers - table centerpieces 
BMO Harris Bank - parking shuttle 
Student Transit - for providing the buses 
UW-Eau Claire Foundation - Music as you arrived by the Robert Baca Quartet 
RCU Business Loans And Services - Reception 
Ruder Ware - Hors d’oeuvres 

TABLE SPONSORS 
Associated Bank
Ayres Associates
Baird
Cascades Tissue Group
CCFBank
Chippewa Valley Technical College
Commonweal Development Corporation
Eau Claire Energy Cooperative
Gator Garb Promotions
Huebsch Services
Mayo Clinic Health System
McDonough Manufacturing Company
Miron Construction
Ruder Ware, L.L.S.C.                      
U.S. Bank
Weld Riley, S.C. 
WESTconsin Credit Union
Wipfli LLP
Woods and Water Realty
WQOW TV 18
    
DOOR PRIZES
Eau Claire Energy Cooperative and Lasker Jewelers - $1000 Shopping spree with Chamber Buy Local Bucks. $1000 Value Winner:  Josh Boxx, Boxx Sanitation

Rhom Construction & Skywest Airlines (United)—A weekend in Chicago with two round trip airline tickets and a $700 Visa Card. $1200 Value
Winner: Brianne Markin, Beaver Creek Reserve

GRAND PRIZE
Williams Diamond Center & Bourget Law/IntellectualGems
Custom Teva designed pendant holding a 1.54 Kunzite surrounded by a halo of champagne diamonds .  Retail:  $1,832 
Winner: Barb Oas, Royal Credit Union

Stepanie Shreve, CJC Company won $25 in Chamber Buy Local Bucks for taking the most photos via our new Grouve App.

The Eau Claire Chamber staff enjoyed starring in this introduction video for the emcee. Our thanks to Chelsea Seckora, graphic designer for filming and editing.

​The Northwestern Bank Board of Directors announced the recent promotions of Melissa ‘Missy’ Grill and Cindy Boggess. Both employees were promoted to officers of the bank, with Grill being added to the Senior Management Team and title of vice president and Boggess to assistant vice president. Grill earned degrees in both accounting and business administration from Chippewa Valley Technical College and Lakeland College. Boggess has been employed within a variety of roles within the banking industry for the past 13 years after graduating from UW-River Falls where she studied marketing communications.

Library volunteer Karen Overhulser was recognized for her outstanding service to the L.E. Phillips Memorial Public Library at the recent Friends of the Library annual meeting on Saturday, April 14. Overhulser received the library’s Distinguished Service Award, which honors generosity of time and spirit and extraordinary contributions to a library-related issue. She has served with distinction as a library volunteer for over five years. She has worked to secure significant grant support for the “Give a Kid a Book” program, which distributes books to children in the community who might not otherwise have books to call their own. 

Za 51 Pizzeria is now open in the River Prairie area of Altoona. A Grand Opening celebration is taking place the week of April 16.  Za 51 is the sister restaurant to Draganetti's Ristorante & Taverna Grill. The restaurant and bar feature an open concept, specializing in homemade pizza and an outdoor patio. Read more about the restaurant and menu at https://www.za51.com/​.

​Adam Mohr, CRPC®, APMA®, CLTC®, a private wealth advisor with Ameriprise Financial in Altoona, was named to the list of top 30 “Best-in-State Wealth Advisors” published by Forbes Magazine. The list recognizes financial advisors who have demonstrated high levels of ethical standards, professionalism, and success in the business. The rankings are based on data provided by over 11,000 of the nation’s most productive advisors. Mohr was nominated by the executive leadership team at the Ameriprise Financial headquarters in Minneapolis and chosen based on assets under management, industry experience, regulatory and compliance record, and revenue produced over a three-year period. Mohr is part of River Prairie Wealth Partners, a private wealth advisory practice of Ameriprise Financial Services, Inc. Mohr graduated from UW—Eau Claire with a degree in finance.

At WESTconsin Credit Union recent 78th Annual Membership Meeting, Dave Maves and Rita Lunderville were re-elected to the Board for another three-year term. The following individuals have been elected as Board Officers: Chairperson – Dave Maves; Vice Chairperson – Jerry Wolf; Secretary – Colleen Mensing and Treasurer – Rita Lunderville. Additional Board members include Lynn Brantner, Dale Dahlke, and Todd Leipnitz.

Mike Krach has joined The Alliance® as business development manager. The Alliance is an employer-owned not-for-profit cooperative of more than 240 self-funded employers and not-for-profit insurance trusts. In this role, Krach will be responsible for bringing new employer members into The Alliance by managing the distribution channel and through direct sales efforts. Krach comes to The Alliance from Valley Health Services in Davenport, Iowa where he was the chief operations officer and senior vice president of sales and marketing. In this role, he developed and led the execution of business development, sales and marketing strategies to support the growth of the areas health plans. Earlier he served as the vice president of business development for Hutchinson Regional Medical Center in Hutchinson, Kansas. Krach holds his MBA from St. Ambrose University, Davenport, Iowa and a masters in counseling from Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa. He received her bachelor’s degree at the University of Wisconsin – Stevens Point.
 
Kurt Schauss has joined the Woita & Associates team as an independent financial advisor and serves clients from the Altoona office. He is a recent graduate of Chippewa Valley Technical College with an associate degree in business management. Schauss is licensed in life, health, property and casualty insurance and has passed the securities exams to become an independent financial advisor. During college, he started a small business, Silver Eagle Financial, that provided a blog and eBooks for young adults to provide education on personal finance.

Internationally known Mayo Clinic physician-scientist and UW-Eau Claire alumnus, Timothy J. Nelson, M.D., Ph.D., has been named the director of Research and Innovation for Mayo Clinic Health System in northwest Wisconsin. The newly created position will support collaboration between Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, and Mayo Clinic Health System.
Nelson’s role of director of Research and Innovation will be multifaceted. He will be charged with developing a cutting-edge research program for the northwest Wisconsin region of Mayo Clinic Health System, focused on expanding clinical trials and research and fostering greater research opportunities for UW-Eau Claire students and faculty. Nelson, a native of Osseo, is renowned for his pioneering research involving cardiovascular regeneration using bioengineered stem cells. Nelson is board-certified in internal medicine. He serves as director of the Todd and Karen Wanek Family Program for Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome, is the medical director of the Regenerative Medicine Consult Service of the William J. von Liebig Transplant Center and is an associate professor of medicine and pharmacology for the Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science in Rochester. He also serves as a grant application reviewer for the National Institutes of Health.

HSHS St. Joseph’s Hospital’s Center for Wound Care and Hyperbaric Medicine recently received the Center of Distinction award and the Robert A. Warriner III Center of Excellence award for 2017 from Healogics, the nation’s largest wound care management company. The Center for Wound Care and Hyperbaric Medicine in Chippewa Falls and Eau Claire received recognition for outstanding clinical outcomes for 12 consecutive months, including patient satisfaction higher than 92 percent, and a wound healing rate of at least 91 percent within 30 median days to heal.  The hospital’s centers offer highly specialized wound care to patients suffering from diabetic ulcers, pressure ulcers, infections and other chronic wounds that have not healed in a reasonable amount of time. Advanced treatments include hyperbaric oxygen therapy, negative pressure wound therapy, bio-engineered skin substitutes, biological and biosynthetic dressings and growth factor therapies.