On behalf of Healthy North Dakota Worksite Wellness initiative, we invite you to take part in a brief survey. Help us assess the current status of worksite wellness programs, health promotion activities and perceived worksite wellness needs throughout North Dakota and the region. This information will help us develop programs, create sharing opportunities and develop resources to help enhance employees’ health and productivity, as well as contain health care costs.

Because of your affiliation with the North Dakota Chamber of Commerce and Fargo Moorhead Chamber of Commerce, your organization has been selected to participate in this survey. We ask that you try to respond immediately. The survey should take five to 10 minutes to complete. Your participation is vital to the success of this study!

Please forward this survey to the person in your organization who works most closely with your worksite wellness programs. Even if you do not have a wellness program in place we are still interested in your opinion and possible future plans. We encourage you to complete the survey. The survey will close February 16th, 2010.

All responding organizations will be eligible to win one of five $100 cash awards. Your responses will be held confidential. Results of the survey will be available to you at a future date.

Please Click Here  to complete the survey.

If you have any questions, please contact:
Pete Seljevold, MS
Healthy North Dakota – Worksite Wellness Director
701-277-2414
Pete.Seljevold@hndww.org

Thank you in advance for your participation!
Pete Seljevold
Healthy North Dakota
Worksite Wellness Director

Each year, two orchestras in the United States are chosen through a competitive audition to receive a week-long residency by violinist Midori through her Orchestra Residencies Project. The Fargo-Moorhead Symphony Orchestra was the unanimous choice of every single judge on the panel to participate this year. Midori will begin her week long residency February 10 with many events which are open to the public. For more information, visit www.fmsymphony.org.

Mayor’s Luncheon with Midori
The Chamber of Commerce of Fargo Moorhead is co-sponsoring a Mayor’s Luncheon at the Ramada Plaza & Suites and Conference Center at noon on February 10. Midori will speak on “The Role of the Arts in Thriving Communities” and give a short performance. The event is open to the public. For more information and to register, call the Fargo-Moorhead Symphony Orchestra at 218.233.8397.

Permanent Flood Protection
At the July planning meeting, the Chamber’s Regional Issues committee developed a task force to study and recommend alternatives for flood risk reduction and mitigation.  This committee continues to meet and will be active in representing the needs and concerns of the members of the Chamber of Commerce of Fargo Moorhead.
      The Chamber supports implementation of permanent flood protection for the Fargo Moorhead metropolitan area.

Health Care Reform
The Chamber’s Regional Issues committee created a task force to evaluate Federal Healthcare Reform legislation.  An important conclusion from this task force is the support of legislation that expands health insurance availability and affordability, reform of Medicare to address regional payment disparities, and delivery system reforms to promote quality healthcare outcomes.
      The Chamber also supports implementation of policies that include active living as a goal of comprehensive community planning.

Transportation
To examine the needs and concerns of transportation issues in the Fargo Moorhead area, the Chamber’s Regional Issues committee works with legislation to promote investment in transportation infrastructure and streamline the approval process that delays or prevents transportation safety improvements. 
      The Chamber supports regional planning efforts designed to achieve a comprehensive, coordinated and appropriately-funded multi-modal transportation system serving    businesses.

Energy
The Chamber’s Regional Issues committee brings members, community leaders, and energy experts together to examine concerns regarding energy sources and needs. 
      The Chamber supports policies that foster energy development and transmission, and provide for diversity and security of energy resources including wind energy and hydrogen.

For a comprehensive guide of the Chamber of Commerce of Fargo Moorhead’s legislative priorities visit www.fmchamber.com, click on ‘Chamber,’ then ‘Regional Issues.’

Doug Vang of MeritCare Health System is Chair of the Chamber’s Regional Issues Committee.

Kim Peek was classified as a mega-savant was considered a genius in 15 different subjects.  His mind worked like a computer, retaining an immeasurable amount of information almost instantaneously.  In his lifetime, Peek memorized more than 9,000 books and could rattle off every ZIP code for every city in the United States.  He amazed the Fargo Moorhead audience by answering any question they could throw at him, from the highways they needed to take to get to their discrete home towns to the day of the week they were born. 

Although Kim Peek’s mind possessed an indexing capacity like that of the Google search engine, he lacked the ability to complete tasks the common person would consider simple, such as combing his hair or brushing his teeth.  Shortly after his birth in 1951, doctors diagnosed Kim as severely mentally retarded and advised the Peek family to commit him to an institution.  Kim’s father Fran refused believing every human being had something to offer the world.  Shortly thereafter, Fran began noticing remarkable abilities in his son.  At the age of one, he could memorize and recite back every book that was read to him and by age three, he could look up words in the dictionary and read their definition.

