Your Chamber Turns 65!!

On April 18, 2000 the Prince William County-Greater Manassas Chamber of Commerce celebrated it�s 65^th Anniversary. Since 1935 the Chamber has been a business and community leader. The PWC-GM Chamber represents over 800 businesses, professionals, and organizations in Prince William County, Manassas, Manassas Park and the surrounding area.

Chamber Events: May 1-May 12

Tuesday, May 9
Business Before Hours
Bull Run Athletic Club
11714 Sudley Manor Drive
8:00 - 9:00 a.m.

Mark Your Calendars....

Tuesday, May 23
"Excellence In Business" Awards Ceremony & 
Membership Luncheon
Evergreen Country Club
15900 Berkeley Drive, Haymarket
11:30 a.m. Networking, Registration, and Buffet 
Sponsored by: SYNERGY ONE Federal Credit Union
Master of Ceremonies: Timothy Shaw, New Dominion Shakespeare Festival

Tuesday, June 6
Membership Luncheon
Speaker: Mark Early, Attorney General for the Commonwealth of Virginia
Sponsors: Vanderpool, Frostick & Nishanian, P.C.; Greco Remodelers, Inc.; Raven Services, Corp.; Dominion Semiconductor and Swart, Lalande & Associates, P.C.

Saturday, June 24
65th Annual Dinner-Dance Celebration
"Prom Night 2000-Celebrating 65 Years of Excellence"
Hyatt Dulles, 2300 Dulles Corner Blvd., Herndon
Sponsors: Lockheed Martin-Manassas and Metro Sign & Design, Inc.

Upcoming Committee Meetings:

3 Exhibits, 8:30 a.m., Chamber Office
3 Awards, 11:30 a.m., Chamber Office
4 Ambassadors, 8:30 a.m., Chamber Office
4 Old Time Picnic, 8:30 a.m., Long & Foster
11 SOHO Planning meeting, Noon, Chamber Office

Business Appreciation Week

The week of May 14-20, 2000, is Business Appreciation Week in the Prince William County-Greater Manassas area. It is an opportunity to highlight our exciting and unique business community and to invite others to join this respected tradition. So, come join us for two great events! On Tuesday, May 16, from 8:30-11 a.m. at the GTE Auditorium at the George Mason University-Prince William Campus, the finalists for this year's Technology Achievement Awards will provide insights into their technology innovations at the Technology Symposium. The finalists are Dominion Semiconductor; Falcon Communications Solutions, Inc.; Noesis, Inc.; and Pacel Corp. On Thursday, May 18, the Awards Breakfast will be held from 7:30-10 a.m. at the Montclair Country Club. During the breakfast, the Honorable Sean T. Connaughton, chairman of the Board of County Supervisors, and the Honorable Mayor Gillum, will present the Technology Achievement Awards. Space is limited for the Breakfast, so RSVP now! To RSVP or for more information, please call the Prince William Department of Economic Development at 703-392-0330.

Business Appreciation Week is a joint initiate between the Commonwealth of Virginia, Prince William County, and the Prince William County Economic Development Council. Co-sponsors of the breakfast include the Manassas Business Council, the Prince William County-Greater Manassas Chamber of Commerce, and the Prince William Regional Chamber of Commerce.


Fun For The Whole Family...
The Prince William Little Theatre's upcoming production of the Tony Award-winning musical Shenandoah will include a benefit performance for The Manassas Museum Associates. will be presented at the Cramer Center on May 5 Shenandoah, 6, 7, 12 and 13. Friday and Saturday curtain time is 8:00 p.m., Sundays 3:00 p.m. For more information, please call the Prince William Little Theater at 703-330-7796.

Need More Information on IRAs?
The Prince William County Office for Women will present a Brown Bag Lunch Workshop titled "IRA's: What Are They and How They Can Be Used" on Wednesday, May 10th. The workshop is from Noon - 1:00 p.m. at the McCoart Administration Building. Call the Office for Women at 703-792-6611 for more information and to reserve a seat.

Want to Learn About Acupuncture?
Back in Action Chiropractic & Rehab will feature Monday night informational classes about acupuncture. At this class, Dr. Noffsinger explains what acupuncture is and a time for questions and answers. The class will last for about an hour. There is no fee for the class, and no sales pitch...so leave your checkbook at home. Classes will be held May 8, May 22, and June 12, all starting at 6:30 p.m. at 8212 Centreville Road. For more information, call Susan Plumadore at 703-257-0100.

Recognize a Special Environmental Teacher...
The Prince William Clean Community Council, in conjunction with National Teacher Appreciation Week (May 7-13), is initiating its third annual Environmental Teacher of the Year recognition. Students, parents, teachers, and other citizens are encouraged to nominate that distinguished teacher who exhibits a healthy environmental attitude to students, peers and who educates by example. Nominations should include the teacher's name, school, and a brief overview or example of their efforts. All nominees will be recognized. The deadline for selection is May 13th. For more information, contact the Council at 703-792-6272, or on the web at www.pwcleancouncil.org.

