​There is a housing shortage that so many people today in America are feeling the heat of. It seems that no matter where you move, you can never find a place to call home because they are in such high demand. Well, our friends over at the Presbyterian Manor paired with the Salina Area Chamber of Commerce hosted a groundbreaking ceremony on November 1st, 2022, to announce The Villas, a not-for-profit housing project created and located by Presbyterian Manor. The Villas offers a great housing option for the prominent elderly population group within Salina and surrounding areas.

The project boasts a variety of exciting amenities as listed below:

• Maintenance-free living with lawn service
• Water, sewer, and trash utilities included
• Priority access to a full continuum of care
• On-site therapy services
• Housekeeping services
• Dining service options
• Home health options
• Transportation services
• Hair salon on-site

• Pickleball court
• Community pocket park
• Ralph Reitz Memorial Park and walking path
• Convenient pond and gazebo access
• Library on-site
• Life enrichment programming
• Cultural and educational opportunities
• On-site chaplain and spiritual life opportunities

Additionally, the features of each Villa are listed below:

• Single-family home
• Two-bedroom, two bath
• Two-car garage
• Open floor plan with 9-foot ceilings
• Tray ceilings standard in bedrooms and great room
• Storm shelter/walk-in closet combo
• Covered patios
• Fully equipped electric kitchens
• 42” high upper cabinets with soft close hardware throughout

• Your choice of designer selected finishes and color palettes
• Your choice to upgrade selected features and finishes
• Pedestal bases standard with front loading washer and dryer
• Gas furnace
• Security system
• Emergency call system

The Villas offers a solid life plan for their residents and promotes peace of mind for them and their families. Working as a part of Presbyterian Manor, the organization assures to keep values in mind and promote these values for all residents. Offering the opportunity to live the way you want to live, at your own pace, with less stress, The Villas promotes certainty and financial security for your future in a neighborhood that will make you feel as if you were surrounded by family. In their efforts, they are working to promote the feeling of being able to start each day with a renewed sense of vitality at the premiere retirement community in Salina.

Following the culture that they have created in their mission statement, "To provide quality senior services guided by Christian values", the Salina Presbyterian Manor invests in their residents and their staff through volunteering, scholarships, Soup Supper event, Art is Ageless®, and more. All of this is to provide a sense of value and belonging to their residents. As a resident Presbyterian Manor vows to take care of you forever as they have 73 years of senior living experience and prioritize serving their residents, not their shareholders. In fact, all net revenues are returned to the community to make Salina Presbyterian Manor an exceptional place for the retired community to live. The first 22 homes are projected to start construction in the first quarter of 2022 and be finished by the end of 2023, of the 22 being built at first, 11 are already sold.

For more information, please call the Salina Presbyterian Manor at: (785) 201-9052

​Culture is an important part of a young person’s development and identity, and the Salina middle schools are dedicated to incorporating unique methods to instilling the culture of our community into the developmental minds of our children. The most recent effort from the schools involved sending around 500 7th grade students to participate in the Downtown Salina “Cultural Crawl” last week on October 19th, 2022, and October 21st, 2022.
The Cultural Crawl incorporates a unique take on curriculum-based activities and offers a hands-on experience throughout the downtown area. The goal of the efforts being made is to inform and encourage the young students to utilize the cultural resources around Salina and to learn their curriculum in a unique manner through around a dozen different learning engagements. The learning opportunities included curriculum covering history, art, science, math, social studies, and more.

Mental health is becoming increasingly important within today’s societal culture, and as the stress levels of our minds and our bodies inflate, it is important to do what we can to let ourselves deflate. Well, on September 26th, 2022, the Salina Area Chamber of Commerce welcomed new member Myne Body & Soul to the community with a successful inaugural ribbon cutting ceremony! Branded as a “mental health gym”, Myne Body & Soul is doing exactly that and doing what they can to help the community heal by mind, body, and soul. Owner Ben Lee, and operator Erin Kerby whole-heartedly believe in their ability to help renew the body and mind, and after trying it myself, I can say that it is definitely something you need to experience to truly understand. Ben’s vision partnered with both Erin and Ben’s shared love for helping people and watching them leave happier makes for an extremely motivated and passionate team.

Think of your local community as a single, large living organism, a body. Each business in this community plays a vital role in tune with every other organization to keep the body alive and well. Although healthy competition is no stranger to the environment as they compete for resources, they are all still a part of the make-up of the community. In order to thrive, the community needs the circulation of economy, and it is the citizens that make up the lifeblood that is so important to keep within the body. When we fall and scrape our arm or our leg, we don’t let the blood flow freely out of our bodies, we try to stop the flow and we do whatever we can to lose the least amount of blood possible. Likewise, in a community such as our own, we work together to keep people, money, and business in the community, because if we bleed out too much then our body starts to fail, and we do what we can to attract new people, businesses, and opportunities so that we can flourish. In the same analogy, the Chamber of Commerce is the beating heart of any community. It is the job of the Chamber to pump the lifeblood throughout the community and give life to each of its members keeping the community and small business alive; this is done in a variety of ways.

The life of an entrepreneur is a series of constant rejection, red tape, high barriers to entry, and lack of support. However, the life of an entrepreneur can also be exhilarating, engaging, community-supported, and establish you as a strong member of the community. No one says that being an entrepreneur is easy, the resources available to entrepreneurs in Kansas, and especially in the Salina area, are meant to assist entrepreneurs and support them all the way up until the grand opening and beyond. On Thursday, September 15th, the Salina Area Chamber of Commerce hosted a Lender’s Luncheon for the lending members of the Chamber of Commerce. Listed below are few of the resources that were presented that are available to entrepreneurs in Kanas and the Salina area. 

1. Kansas Small Business Development Center
2. NetWork Kansas
3. Project Open

​Our children are quite literally, and figuratively, our future, so it only makes sense that the education that they receive during the most developmental stages of their lives is no less than exceptional. Our kids deserve to not only being taught the basics of math, science, language, government, and every other subject that is necessary in turning their young minds into prospering young adults, but also teaching them how to learn for themselves, how to develop their own intellect, and how to construct their own educated opinions...

Eric L. Brown named 40 Under 40 by the Association of Chamber of Commerce Executives

Congratulations to our President and CEO, Eric Brown on being named to the Association of Chamber of Commerce Executives (ACCE) 2021 40 Under 40 list of emerging leaders shaping the chamber of commerce industry.

This annual recognition program showcases 40 of the industry’s top emerging leaders who have demonstrated success in their careers and made significant contributions to the communities they serve. The list includes CEOs and staff professionals from a wide variety of roles and chamber sizes. During a year that challenged us all, their creativity, dedication and commitment to identifying innovative solutions will help shape the future of the chamber profession.

ACCE is an association of more than 9,000 professionals from 1,300 chambers of commerce, including 93 of the top 100 U.S. metro areas.

This year’s program drew more than 130 nominations. Eligible chamber professionals must be nominated by their chamber’s president/CEO, direct supervisor or board chair. Candidates must demonstrate meaningful involvement in the advancement of their community and proven professional success within their chamber.

Jeff Maes, Owner of Compro Realty and 2021 Salina Area Chamber of Commerce Board Chair said, “Eric has positively impacted our organization and community because of his leadership, skills, knowledge, willingness to help others and dedication to our mission. His experience and leadership with both long-term and short-term community development efforts, chamber specific programming, advocacy and business development has had a truly positive impact on the future of Salina and our region of Kansas as a whole.”
​
The full 2021 40 Under 40 list was announced publicly in the fall 2021 edition of Chamber Executive, ACCE’s digital magazine. View all the honorees online at http://magazine.acce.org/40under40