Kim Peek meets (then Fargo Mayor) Bruce Furness in 2005. Peek's business cards read: "Learning to recognize and to respect differences in others and treating them like you want them to treat you will bring the peace and joy we all hope for."

Despite his amazing abilities, Kim was an extremely shy child and spent most of his early years in the seclusion of his family.  All of that changed in 1984 when he had a chance meeting with screenwriter Barry Morrow.  Morrow was fascinated by Peek who inspired him to write his Oscar winning film.  Dustin Hoffman was cast as the lead in the film and spent time with Kim researching the part.  Hoffman made Fran Peek promise to take Kim out into the world saying, “He is a very special person. He will grow as will everyone who meets him.”  Hoffman’s request, along with the media attention from the movie, led Fran Peek to take his son on public appearances throughout the globe including his stop in Fargo in 2005.  Since the late 1980s, he has spoken to more than 64 million people and traveled nearly 3 million miles.

When the Fargo Moorhead audience saw Kim Peek four years ago, it was obvious to them that his social abilities were not like everyone else’s in the room.  He stuttered through his speech and lacked the emotional capacity to clearly communicate his story to the group.  That’s where the teamwork comes in.  His father Fran filled in the gaps where Kim faltered.  While Kim impressed the audience with his mental abilities, Fran communicated the importance of treating everyone with respect and taking the time to recognize the amazing potential in people.  During the presentation, every audience member was given the chance to hold the Oscar statue that had been given to Fran and Kim by Barry Marrow.  The Peeks showed us how things that seem untouchable are clearly within reach. 

I have to admit that I was a bit uncomfortable when I first met Kim Peek.  I wasn’t sure how to communicate with him and I felt he was invading my personal space.  It didn’t take me long to realize that my being uncomfortable had more to do with my insecurities than the differences in him.  I guess that was part of his brilliance - his ability to make people realize these things about themselves.

Kim Peek passed away last week at the age of 58.  The news of his passing was sparse for a man whom NASA had been studying for years to try to understand his mental capabilities.  I was saddened to hear of the news, and felt incredibly fortunate to have had the opportunity to meet him.  I would love to hear from those of you who also had the privilege and share how he inspired you.

You can imagine the shock I had to attend a school of 1,100. The food was better. But I was very unsocial and kept to myself a lot. I had 1 friend. I sat in my room day after day. Until one of my teachers offered for me to go on a trip with the Youth Leadership Program.

I have to say that it was the best decision I ever made. It changed my life. It changed how I look at things. It also changed my passion. I am now dedicated to a life of helping, not playing video games all day. I am now dedicated to make people feel better and look at themselves in a new light.

Dustin Daily, 09 Youth Leadership Graduate

Let’s wind the clocks back about 4 to 5 months. On August 17th, a bunch of kids and parents around me - T.V. crews and 2 enormous buses, I was terrified. Being a South Dakotan, I don’t get to see them so often. But I still boarded that bus.

I will be honest at first I didn’t think I would make many friends and I’ll just do the work and go back to my boring plain life. But this tour, your kids made it possible for me to say, “I want to better myself.” Change isn’t a bad thing, it made me better, and it can help many more people that are in need to feel better.

For that I thank all of you, parents included.

I have made friends who I would not have had the possibility to meet if it wasn’t for this program. These kids have made my world a better place. This may be crazy but in the short 5 days we were with each other we became a family. We were a bunch of kids who changed the lives of everyone we met.

Last month I attended Fill the Dome. If you do not know about these annual events, it was created by a bunch of kids that dared to dream. A dream that a bunch of high schoolers could change the world doing something as simple some collecting cans of food.

I am proud to say that they did change the world. I am hearing about Fill the Dome project in other states because these kids decided to chase their dream. It was a life changing sight. Hundreds of kids from all around communities came together, regardless of rivals or hate, helped to better the community. A total of 97 tons of food, and 96,0000 dollars. All because people came together with a common purpose.

Fill the Dome is proof, the flood crisis was proof, STLF is proof, this Youth Leadership is also proof that….Everyone can come together regardless of race, school, rich or poor, small or tall, young or old. Everyone has the potential to fill a sandbag, donate some cans. But overall everyone has the potential to change a life. That is what I believe Youth Leadership has done for me. It made me dare to dream.

I recently attended a middle school tour: I was one of the high school leaders. it is also another act of leadership to teach people about leadership. I believe through all the hours we put in helping organizations and people in need.

We gave them a chance to change the way they look at the world. We gave them a vision of no war, no hunger, no fighting, just peace. Through organizations like Youth Leadership and STLF we can achieve that goal.

I have always heard that in the future everything will get worse because our generation is called “The Selfish Generation.” I believe that we can change out generation into “The Givers.” We will give back to the community, we will give back to America, and we will give back to the world.

