On June 22 it will be five years since I walked into the Chamber's two room office suite in the Hotel Edison to begin my job with the Central Susquehanna Valley Chamber of Commerce.

It's not very long, but boy, there sure have been changes. George Bush was President, Bob Casey was Governor, Ernie Preate was Attorney General, George Gekas was our Congressman and Jim Kelley was chairman of the Northumberland County Commissioners Commissioners.

The Chamber had 230 members, a Board of Directors of over 50 and an Executive Committee of 14. Besides me, there was one other staff person. The Daily Item was an evening paper, Sunbury Broadcasting's middle of the road station was only on AM. There was Beiter's in Sunbury, and no WalMart.

By-Pass Options Narrowed

Following meetings with the Citizen's Advisory Committee, Public Officials group and a public meeting, PennDOT and the consultants will now be selecting options for more complete analysis by early fall. There were 18 alternatives, based on three primary routes through the Hummels Wharf / Shamokin Dam area and the public provided numerous suggestions to help the final selection of alternatives.

A major concern for some is the need for easy access from and to the by-pass and Sunbury to connect with Route 61. Shamokin Dam officials have expressed reservations about some of the alternatives that would accomplish the connection and work is progressing to reach consensus that will satisfy all.

The 6th Annual Regional Challenge Membership Campaign was won by Region 1 (Sunbury Area) with 18 new members and $3,450. In second place was last year's winner, Region 5 with 10 1/2 new members and $2,115. Region 2 had 4 1/2 members and $1,200 Region 3 had 5 members and $960, and Region 4 had 1 new member and $270. The staff added 5 new members and $1,005. About $9,000 in new income was added in the one day campaign, but considerably more is expected when the final count comes in.

The top producers were John Shipman (Mid-Penn Insurance Agency) and Dan Day (Sunbury Community Hospital) from Region 1 with $1,320 collected and Wayne Yohn (Yeager and Yohn, CPA) and Mike Molesevich (Molesevich Environmental Services) from Region 5 finished with 10 members.

In all, 21 individuals produced at least one new member. Two person teams and their new members included: Region 1 - (5) Gayle Fedder (Sunbury Broadcasting Corp.) and Gini Sears (Purdy Insurance Agency), (3) Frankie Jones (Apfelbaum Realty) and Jan Tippett (The Daily Item) and (2) Bob Zimmerman (Zimmerman Motors). Region 2's producers were (2 1/2) Barbara Fisher (Swineford National Bank) and Ed Mihalik (Attorney), (1) Jim Charles (Snyder County Trust Company) and Susan Womer (Heister House Millworks, Inc.) and (1) Steve Bilger (Swineford national Bank),. In Region 3 new members were sponsored by (4) Jan Wilson (SUN Home Health Services) and Dick Robey (North Shore Railroad) and (1) Ann Moyer (Square Diehl Realty) and Brenda Reichenbach (PG Energy). Region 4 had (1) Renate Amman (Re/Max Real Estate Team) as a sponsoring member and Region 5's other producer was (1/2) Troy Whitesel (CellularOne).

Applications for Leadership Susquehanna Valley -- Class of 97-98 are still available. This will be the third class�of selected participants in "Leadership Susquehanna Valley" will begin with a two day retreat in September and meet for a day each month through June, 1998. The program is modeled after ones that have been conducted successfully in many other communities, but the curriculum has been customized to deal with the specific problems and opportunities we have in the Valley. Guy Temple, Leadership Program coordinator, has identified and recruited some of the best leadership talent in the Central Susquehanna Valley to present important information.

Leadership training for individuals charged with responsibilities for the future of our businesses and our communities' organizations is a challenge that is being met by today's leaders. Members are encouraged to consider nominating one or more existing middle managers, or potential managers for the future, to be considered for enrollment in the this year's class. Of course, Chamber members may even consider joining themselves or recommend the program to someone not associated with their firm.

The individual must commit to active participation in all of the sessions and be anxious to utilize new leadership skills in your business and in the community. Sponsoring firms must provide the necessary time and corporate commitment to help participants fully utilize this valuable training. Also, it is expected that the corporate sponsor provide the majority or all of the $900 tuition for Leadership Susquehanna Valley.

Questions about the program's specifics can be answered by the Guy Temple, Executive Director of Leadership Susquehanna Valley. Please call 743-4100.

The Special Events Committee, chaired by Karen Bowen (Bowen Agency), is sponsoring it's annual "Old Fashioned SeafoodFEST" at Shangri-La Campground on Tuesday, August 5. The summer membership outing is for members, spouses, employees, associates, & friends, and promises to be a great time. The cost is again $27.50.

The menu includes Maryland Steamed Crabs (steamed by Steve VanSant), shrimp, a dozen steamed clams for each, roast pork with filling, macaroni salad, coleslaw, fruit salad, baked beans, herbed red skinned potatoes, rolls and butter, and dessert. Draft beer, soda, iced tea and coffee are also included. The Shangri-La Campground is off Route 405, between Route 147 in Point Township and Route 45, south of Lewisburg, and the "All-You-Can-Eat" feast will run from 5:00 pm until dark, RAIN or SHINE.

The facility features a covered pavilion for eating, relaxing and enjoying reflective conversation with your friends and new acquaintances. Adjacent to the pavilion are horseshoe pits, areas for volleyball, bocci and other summer activities. A new swimming pool is also available for participants. The Committee reminds members that VERY CASUAL DRESS is appropriate and invites all to Join the Fun. PLEASE RESERVE BY JULY 30