- Engage Leaders: Summertime by George! – More than just music – feature from Troy Fritz
- Grow Business:2021 Central Minnesota Tour of Manufacturing
- Expand Talent: Tips to Secure Job Seekers – Part 2!
- Shape Tomorrow: Workplace Wellbeing – Suicide Prevention Training
- Insights and Inspirations: Forward Thinking on Unemployment – McKinsey Global Institute
Engage Leaders: Summertime by George! – More than just music – feature from Troy Fritz
If Summertime by George! was just a music concert event, it wouldn’t have lasted more than just a few years. Ten years later, this event has become part of the heartbeat of our community. What is the formula? A vision, a desire to bring a community together, a lot of volunteers who are committed to putting service above self and a community who shows their love and ownership of its success.
- Bringing life, focus, and hope to a troubled neighborhood by investing in the Community Outpost (COP House).
- Showing compassion for young homeless adults to help them find work, a home, mentoring, and a purpose by launching Pathways 4 Youth.
- Providing an opportunity for 60 four-year-old’s the chance to be in preschool to help launch their love of learning by partnering with District 742 and the Boys and Girls Club and starting Preschool 4 Success. This is what Summertime by George! is all about.
This year celebrates 10 seasons of St. Cloud Rotary’s Summertime by George! An idea that started on a napkin and followed in the heels of a five-year $3.5 million renovation project at Lake George/Eastman Park. Who would have imagined that in 10 years over 1 million guests would have attended an event solely run by volunteers?
What makes this event special is the “Magic Behind the Scenes.” “Steve” who has faded in and out of homelessness, who arrives early each week to help me set up the stage. Cici, a member of our deaf community who has now risen-up to become an interpreter to other deaf participants. Tech High School football players who arrive after practice to help us set up the park for our event earning volunteer service hours. The St. Cloud Police Officers, who can get called away for a community emergency moment, and then arrive back at the park, hot and sweaty wearing heavy vests, begin mentoring youth on how to firmly shake hands and the importance of looking a person in the eyes when they are talking to them. Or the hundreds of people who approach Rotarians in orange to shake our hands or give us a hug to just say thank you for our service. This is what Summertime by George! is all about, and along the way we have amazing entertainers.
Summertime by George! has always had three goals; Bring our community together, demonstrate Rotary’s motto of Service Above Self, and raise a little money to help us do amazing things in our community. We owe a great deal of gratitude to sponsors who helped us renovate the park, those who have stayed with us along the way in building this event and who believed in what this event represented, and the hundreds of hours our volunteers put into planning, only hoping to see the smiles on the faces of our crowd. And our city, Mayor Dave Kleis and Park Director Scott Zlotnik along with their teams, who have been partners every step of the way, guiding us, supporting us, and always encouraging us as we strive to serve our community.
Our community is amazing, and we get to experience it every week through our event, our partnerships, and friendships we have made along the way. Summertime by George! is more than just music.
– Troy Fritz, SBG! Entertainment Chair and Executive Committee
Grow Business
2021 Central Minnesota Tour of Manufacturing
October is dedicated as Manufacturing Month in Minnesota. The Minnesota Statewide Tour of Manufacturing is an opportunity for schools, families, and the general public to discover the innovative and high-tech world of modern manufacturing through participation in statewide and regional events
The Central Minnesota Manufacturing Association (CMMA) is inviting all greater St. Cloud manufacturers (members and nonmembers) to participate by hosting a public, semi-public or virtual tour in October. Learn about this opportunity HERE.
Expand Talent
Tips to Secure Jobseekers – Part 2!
With the end to additional unemployment benefits ending on Sept 6th, more job seekers will be looking for employment. To ensure you have the tools and resources in hand for timely and successful recruitment, we share two recruitment tips below.
1 – Are you set up with an efficient and timely interview process?
Start recruiting employees now, ahead of the Sept. 6 benefits cutoff, to ensure qualified potential employees haven’t already committed to other jobs. Are you set up for a timely and efficient interview process? Be ready to promote why you are the employer of choice! Visit our GSDC business resources for recruitment and retention tips. Contact Gail Cruikshank for questions/assistance.
2 – Are you enlisting your employees to help with recruitment?
Enlist your employees to contact their friends, telling them of openings at your company. The GSDC can provide a template for such a message if you’d like one, which includes an expression of your gratitude to current employees for their hard work and flexibility during recent months. Contact GSDC Talent Director, Gail Cruikshank for the template.
GSDC is here to help your business succeed, now and into the future. Please let us know if there are any challenges with which we can assist you.
Shape Tomorrow
Workplace Wellbeing – Suicide Prevention Training
In our continued efforts to promote workplace wellbeing, GSDC supports education opportunities such as these to help build a healthy community. Register here.
Insights & Inspirations
Forward Thinking on Unemployment – McKinsey Global Institute
Read a conversation with Nobel Prize winner and economist, Sir Christopher Pissarides, as he talks about job loss and creation after the pandemic. The interview provides some helpful insights into the complexity of unemployment, benefits, and moving forward in a pandemic.
Contact Our Staff Team
Patti Gartland, President
pgartland@greaterstcloud.com | 320-260-2442
Leslie Dingmann, Business Development Director
ldingmann@greaterstcloud.com | 320-493-9003
Gail Cruikshank, Talent Director
gcruikshank@greaterstcloud.com | 320-260-6775
Amelia Barkley, Communications & Program Specialist
abarkley@greaterstcloud.com | 320-292-9296