I was always afraid of the future. The economy is failing, war is erupting, and resources are being used up. But as true as I stand here I believe something that some of you may find crazy. But I believe it as I look at each one of my bus mates, and the possibilities and potential that each one of them hold. I am not scared for the future. I look forward to seeing the accomplishments that we can all make.

Thank you for attending this occasion with us today and god bless.

I arrived at the Hjemkost Center on August 17th, not knowing what to expect, so as I boarded the green bus for the first leg of the pioneer Chamber of Commerce High School Pay It Forward Tour, I was a little nervous for what the next five days had in store for me. Things started off quiet on the bus, and then Greg had us do an introduction game, which was basically speed dating. Though I did not meet a bus crush, I met Dustin Daily, who later became known only as Pookie because the first thing he said to me was, “Can I call you Pookie?”

The first thing I noticed about Pooki was his incredible openness to me, a stranger, and his confidence. These characteristics allowed him to be fearless in saying or doing anything, he was not afraid of being a little different or weird. I saw that in his openness, Pooki was very happy and content; and for the remainder of the trip, I tried to approach every opportunity and person I met with the same openness. Because of Pooki, my goal for the trip changed from just surviving the experience to befriending and getting to know as many people as well as I possibly could. Because of my openness, I met many new friends, friends that I wouldn’t have gotten to know unless I was open to meeting a stranger. I realized that all our friends were once strangers and if we are open to strangers, like Pookie, was to me- how many friends might we have? By the end of the trip I had met everyone and considered it a huge success.

Daniel Jordan, 09 Youth Leadership Graduate

As youth leadership continued, I got to know each member of the program even better, and as my friendship with each one of you deepened, I began to realize what youth leadership was all about: the appreciation of others.

We came together as complete strangers on a bus tour across North Dakota, and we became a family. Each session I began to understand each one of you even more. I realized everyone has a story, a unique background, and is completely different. We are all special, and because of our openness we each contributed something priceless to the growth and development of this year’s program: ourselves.

What we have done in our four months together is nothing short of extraordinary. We have befriended and drawn 49 new people into our lives. We each presented ourselves as we truly are and laid it all on the line. Everyone who participated in this year’s youth leadership was non-judgmental, and this atmosphere of acceptance created by your openness allowed me to be myself for the first time in awhile and I thank you for that.

The most memorable session for me was the mock trial. My excitement for the trial increased as Jennifer and I began exchanging comments daily in chemistry. As the day of the trial approached Jarrod, the other defendant, and I decided to meet at 6:30 to get coffee and prepare our case. When we arrived at the courtroom I had an amazing feeling inside of me, pure ecstasy. This situation would have normally been uncomfortable for me, but because of the amazing non-judgmental people in this program I was able to focus completely on the trial and not be self-conscious. The trial was a lot of fun and Jarrod and I overcame adversity, a definite lack of sleep and won the trial.

As we get older, we will inevitably get busier; however, as much as we get involved we must never forget who we are, what got us this far together, and our dreams. Be open to life. Go on as many STLF tours as you can, be active and give back as much as you can, use these privileges and opportunities to learn about yourself and just how amazing each of you are. I will never forget what I learned from Youth Leadership and I will strive to keep each new friendship alive and growing. I challenge each of you to do the same. I also challenge you to each encourage a friend who would enjoy this program to join next year, the more people who experience what we did the better; there can never be too many leaders. Don’t let our time together just be another resume builder, let it be something you remember forever. We have each met many wonderful people during this awesome experience, and don’t forget who helped us accomplish freedom of self. Ashley and Greg, among many other people have given up their time and ambitions for us. Let us not forget them, but most importantly let us not forget what we learned from each other. Let us remember to be open to everything and everyone new, and never sacrifice who we are and what we believe in.

View Survey Graphs

In an August 2009 national study , 77 percent of respondents reported using LinkedIn for business purposes compared to 31 percent using Facebook, 25 percent using Blogs and 18 percent using Twitter. Responding Fargo-Moorhead Chamber members differ from those statistics, with 42 percent using LinkedIn, 56 percent Facebook, 33 percent Blogs and 31 percent using Twitter.

Overall, when asked if they were confident their company has a plan for use of Social Media, a near majority was slightly confident to not at all confident. Overall, the Fargo-Moorhead Chamber members’ responses closely matched the 618 responses from other area Chamber members.

Select responses from Chamber members:

  * Businesses that are not using technology and social media sources are out of step with today’s productive workforce.

  * There isn’t a sufficient user base to say reliably if most strategies are “effective” yet.

  * [Social media] can be very effective to get your name out there and allow people to become familiar with your company.

How do you use social media in your daily business life?

An affiliate of Flint Group, Prime Contact is a market research firm with representatives in St Cloud, Duluth, Grand Forks and Fargo. The survey was conducted by Prime Contact in partnership with the Chamber of Commerce as a benefit to membership.

