Presented By
FACES & PLACES POW                                                                                  
Doors opened on Dec. 6 for the new Botanical Research Institute of Texas (BRIT) George C. and Sue W. Sumner Molecular and Structural Laboratory. "This new state-of-the-art lab and teaching facility will provide an open exchange of research between BRIT scientists and Tarleton students and faculty," said Tarleton State University President F. Dominic Dottavio.
Pictured at the ribbon cutting ceremony are Dr. Morteza Khaledi, dean of the University of Texas at Arlington College of Science; Fort Worth City Councilman Dennis Shingleton; Greg Bird, chairman, BRIT Board; Stephanie Brentlinger; William Brentlinger; Dr. Ed Schneider, executive director, BRIT; Dottavio; and Jason Singhurst, botanist, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.


  
PRESS YOUR LUCKPrizes
Click on the links below to enter for prizes

Cast your lot: In an effort to control his love handles, Mr. B stopped eating lunch in 1973. Which means there is more food for you, so you might cast your lot with the Cast Iron Restaurant at the Omni Fort Worth Hotel. Though Mr. B only sips water and occasionally sneaks cookies during noonish hours, he nonetheless highly recommends on cold wintry days the Cast Iron's venison chili with cotija and cheddar biscuit, or the southern fried chicken & waffle. There's lighter fare, such as tortilla soup and quinoa and kale salads, but with a $50 gift card for two readers, why not live a little? By the way, every ingredient in every dish at the Cast Iron is Texas sourced.

Army vs. a Major: Is there a better or larger Tarrant County salute to the military than the Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl at TCU's Amon Carter Stadium? It starts with the Kickoff Luncheon Dec. 21 then on to the Dec. 22 ultimate Ulterra pre-game Tailgate Outpost, a free exhibition area that will include interactive displays, current and vintage military hardware, a pre-game concert, pep rallies for both teams and more. Oh, by the way, there is a football game, too, between Army and Houston (led by Major Applewhite) that begins at 2:30 Dec. 22. Bowl Executive Director Brant Ringler and his ESPN team punted over a pair of game tickets and ESPN VIP pre-game passes for four readers. The VIP Party, with complimentary food and beverages, is usually just for corporate sponsors, so these are exclusive tickets. The VIP area is located next to the pre-game concert stage.

Boswells are besties: Gordon Boswell Flowers delivers around the block or around the world and floral fashionista Erica Ashinhurst has an Uber-like deal with Santa and his reindeer to get the most beautiful bouquets to the best-behaved house owners in time for the jolly holiday. There is an array of fun florals to choose from and Mr. B's favorite is the very, very Elegant Impressions Orchid. But if he sent it to the Prospective Ms. B or Mum B, they would know he stole it. Second fav is the sedate, but charming Christmas Cabin. Beauty up your holiday with your choice from a select group of Christmas gift baskets from Gordon Boswell Flowers.

Art for (more than) arts' sake: At Eternity's Gate is the featured film in the Magnolia at The Modern series December 21-23 and December 28-30. William Bibbiana wrote, "Any film could give you the gist of (Vincent) Van Gogh's life story, but perhaps only this one can make you feel what it would be like to stand in a field with this brilliant mind and watch him make magic out of scenery."  Willem Dafoe stars in Julian Schnabel's journey "inside the world and mind of Van Gogh, who, despite skepticism, ridicule and illness, created some of the world's most beloved and stunning works of art." The Modern's Kendal (jump in the) Lake painted a picture of two tickets for any one of the seven showings each weekend for three readers.

Congratulations to the December 5th, 
Prize Winners: 
  • Susan Taylor, Innovative Developers, Inc.
  • Sandi Mitchell, APEX Mastery
  • Alex Foster, Bell
  • Justin Dittmar, Fulcrum Group
  • Christy Yorek, Lockheed Martin
  • Taylor Hansen, Dronealytics
  • Cyndy Tonniges, TriQuest Technologies
A WORD FROM OUR GOLD SPONSORS


HE SAID, SHE SAID, THEY SAIDSoundBytes
Heavy petting: In the thick of the December college signing day for high school athletes, TCU football coach Gary Patterson says recruiting is "like high school dating...you shoot high, but you're going to get 'no' said to you a lot."

Ba-da-boom...: Mayor Price Is Right was asked how she could learn anything from constituents during her Comerica Bank rolling town hall meetups if everyone were riding bikes. "When you put Spandex on this body," she said, "people will tell you anything."
 
