The Latest News for You from the Northeast Leadership Forum- September 2020

September 2020 Newsletter

Autumn is "Sort of Normal"

Have you felt the cooler breeze earlier this week? It reminds us that autumn is officially here, along with school (virtual for some students, in-person for others, and a hybrid in even more cases) and football.

While our fans in the stands are restricted, the enthusiasm of our student athletes is off the charts in most cases.

Please remember to invite prospects to our October 13 breakfast that will feature an Entrepreneurs Panel. Two of our panelists are:

Steve Buyers, CEO of Buyers Barricades in Richland Hills
Sue Schulz, owner of What’s Poppin’ Texas in Bedford

We are confirming a third panelist and you will be amazed at what led each of these entrepreneurs to start their own business. Guests may attend at no charge.

Also, please know that your board of directors continues to meet – and we met a hybrid of in-person and virtually during yesterday morning. We began conversations about electing 2021 board members and officers, and we are preparing for our Heart of North Texas Conference.

In the world of politics, last night launched the presidential debate season. I urge you and everyone you can influence to exercise your right to vote.

You have plenty of time to vote by mail or vote early. Please see the latest update in the story below.

I urge you to remain vigilant in treating this COVID-19 seriously. Please be cautious with this virus and wear a mask.

-Nick

Election Day Offers Vote by Mail

in addition to Early Voting and Day-of Voting

This November 3 election cycle will be one of the most bitterly contested campaigns in our nation’s history, and we will be voting for local and state representation in addition to the contentious presidential race.

Tarrant County Elections reports that you must have registered to vote by sending your postmarked form by Monday, October 5. Your request for a mail-in ballot must be postmarked by Monday, October 5. You may vote in person at any early voting location in Tarrant County.

The criteria for voting early by mail are that you:

Will be away from Tarrant County on Election Day AND during the hours that early voting is conducted
Sick or Disabled
65 years of age or older on Election Day
Confined in jail

Any registered voter may vote early in person. To vote early by mail, you must first complete an Application for Ballot by Mail. Key dates to remember are:

Registration deadlines

By mail – Oct. 5

In person – Oct. 5

Voting deadlines

Application by mail – Oct, 23

Submission by mail – Nov, 3

Submission in person – Nov, 3

Early voting

Begins – Oct, 13

Ends – Oct, 30

Election Day

Tuesday, November 3 - 7:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.

As leaders in Northeast Tarrant County, we encourage you to express your personal views and vote to support the candidates of your choice.

Final Census 2020 Push Underway

Today, September 30, is the final day to respond to the Census 2020. Currently, Tarrant County has a Census self-response rate of about 66.5%, with an estimated 234,000 households that have not yet responded.

As we all know, federal funding for such things as school lunches, transportation, community food programs, infrastructure enhancements, housing initiatives, public health, hospitals, and COVID-19 assistance, as well as congressional representation and local precinct and district boundaries, are all decided by the Census count.

Tarrant County will focus Census promotion efforts this last day in the areas with low response rates through the use of mobile phone adds and targeted social media. The map below shows the self-response rates of the various areas of Tarrant County.

We ask your assistance in placing reminders for residents to take the Census in your City or Chamber newsletters or social media postings. We even have yard signs to post on your facility grounds, and hats and T-Shirts for you to use as promotional giveaways!

October Breakfast to Feature Entrepreneur Panel

Small businesses are a powerful driver of our economy in Northeast Tarrant County. On Tuesday morning, October 13, we will hear from three small business owners who will describe how they founded their enterprise, the challenges faced in normal times and how they have dealt with 2020 thus far.

Please look forward to hearing from:

Sue Schultz – What’s Poppin Texas in Bedford

After working years in the hair salon and then beauty business, Sue was able to combine her passion for popcorn and that retail experience into a career she loves. She opened What’s Poppin’ Texas in November 2015 and continues to enjoy her relationships with retail customers.

Steve Buyers – Buyers Barricades in Richland Hills

While working on a construction project at DFW Airport, Steve became so frustrated with the terrible service of the company providing barricades that he went home that night and started his own barricade business. He is one of the largest barricade buyers in the Southwest, with locations in Fort Worth/Dallas, Houston and San Antonio.

We are finalizing our third panelist. Please invite your friends, particularly any entrepreneurs and small business operators, to our October 13 breakfast at the Hurst Conference Center. Networking will start at 7:15 a.m. and breakfast will be served at 7:30 a.m. Thank you to our meeting sponsor- Atmos Energy!

We encourage you to invite a guest/prospective member for this very interesting program. Please RSVP for yourself and your guest when you receive your email reminder. And remember, we WILL practice safe social distancing.

2020 Heart of North Texas Conference

Ross Perot, Jr. will be our Luncheon Keynote-

Get your tickets and tables now!

You may recall that our 2019 Heart of North Texas Business Conference sold out well in advance, and we are moving in that same direction for this year’s event – the 23rd Annual Heart of North Texas Conference on Friday, November 6.

