Something You Most Likely Didn't Know
From the ChamberWorks Department of Statistics and Other Miscellaneous Info:
 The Connecticut Conference of Municipalities notes that while our state is still a leader in the percentage of women serving in state legislatures, other states have been catching up over the last 20 years and passed us by.
In the top ten states -- from northern New England to the West Coast and beyond to Hawaii -- women occupy 30-38% of statehouse seats. Connecticut ranks a still respectable 15th, with women taking a 28.3% share. (In the states at the bottom of the list, women make up less than 18% of the legislature. South Carolina trails far behind at 9%.)
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Does Your Historic Home Have a Story to Tell?
HGTV's "If Walls Could Talk" is coming to Fairfield and the surrounding area to film homeowners who've made surprising discoveries while moving into and fixing up their homes. Their finds range from old letters and photos to art, books ... even toys and clothing that all add up to tell the story of their home's past. The owners will tell their stories and share the history with HGTV's viewers.
If your home has a story to tell -- or if you know about one that does -- email Jason Mercado at jmercado@highnoonentertainment.com with "Connecticut casting call" in the subject header, or call 303-712-3109.
(If you home isn't so historic but has a story to tell anyway -- the weirder the better -- we at ChamberWorks would love to hear it. Feel free to call Linda and bend her ear: 255-1011.)
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Penfield Beach Smash
Last month's Penfield Beach Bash was such a resounding success that some of us in the ChamberWorks newsroom are still recovering from it. We can now bring you our official report -- but we'd appreciate it if you don't talk too loud.
It was a Business After Hours on steroids. A beach party where folks could do business in flip-flops and blinding Hawaiian shirts. Networking with a rock 'n' roll soundtrack. Or just a opportunity to seriously pig out.
We had enough food to feed an army, the other guy's army and three boatloads of tourists from Upper Moofalopia. By the end of the night we were giving away whole platters of food to anyone who could still stand upright. One of our members was throwing a party of their own later that night and walked away with all the food they would ever need, and we still had leftovers. We have to thank everyone who donated food to the event -- it was super-quality stuff in mind-bogglingly awesome quantities.
The Rise truly rocked the pavilion (someone should check the foundations to be sure it didn't move). Great band, great music, a great time had by all.
Everyone tells us that they had so much fun networking on the beach, we just have to do it again next year. And believe us, we will. Even if a few folks did get carried away with our secret-recipe rum punch toward the end (yes, we mean you), at least no one called the cops on us. Can't ask for a better outcome than that.
And of course we have Greg Beno's dotPhoto slideshow to show you just what a blast we had. Enjoy!
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An Online Resource for Affordable Housing
The state Dept. of Economic and Community Development has joined with a non-profit housing search company to create a free housing registry. Landlords, social agencies and renters can access the service at www.CTHousingSearch.org or call toll-free, 1-877-428-8844. The result is a statewide listing service for affordable, accessible and market-rate rental housing.
The service is managed by Socialserve.com, a provider of bilingual call centers and online services in 20 states, with DECD providing the funding. Founding sponsors include the state Dept. of Social Services, the Connecticut Housing Finance Authority, the United Way of Connecticut's 2-1-1 Infoline, the US Dept. of Housing and Urban Development and USDA Rural Development.
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Volunteers Needed for Freshman Orientations
The Chamber needs volunteers for the freshman orientations on Sept. 2.
For the first time, we'll be represented at Fairfield University and Sacred Heart University. Two schools, one day!
The job is the same at either campus: Hand out flyers and Chamber publications to incoming students and their parents, and answer questions about the community. Things to do, places to go, etc. This is a great opportunity to promote the Chamber's activities — and our members.
We need six volunteers for each session at each school:
- Morning session: 9:30 am to 11:30 am
- Afternoon session: 11:30 am to 2:30 pm
With two schools to cover we need 24 volunteers in total (if you can do both sessions, that's even better). The sessions are short — just 2–3 hours — and by taking part you help bring "town and gown" closer together. Everybody benefits.
Call the Chamber at 255-1011 to sign up. This can't happen without our volunteers, and we thank you for taking some of your time on a Sunday to help out.
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