On Thursday, October 10th, attendees gathered at the YTEL building in Lake Forest for our final Tri-Chamber Mixer. This mixer was hosted by the Lake Forest Chamber of Commerce.

As attendees came through the front doors, they were warmly greeted by all three Chambers (Lake Forest, Mission Viejo, and RSM) and kindly directed to first take a fun photo with Takata Photo & Design and then make their way to the meet n greet areas where the food, beverages, opportunity drawing prizes, and Chamber tables were located.

It was so refreshing observing the three Chambers interacting and sharing contact information to be used at a later time. The City Mayors were also on hand to support this special event, along with Board members and Ambassadors from each Chamber.

To see all the photos, follow this link: www.takatapd.com/p942096802.

We look forward to announcing our 2020 Tri-Chamber Mixers in the very near future!

We take this opportunity to sincerely congratulate Chamber member Diana Moreno (Web Design Pilot) for all of her amazing efforts as the "Volunteer of the Quarter"! 

Here are some of the highlights of Diana's "volunteer spirit" and extra efforts over the past few months:

She serves on the Ambassador Committee

• Provides a warm welcome to her assigned members
• Produces brief video interviews to help her members gain more exposure
• Supports all Committee meetings

 
She serves as the Assistant to the Communications Committee

• Spent countless hours to create helpful video tutorials for the membership
  • i.e. Request name badge, ribbon cutting, use of calendar, business directory
• Took the lead in the website restructuring and modification efforts
• Created Facebook “Members Only” group
• Has been instrumental in providing digital marketing support for Chamber
• Manages our social media LinkedIn account; creates valuable posts

 
A Few Additional Volunteer Facts: 

• Spent over 30 hours in various meetings in support of the Board and Committees
• Dedicated  over 75 hours to various assigned tasks
• Has acted on nearly 280 emails from the Communications Committee Chair alone!

 
It’s clear, this member is more than deserving of the “Volunteer of the Quarter”!
 
Congratulations again to DIANA MORENO – of Web Design Pilot!!

Last evening, 11 Chamber attendees, along with 3 Presenters, 2 Directors, and 2 Communications Committee members, were on hand for our first networking 101 class: "The Secrets to Business Networking Success".

This class was specifically designed to help the attendees improve their 30-second commercials, confidently and enthusiastically attend mixers and events (and work the room properly), and employ other practical tips to enhance their networking skills.

We thank David Benson, Adrien Kalfus-Diaz, and Linda Coss for their excellent efforts and expertise as they presented this helpful information. We thank Diana Moreno and Elizabeth Elsanadi for helping us with the videotaping and social media. Also, we acknowledge CEO Doug Zielasko and Directors, John Salamy and John Rodriguez, for their support of this value-added program for our members.

Lastly, we want to wholeheartedly thank our dinner sponsor, Chamber member, Flippin Pizza (Danny and Kelly you are awesome!), for providing the pizzas, salad, and delicious cookies! 

Stay tuned for more information in the coming weeks about new educational programs that will be presented for the benefit of our members.

In the late afternoon on September 19th, various local business owners gathered to begin setting up their booths for the "Buy Local Showcase". It should be noted that some even spent they entire day their managing the set up of tents, booths, tables, chairs, and keeping the site secure (thanks John Salamy and Doug Zielasko!)

By 4pm, the community (including many Chamber Directors, Ambassadors, Mayor Greg Raths, Councilwoman Wendy Bucknum, City Liaison Larry Longenecker) started visiting the various booths and listening to the business owners share their services. Each visitor was given a "vendor card" to encourage them to visit each booth, enjoy various give-a-ways, and be entered into the main opportunity drawing. Congrats to Bob Meyer of Beacon Sales and Marketing  for winning the $200 prize!

​It was encouraging to watch so many visitors also take in interest in their local Chamber of Commerce and we look forward to having those businesses join us soon!

The Sol Agave food truck was onsite to feed everyone and there was an ice cream truck filled with yummy desserts. The Music Vault Academy arranged for a talented youth group to perform several hit songs from their band. Good times!

As the sun started to set and 7pm (ish) rolled around, the tents, booths, and the whole set-up was taken down by a large group of Chamber, City, and community members. Thank you to all who helped in this effort! Special thanks to the City of Mission Viejo for helping us to promote this event via extra signage and media coverage. 

We look forward to the 2020 "Buy Local Showcase" already!

Please enjoy this brief video interview with Kurt Varricchio, owner of the Law Offices of Kurt Varricchio. This video was taken by Chamber Director and Ambassador, John Rodriguez (iFinance Mortgage).

To contact Kurt for legal questions, please call 949-830-3501.
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On September 10th, several attendees from the Chamber (including Directors and Ambassadors) and City, State, and Federal governmental offices gathered to celebrate the Grand Opening and Ribbon Cutting for new Chamber member - StepX Extreme Results.

Owner Keri Anderson and her husband, Mark, were thrilled as they were presented various "welcome new business" certificates from the governmental offices and the Chamber. Many friends, family, and staff also enjoyed the celebrations.

Once again, we wholeheartedly welcome StepX Extreme Results to the Mission Viejo Chamber of Commerce!

Please enjoy these brief video interviews featuring Cedric Campbell (Crown Castle Fiber), taken by Director and Ambassador, John Rodriguez (iFinance Mortgage).

To learn more about Crown Castle Fiber's services, please contact Cedric at 949 306-6602. To contact John about home loan programs and interest rates, please email jrod@ifminc.com.

Today, marked the start of the 2019 Mission Viejo Restaurant Week! Various members, including Directors and Ambassadors, took the lead in patronizing these restaurants: Paul's Pantry, California Pizza Kitchen, Pub Thirty-Two, and Oggi's Pizza.

Restaurant Week will continue until September 15th. For a full list of participating  restaurants and menus, please click here: www.missionviejochamber.com/rw-participating-restaurants.html.

Bon Appetit!