Blair County Chamber of Commerce
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Planting trees

6/14/2021

4 Comments

 
There’s a Greek Proverb that goes like this: “A society grows great when old men plant trees whose shade they know they shall never sit in.”
            Rex Kaup was a tree planter.  Fred Imler and Bill Thompson were too.  Within the last two years, we lost all three of them.
            Although it has never been officially established as a group or club or association, the eighteen recipients of the Chamber’s Lifetime Achievement Award for Business Excellence have a connection that goes well beyond            simply sharing a special night and a glass obelisk.
            Rex Kaup’s recent passing only brought it to the forefront one more time.  As a grieving business community spoke with near reverence for the kindheartedness and civic altruism that made Rex special, it had quite a familiar ring to it. I’m sure I heard those same sentiments, or something very close, about Fred Imler. About Bill Thompson and Tim Sissler and Don Devorris. About Ernie Wissinger, the award’s first recipient.
            Pity that it takes death to remind people how important someone was in life.
            There is little doubt that the term Business Excellence carries a high degree of subjectivity. Most people will tell you that they know it when they see it but too often the eye-test only lends itself to controversy.  The “tree planters” in the Greek Proverb have possibly unearthed the closest thing to a common denominator. Validation should take no more than a glance at a person’s legacy.
            When I think of the eighteen award recipients I come to two conclusions.  Every one of them fits the tree planter definition and Ann Benzel would not be enamored with being described as one of the Proverb’s “old men.”
            In October, Mark Barnhart, Owner and Chairman of the Board of NPC, will be the 19th recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award for Business Excellence. Mark has the distinction of being the only honoree to be selected one year and honored the next.  Covid-19 changed a lot of plans.
            Consider this: Last September, Mark and his company donated 140 laptop computers to the Claysburg-Kimmel School District to help students impacted by the pandemic to be able to learn virtually. That act of generosity is consistent with the dozens of similar things that NPC does without regard to short-term recognition.
            Do you think Mark Barnhart understands the importance of planting trees? 
             (Joe Hurd is President/CEO of the Blair County Chamber of Commerce)
​
4 Comments
Best Tree Service Company link
9/10/2021 10:03:51 am

This resonated to me " Pity that it takes death to remind people how important someone was in life."

Reply
coralspringstreeservices.com link
11/12/2021 07:10:35 am

Awesome post, I am def going to follow your blog.

Reply
Michael link
12/13/2021 11:06:11 pm

Great Article! Thank you for sharing this is very informative post, and looking forward to the latest one.

Reply
Michelle link
1/6/2022 10:46:42 pm

Great Article! Thank you for sharing this is very informative post, and looking forward to the latest one. If you are looking for hydroponic supplies here in Australia just visit thegrowshop dot com dot au.

Reply



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    Joe Hurd is President/CEO of the Blair County Chamber of Commerce.

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Copyrighted Blair County Chamber of Commerce.  All Rights Reserved.
3900 Industrial Park Drive, Suite 12  | Altoona, PA 16602
Phone: (814) 943-8151 | chamber@blairchamber.com
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  • Home
  • About
    • Chamber Q & A
    • Chamber Staff
    • Board of Directors
    • Buy Here. Thrive Here.
    • Chamber Committees
    • Chamber Foundation
    • News
    • Publications >
      • NETworks Digital News
      • Newsletter Subscription
      • Business Insight
      • Blog
    • Community Partners
    • Visitor/Relocation Information
    • Policies
    • Contact
  • Chamber Membership
    • Sponsorships
    • Members Benefits
    • Member Directory
    • Chamber Unity Fund
    • Membership Application
    • Members Only
  • Events Calendar
  • Special Offers
    • Power Card
    • Small Business Advertising Opportunities
  • Events & Programs
    • Annual Meeting
    • BASICS
    • Breakfast Club
    • Business After Hours
    • Business Before Hours
    • Business Excellence Dinner
    • Chamber Golf Classic
    • Committee of Non-Profit Businesses >
      • Essential Tips for Building a Nonprofit Organization
    • Farm-City
    • Hall of Fame
    • Home Garden & Healthy Living Show
    • Leadership Blair County Adult >
      • Class Projects
    • LBC Adult Alumni
    • Leadership Blair County Youth
    • Regional Programs
    • Safety Programming
    • Sustainable Blair County
    • WE-LEaD
    • Young Entrepreneurs Academy
    • Young Professionals of Blair County
    • Workplace Wellness
    • Community Calendar
  • Chamber Trips
  • Job Board
    • Manufacturing Quality Engineering Manager
    • Payroll & Learning Management Systems Administrator
    • Purchasing & Inventory Control Assistant Manager
    • Customer Service
    • Software Engineer
    • Career Planner
    • Youth Career Planner
    • Estate Assistant
    • Lawn Service Technician
    • Carpentry/Construction Teacher (School year-9 month position)
    • HVAC Instructor
    • Production Positions
    • New Products Research/Development/Design Engineer
    • Manufacturing Project Engineer
    • Heavy Equipment Operator & Truck Driver
    • Service Technician/Installer
    • General Construction Laborer
    • Deposit Operations Representative
    • Roadway Designer
    • Customer Service Representative
    • Form Carpenters - Commercial Building Construction
    • Project Geologist
    • Civil Engineer - Land Development
    • Loan Closing/Escrow Specialist
    • Loan Processing Representative
    • Civil Engineer - Land Development
    • Licensed or Mental Health Level Therapists
    • Information Technology Director
    • Field Service Technician Industrial Equipment
    • Hardware Store Sales Associate
    • Auto Parts Sales Associate
    • Laborer/CDL Driver
    • Heavy Equipment Operator (Underground Utilities Construction)
    • Pipe Foreman (Underground Utilities Construction)
    • Product Merchandiser (Product Manager)
    • TCIS & TCI
    • Professional Geologist
    • Bookkeeper
    • School Psychologist
    • ​Customer Service Representative (Bank Teller)
    • ​Customer Service Representative (Bank Teller)
    • Plumbing, HVAC, Electrical & Appliance Repair Tech
    • Escape Room Game Master
    • Judicial Secretary
    • Tipstaff
    • Courtroom Tipstaff
    • Teacher Assistant
    • Facility Assistant
    • Bus Driver
    • Director
    • Production Packers (2nd Shift)
    • Business Services Coordinator
    • Career Planner (Youth Programs)
    • Customer Service Representative (Bank Teller)
    • Certified Peer Specialists
    • Practical Nursing Instructor
    • Elementary (Kindergarten) Instructor
    • Appliance Repair Technician
    • Physical Therapist
    • General Laborer
    • Mechanic - Electrical
    • Software Technology Positions
    • Implementation Lead
    • Business Analyst/Scrum Master
    • Sales Engagement Consultant
    • Content Writer
    • Medical Technician
    • Structural/Architectural Engineer
    • Entry Level Architectural Design Professional
    • Office Specialist
    • Production Packer
    • Production Packer
    • Certified Occupation Therapy Assistant (COTA)
    • Property & Casualty Insurance Producer
    • Janitorial Healthcare Cleaner
    • Janitorial Cleaner - Evenings
    • Ticket Agent
    • Wastewater Engineer
    • Automation/Controls Technician-DGF
    • Phlebotomist
    • VP of Programming and Membership Education
    • Construction Laborer