Northern Virginia Family Service Gala 
On May 19th, Northern Virginia Family Service will host its second annual gala, entitled Gala 2000. The Gala will include a social hour, dinner, silent and live auction, and the featured program, followed by music and dancing. Sponsorship opportunities are available. For more information call 703-237-7344.

Want to Get Your Name Out To The New Teachers and Staff Members in the Prince William County, Manassas, and Manassas Park School Systems?!

The Prince William County-Greater Manassas Chamber of Commerce will be on hand at the new teacher orientations in the area to answer questions about the community and to distribute "goodie bags" to the new teachers and staff members. If you would like to donate something to be placed in the goodie bags, please drop off your items by the dates below. 
PWC Early Hire Orientation: May 19th, drop off 100 
items by May 15th 5:00 p.m.
PWC, Manassas, and Manassas Park Orientations: August, 
drop off 600 items by August 14th 5:00 p.m.
Contribute to all orientations! Drop off 700 items by 
May 15th 5:00 p.m.
For more information, contact Poppie Bergere at the Chamber, 703-368-6600.

Sixty-five Years of Service... 
By Sharon Cavileer
Cavileer and Company Communications, 703-830-6031

When our chamber held its first meeting on April l8, l935, the county and the nation were struggling to climb out of the "Great Depression." Franklin Delano Roosevelt was president, the milkman delivered to the door, and gas cost an outrageous l8 cents a gallon for high test. Manassas was surrounded by farms and fields. Manassas National Battlefield was a plan, not a park and controversy whirled around its founding. The Sons of The Confederacy threatened to sue to keep the hallowed ground out of Federal hands. 

In transportation, the V-8 Ford was the fastest thing on four wheels, and the l935 Chevy costing $800 had the revolutionary knee-action suspension for a smoother ride. Entertainment was the movies, 78 rpm records, and the radio. A coke cost a nickel, and penny candy really cost a penny.

Manassas had no malls, no museums, no universities, no park authority and no Federal Parks.

At the very first meeting held at The Manassas town Hall, members of The Fredericksburg Chamber, including Mr. Archie Smith, Chairman of the Battlefield Park Skyline Drive Committee, discussed the advantages of having a chamber in the community. The group must have been very persuasive; the chamber was formed that very night. Mr. C.C. Chloe became the first president, and in a savvy political move, six vice presidents were elected---one for each magisterial district in the county. Founding members included: The Pitts Dixie Theater, Sunshine Laundry, Manassas Hardware and The National Bank of Manassas.

The first year, the chamber worked on forming a board of directors and operational issues. Dues for the year were assessed at $5.00. They also struggled with finding a meeting place. CC Camp P-17 was unavailable, having been used as housing for children with tuberculosis. The War Department was holding the space for one of FDR's New Deal Programs---the Civilian Conservation Corps. Meetings were held in Haymarket, Nokesville, Lake Jackson and at The Manassas Town Hall and the chamber took action on the issues of the day: The Skyline Drive, a Christmas merchandising plan, and the controversial Manassas National Battlefield Park. The chamber noted the only drawback would be "the red
tape in Washington."

The Chamber appeared before the county Board of Supervisors requesting funding for a study of traffic on Route 234. The request was for $36.00, the BOCS provided $20.00. The state approved $22,000 for construction and improvement on 234, considered by the Chamber to be "a very important road".
Other chamber issues seem whimsical in retrospect. Two gentlemen, Messrs. Wedman and Evans appeared before a chamber meeting to request financial backing for their gold mine in Clifton. No record exists of who the unlucky investors might have been. The Chamber wholeheartedly agreed to cooperate with The Piedmont Dairy Festival----and set the wheels in motion to enter a float in the Dairy Parade. At the final meeting of their first year, The Manassas High School Orchestra gave a "very fine performance" (according to the minutes) under the direction of Miss Harriett Bozarth. And, to add to the excitement, the chamber was treated to a debate by the students on the question of whether the chamber was an asset to Prince William County.

The student speaking in the affirmative was the winner.... And, so is Prince William County. Celebrating sixty-five years of service, the chamber has grown from its original cadre of 20 to more than 800 members. And, the staff of one part time secretary has expanded to a staff of six full time professionals. Dues are no longer $5.00 annually with a 50 percent discount for the ladies but membership is a greater value than ever. In 2000, chamber members can enjoy more than fifty different programs, networking, business and educational opportunities. 

Unlike our founders, we're faced not with a depression, but with the challenges of a booming economy and rapid growth. Our problems lie in finding employees---not in finding customers. Locally, our economy has grown through high tech companies, tourism, service companies, home-based businesses, higher education and retail. And, the Chamber is involved in all the important issues affecting Prince William and Manassas---including the traffic on Route 234. Some things never change!

Sharon Cavileer
For The Prince William County - Greater Manassas Chamber of Commerce 
April 4, 2000

Copyright � 2000 Prince William County-Greater Manassas Chamber of Commerce, all rights reserved.

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