At the Hampton Roads Chamber Annual Senatorial Forum on Aug. 14, Sen. Tim Kaine spoke about needs for immigration reform and developing a workforce to support the federal government’s investments in infrastructure. He also took questions from the audience about specific industries, including the need for affordable child care.
For Hampton Roads, a few of the highlights of funding recently approved by Congress include:
- Combined $161.6 million from Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act and American Rescue Plan for Hampton Roads airports and transit systems
- $1.7 million to Virginia community health centers, including Peninsula Institute for Community Health in Newport News and Portsmouth Community Health Center
- $800,000 to Portsmouth Public Schools to support workforce readiness and industry-based skills
The forum is an annual event that gave members the opportunity to hear directly from Kaine on the work he has been doing for the state and the Hampton Roads region. The next chamber legislative event is the Legislative Reception, which will be held on Sept. 14 at the Harbor Club in the Waterside District. This is your chance to come meet elected officials from the Virginia General Assembly and city councils in the region.
The art and science of leadership
“Leadership is a perishable skill, and it must be honed and practiced,” said Robert Pizzini, managing partner and CEO of iFly Virginia Beach Indoor Skydiving during the Chamber Leadership Series.
Pizzini shared both the art and science of leadership and taught attendees how to construct a leadership foundation to create a personal leadership profile. He revealed that leaders are created from three main components: their personal definition of leadership, deliberate leadership styles and purposeful power types.
To be a successful leader, he shared that you must start with a foundation, which is your personal definition of leadership. Pizzini provided several examples of leadership and challenged the room to focus on what leadership means to them to help determine their foundation.
Saluting Norfolk’s service members
On July 26, the chamber spent the afternoon saluting Norfolk’s military service men and women at the Military Recognition Reception. The keynote speaker, Capt. Janet Days, commanding officer for Naval Station Norfolk, addressed the room of military heroes and business professionals to provide words of wisdom and gratitude to our honorees.
The chamber thanked and recognized these honorees for their service to our region and country: E-5 Erik Babb, E6/BM1 Rio Flores, E-6 William Stevens, LS3 Azaliah McNabb, ABH2 Gabriel Guido, ABH3 Hassen Muhammad, Legalman First Class Latorri White, YN1 Ashely Rivera, YN1 Emily King, YN2 Taylor Hughes, Cpl. Holden L. Mesimer and Cpl. Troy Cordell.
Lifetime Sale Achievement awarded again
The Association of Chamber of Commerce Executives awarded Diane Raihle of the Hampton Roads Chamber with the Dana Ketterling Lifetime Sales Achievement Award. The award recognizes career sales achievement where Raihle earned recognition in the Million Dollar Circle category for achieving $1 million in sales in chamber memberships throughout her career.
Raihle serves as the senior manager of member development and has been a dedicated industry staff member for almost 15 years. She believes deeply in connecting with her clients and building those important relationships. To date, she has won five Lifetime Sales Achievement Awards from the association.
On a personal note, Raihle was born in New York, raised in California and found her way back to the East Coast in 2001. She is also a published author of her book “The Fountain of Youth, A Comedy About Three Women and Their Quest for Beauty.”
Sharing calendar events
The chamber is creating a Hampton Roads Regional Calendar, which will live on the chamber website. Individuals and organizations in the community can share regional events as often as they wish, according to calendar guidelines.
Event info can be added when the calendar launches Sept. 1.