A-Mays-ing: After 35 years with Junior Achievement, including 19 in Fort Worth, Randal Mays has retired and JA of the Chisholm Trail has hired Cindy Hames as President. No grudge or anything, but Mr. B once worked for Hames. She knows all his secrets, so this might be the last time she ever is mentioned in B2B Insider.

Bet he sings in shower: Brian Dixon, Together Forward, is a member of the world renowned Turtle Creek Chorale in Dallas and he'll be signing during the holiday concert series Friday-Sunday. Together Forward is a non-profit think tank creating solution-focused projects that tackle health, wealth and cultural disparity.

If you're sick in 2028...: When it opens next July, TCU and UNTHSC School of Medicine Dean Stuart Flynn said it will be "a disruptive medical school." Last week, the school hosted a well-being forum and Flynn offered up four disruptive ideas for the next 10 years.
  • Present system for Electronic Medical Records (EMRs) being blown up;
  • What is the role of genetic sequencing;
  • Concerns about young people not entering medical field;
  • Walmart, Quest and Google "telling (healthcare providers) how to deliver care."
  • Panelists added two other disruptive probabilities -- doctor burnout and greater technology. 
Drip, drip, drip...: The Chamber won a Public Relations Society Worthy Award of Excellence for the Fort Worth City / Water District bond election campaigns in the spring. The Chamber partnered with the Eppstein Group to get out the vote for the City bond and the Water District bond; both passed with more than 65 percent of the vote. Chamberites Andra, Bill, Margo, Patti and Ros handled the SPAC and the campaign, and it's only a coincidence that all have skipped town.

Is this like Build-A-Bear? The United Way of Tarrant County, in partnership with Leadership Fort Worth, has developed and is offering BoardBuild, which provides leadership and board of director training and uses an algorithm-based system to find strong board matches. By developing skills of diverse leaders, United Way says organizations and community development are strengthened. BoardBuild is available to individuals and companies and offered online or in person; it is presented by comedy troupe Four Day Weekend. If successful, it can be rolled out nationally and provide continuing revenues.
"I'm very trusting. I trust people until they nail me."

--Barry McCleland
a TechFW client
This really is 'emerging': Locavore is one of the finalists in the Emerging Business category for the 2019 Chamber Small Business of the Year and emerging is a perfect description. Owned by Cortney Gumbleton and Carlo Capua, Locavore was formed in May, 2018 and rents commercial kitchen space, office space and an event center. The category winners will be announced at the Small Business Awards Night Jan. 24 at the 4-Eleven. One of the four category winners will be awarded the "Best of Show" as the overall winner at the Feb. 19th Chamber's State of the City luncheon, featuring Mayor Price Is Right.

Growth momentum: Dallas Rainwater (not one of THOSE Rainwaters) has 13 letters after his name establishing his greatness, and works with the advisory practice of MomentUs Wealth Management. Dallas mentioned the average age of wealth advisory folks is similar to a dinosaur's and that MomentUs is growing its business by buying out dinosaurs', errr, advisors' books...three so far with a very high client retention rate.

Home is where the heart is: Carla Jutson, the President and CEO of Meals on Wheels locally, says it costs the non-profit agency $1,750 a year to feed someone. The average income of their clients is $1,000 a month; by feeding clients, Meals on Wheels helps them stay in their home, "where they want to be," Jutson said. "I tell my grandchildren 'You can't afford to have my generation in nursing homes.'" Fiscal Year 2018 numbers were 854,557 meals served to 4,295 people. Fifty two percent of funding came from private sources.

Woohoo! Freese and Nichols is returning to downtown with approximately 300 employees cubicled for Burnett Plaza. Arrive in 2020, maybe 2019 if the speed limit on Chisholm Parkway is increased. Local engineering highlights and delights include Clearfork Main Street Bridge, Holly Water Treatment Plant and Tarrant County College's Center of Excellence for Energy Technology. From the Chamber's Senior Vice President of Talent Development, Attraction and Retention, Dr. Anthony Edwards: "CBRE ranks DFW 12th nationally for tech talent. Young tech talent tend to prefer to live and work near urban centers with easy access to mass transit, walkable streets and entertainment venues."

For more member news and announcements, go to the Chamber's website.


MARK YOUR CALENDARS
Sponsored By

            Date          Event NameCalendar
1-24


2-19

Save the Date: Mayor's State of the City luncheon presented by Simmons Bank



Ribbon Cuttings
12-13


Ribbon Cutting: Hawkins Family Funeral Home
12-14


Ribbon Cutting: Grimaldi's Pizzeria
12-17

Ribbon Cutting: The PARC



View  more Chamber and Member events
View past Ribbon Cuttings    

DIRECT MAIL STILL WORKS!
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