Nominate a Chamber member for a 2010 ChamberChoice Award

Impatient drivers trying to remove ice from windshields often discover creative ways to break the glass. Glass Doctor busts the top five auto glass de-icing myths:

1. Pour hot water on the vehicle’s windshield and windows to melt the ice. Make sure it melts the ice completely so the frozen glass will shatter due to the extreme temperature change.

2. Tap the ice on the car windshield with a hammer to break the ice into pieces to pick off the glass. If that doesn’t work, hammer on a screwdriver or ice pick. This usually results in an impact hole or a large crack.

3. Scrape the ice off the truck windshield with a metal ice scraper, key, spatula, utility knife or crowbar. The metal either scratches or cuts grooves in the glass.

4. Use a propane torch to melt the ice. Not only is this dangerous to the torchbearer, but this also can unintentionally melt the glass.

5. Pour a mixture of vinegar and water on the windshield so that it freezes to the glass before the rain does, thereby preventing ice buildup. Unfortunately, vinegar eats pits into the windshield glass.

These ideas may be creative, but they can be hazardous to your health. There is a better way to safely remove ice from windshields and auto glass. Gradually heat the glass from the inside while scraping and brushing ice from the outside.

1. Check to make sure no ice or snow is obstructing the vehicle’s tailpipe. If it is covered, the ice or snow must be removed to prevent the possibility of carbon monoxide poisoning inside the vehicle.

2. If the car door is frozen shut with ice, pour cold water to gradually melt the ice and use a plastic ice scraper to carefully chip a crack in the ice around the door seal and the lock. Do not try to “unseal” the door by using a hair dryer, cigarette lighter, ice pick, screwdriver, propane torch or portable heater.

3. Start the vehicle and use the defroster setting to warm the glass. Wait at least five minutes for the car to start to warm up.

4. When the ice in contact with the windshield is melting, use a plastic ice scraper and a soft plastic bristle brush or broom to clear the ice. A squeegee also helps.
 
There are de-icing products on the market that may shorten the time it takes to melt the ice, but they have mixed results. The most important thing is to plan some extra time to remove the ice before traveling. Glass Doctor can fix the glass if it breaks, but can’t fix people if they get hurt.

About Glass Doctor®:
Established in 1962, Glass Doctor is the largest chain of full-service glass replacement providers in the nation. Recognized by Entrepreneur magazine among its “Franchise 500,” Glass Doctor franchisees offer complete glass replacement, service and repairs to the automotive, residential and commercial markets at more than 360 locations in the United States. Glass Doctor is a subsidiary of The Dwyer Group, Inc. For further information or to find the location nearest you, visit www.glassdoctor.com.

When I start to wonder where this year went, I do one of two things: ignore the question and continue with my busy life or stop and reflect on what has happened this past year.  This time I am going to reflect on what has happened this year.

What has impacted me the most in 2009?
*Becoming an intern for the Chamber of Commerce of Fargo Moorhead
*Experiencing a major flood for the first time in my life
*Studying abroad in Norway for 3 months
*Experiencing the death of two close family members
*Realizing how supportive people can be when they realize how much someone is struggling

Tis’ the time to be reflective.  How is everything going in our lives, our jobs, and our friendships?  Do we need to take a moment to refocus our energy or should we continue to do what we love doing?  We have a month left to be proud of the way we spent our 2009.  What do you think, should we make the most out of it?

There still appears to be a consistent run of mild viral upper respiratory symptoms, but most of what we are seeing is just regular year around problems (there has been a lot of alcohol related complaints and psychiatric presentations this weekend…more than normal, but nothing really noteworthy or even really Newsable).

I think a lot of the decrease in the Influenza and even common cold stuff is because the media has been aggressive in getting word out on what’s happening, and ways to prevent it, and we are seeing the impact of it.  We heard a lot about media hype, but when they come to the ED patients in the ED know about washing hands, covering mouths, etc.  They are taking it seriously.

Still seeing an upswing in head injuries in young people, especially related to Hockey.  Fortunately, nothing serious as yet.  We just keep reminding parents to make sure their kids are wearing all of their equipment, that it fits properly, and that if a child takes a hit to the head or falls and hits their head, that they are properly evaluated and symptom free before getting back on the ice.

I expect that we will eventually get some real winter weather eventually.  I put a travel kit in my vehicle recently.  Might be a good time to remind people to put together a winter survival kit with a heavy blanket, extra boots and socks, a heavy coat and pants, hat and gloves, and a flashlight with good batteries.  Keeping cell phones charged is also important.  Even if a person is not stuck, a dead battery in the wrong spot or a vehicle that breaks down can be a real problem if a person has to walk any distance for help or wait an extended period for help.

Thanks,
Tony