We have secured three dynamic and influential speakers for this in-person conference:

Robert Earley, CEO of JPS Health System, will be our breakfast speaker, sharing insights on how health care systems have faced the pandemic and how they are moving forward.

Michael Sherrod, Executive-in-Residence at TCU and founding publisher of Texas Tribune, former vice president of Ancestry.com and vice-president of AOL, is a futurist that will share insights on where our area and the nation are moving.

Ross Perot, Jr. is the founder and visionary behind Alliance, Texas, and so much of the development in that area. This widely-sought speaker will keynote our luncheon.

Eli Mercer and his committee have done a magnificent job of bringing this program together. Once they assemble their remaining panel, the full agenda will be complete.

The Grand Hall at the NRH Centre will play host to the event, which will begin at 8:00 a.m. and end at 1:00 p.m. Click here to view our Eventbrite page for this event that provides further details about sponsorship opportunities.

We appreciate the early support of our sponsors:

Texas Health Resources
Texas Health Alliance, Texas Health HEB, Texas Health Southlake
Tarrant County College - Northeast
Venture Business Impact (VBI)
Glen Whitley, Tarrant County Judge
Gary Fickes, Tarrant County Commissioner Precinct 3
Linebarger Attorneys at Law
Republic Services

Table Reservations include:

Town of Trophy Club

Atmos Energy

Ciera Bank

City of Colleyville

City of Haslet

City of Hurst

City of Keller

City of North Richland Hills

City of Southlake

Frost Bank

Hillwood, a Perot Company

JPS Hospital

ONCOR Electric

United Way of Tarrant County

You can reach Eli Mercer (heartofnorthtexas@gmail.com or 972-896-3780) for sponsorship opportunities.

Tickets on Eventbrite: Click here or search for Heart of North Texas Conference 2020 by NLF

New NLF Directors and Officers Under Consideration for 2021

Yesterday (Tuesday), your Board of Directors selected a nominating committee to consider board candidates and officers for 2021. If you would like to make any recommendations to be considered, please reach out to our President, Nick Sanders, at nick@winocular.com.

Roundtables Staying Active During Pandemic

Most of our NLF Roundtable groups are remaining active – even if via Zoom in most cases – during the pandemic:

Chambers of Commerce: Chamber executives are meeting by Zoom every other Monday. Our area chambers of commerce have resumed holding in-person meetings and events.

Mayors: Mayors have not met as an official group but are consulting one another on a more direct basis. We do anticipate they will hold a fourth quarter dinner in Southlake.

Superintendents: Superintendents are meeting by text and Zoom as they have been overwhelmed by how to plan for school since the pandemic began in March. Students left for spring break and never returned. The most encouraging sign is that there has not been a major uptick of the virus following Labor Day weekend

Economic Development Directors: The Economic Development Directors have held numerous Zoom and phone meetings but have not met in person.

Nonprofits: Nonprofits have been busy managing their own operations and searching for ways to replace revenue lost from their major events. They have also been able to apply for federal funding administered through Tarrant County.

Tarrant County to the Rescue

Tarrant County has administered Phase I of a small business grant program that has led to over 2,100 businesses receiving just more than $17 million in funding so far.

The Phase 3 funding will total just over $12 million and will focus on businesses that did not qualify the first time, businesses that did not apply the first time and franchise operations, which will be available in Phase 2. The timeline for Phase 2 is to accept applications from October 6 through November 6, with all funds being allocated and used before December 31.

We appreciate Tarrant County Precinct 3 Commissioner Gary Fickes, who is overseeing the small business grant, and Tarrant County Judge Glen Whitley for his leadership over the entire grant program that includes nonprofits and more.

Keep NLF Dynamic and Growing

The past five months have taught each of a valuable lesson: Relationships matter! Many of us have been aided greatly through connections made and strengthened through Northeast Leadership Foundation.

We approved two new members – Harry Zimmer- Council Member, City of Euless, and Edward Lopez- Mayor of Richland Hills, who you will meet in next month’s newsletter.

As you interact with business and community leaders who impress you, please invite them to our next meeting, which will be our next breakfast on Tuesday, October 13.

These influencers are making a difference in our area, so let's invite them to participate in NLF. Membership is the lifeblood of our organization.

For any prospective NLF members you know, CLICK HERE to download the membership application. We want both established and emerging leaders to continue joining our organization to further the dynamic growth of Northeast Tarrant County.

We ask you to warmly welcome visitors and new members to our breakfast meetings. Growing the power of networks is one of the main benefits of NLF.

Chamber of Commerce Resources

All our area chambers are reaching out to their local businesses and overall communities to offer whatever assistance they can provide. Our chambers are hosting digital meetings from such platforms as Zoom, Microsoft Teams, Cisco Webex and Facebook Live to produce interactive sessions or offer information on a one-way transmission.

Our chambers have helped connect small businesses with area banks participating in the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and the SBA Economic Injury Disaster Loan program. The chambers have also provided all the information about the Tarrant County Small Business Grant Program to their members.

Our chambers of commerce are the voice of business for our community and we are indeed fortunate to have such committed and caring leaders as their presidents/executive directors and officers.