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Chair<br />
Les Anderson<br />
Martin County<br />
Farm Bureau<br />
Vice Chair<br />
Sara Pierce<br />
Pierce Accounting<br />
and Tax Services<br />
Deb Barnes<br />
Lakeview Methodist<br />
Health Care Center<br />
Stephanie Busiahn<br />
Visit Fairmont<br />
Zephanie Cole<br />
Align Chiropractic &<br />
Acupuncture, PLC<br />
Dave Cone<br />
Kahler Automation<br />
Corporation<br />
Mission Statement: The Fairmont Area <strong>Chamber</strong> of Commerce is an advocate for promoting a healthy business clim<br />
Board of Directors Officers:<br />
Board of Directors:<br />
Staff:<br />
Past Chair<br />
Kerry Nagel Allen<br />
MRCI<br />
Treasurer<br />
Tom Lytle<br />
Bank Midwest<br />
Brandon<br />
Edmundson<br />
Krahmer, Shaffer<br />
& Edmundson, Ltd<br />
Mandi Kosbab<br />
Edward Jones<br />
Luke Long<br />
Hy-Vee<br />
Steve Pomerenke<br />
Compeer Financial<br />
Ann Terfehr<br />
Dan’s Appliance<br />
Ned Koppen<br />
President<br />
president@fairmontchamber.org<br />
Kandi Menne<br />
Office Manager/Director of<br />
Communications<br />
info@fairmontchamber.org<br />
Benjamin Landsteiner<br />
Marketing & Social Media<br />
Coordinator<br />
benjamin@fairmontchamber.org<br />
Miranda Larsen<br />
Finance Coordinator<br />
finance@fairmontchamber.org<br />
Contact Information:<br />
Fairmont Area <strong>Chamber</strong> of Commerce<br />
323 East Blue Earth Avenue<br />
P.O. Box 826<br />
Fairmont, MN 56031<br />
Phone: (507) 235-5547<br />
www.Fairmont<strong>Chamber</strong>.org<br />
Overcoming workforce barriers<br />
By: Ned Koppen - <strong>Chamber</strong> President<br />
I have spent a lot of my first<br />
two months with the Fairmont Area<br />
<strong>Chamber</strong> of Commerce meeting<br />
with and talking to <strong>Chamber</strong> members<br />
and other people in our community<br />
who connect with<br />
and influence our business<br />
community. One thing I have consistently<br />
heard while talking with the<br />
business community is that everyone<br />
is looking for workers.<br />
Finding, hiring and retaining a<br />
quality workforce is something<br />
that many of our businesses are<br />
finding to be a big challenge. I<br />
was aware of this when I started<br />
visiting with our members<br />
and was prepared to have that<br />
discussion.<br />
There is a related topic<br />
that seems to come up around<br />
this topic that I was not fully<br />
aware of and that is there is a<br />
lack of child care for parents<br />
who work. I have not had to search for child care for<br />
quite some time. I was out of the loop.<br />
Not being able to find child care is a problem<br />
in and of itself, but it also has the added effect of impacting<br />
businesses. I have had conversations with<br />
Linsey Preuss, Fairmont’s Economic Development<br />
Coordinator, about many things business related<br />
and she has been able to make me better informed.<br />
She shared this information with me.<br />
“Child care is a critical<br />
prerequisite to building<br />
a robust workforce. Lack<br />
of quality child care<br />
options can force parents<br />
to reduce their hours or<br />
even leave jobs.”<br />
Reaching new markets<br />
Your <strong>Chamber</strong> offers unique advertising opportunities<br />
to reach local residents, businesses and<br />
newcomers. We are now preparing for the 2019 edition<br />
of the Fairmont City Map and the Martin County<br />
Visitor and Relocation Guide. Advertising space is<br />
also available in this publication and online.<br />
Child care is a critical prerequisite to building<br />
a robust workforce. Lack of quality child care options<br />
can force parents to reduce their hours or even<br />
leave jobs. It also contributes to absenteeism. Businesses<br />
lose an estimated $3 billion annually due to<br />
issues related to child care. In rural regions<br />
such as Martin County, finding child care can<br />
be particularly challenging. Rural residents<br />
often rely on in-home child care<br />
options, which have been dwindling<br />
lately. Minnesota lost over<br />
six percent of its in-home child<br />
care providers in the last year.<br />
Fairmont has a potential<br />
need of 81 additional fulltime,<br />
licensed child care slots<br />
to meet the needs of current<br />
and prospective residents. In<br />
an attempt to address this deficit,<br />
the city applied for and was<br />
recently accepted into the First<br />
Children’s Finance, Rural Child<br />
Care Innovation Program (RC-<br />
CIP). RCCIP helps communities<br />
assess their child care needs and empowers them to<br />
develop solutions. The two-year program engages<br />
area stakeholders with an end goal of finding community-based<br />
solutions to increase the supply of<br />
high quality affordable child care.<br />
Linsey is leading the team in Martin County.<br />
Members of the team have participated in trainings<br />
to better understand the fundamentals of child care<br />
and discussions about how (Continued on page 6)<br />
We host numerous events throughout the<br />
year offering sponsorship opportunities that allow<br />
you to make your business visible to the general<br />
business community or specific industries. Call the<br />
<strong>Chamber</strong> at 507-235-5547 or email Kandi at info@<br />
fairmontchamber.org for more information.<br />
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