Click to View Partner Letter

Dear Friends,

Our community and local businesses are at the heart of everything we do. COVID-19 continues to have an increased significant impact on communities across the country. Businesses and individuals are being faced with tough and costly decisions, attempting to balance caution with economic stability.

It’s a difficult time for everyone where good information, knowledge, solidarity and support are paramount. As you have no doubt heard from many in our business community, your health is a top priority, and businesses have taken various steps, including but not limited to some of the following:

• Increase cleanliness and sanitation practices,
• Work from home options when/where available,
• Crowd control or postponed/canceled events & activities,
• Take-out and delivery services, and so on.

For our customers, please take advantage of ways you are able to support local establishments by:

• Ordering take-out or delivery | there are both food and retail options available,
• Visiting your favorite retailers during off hours with less crowds,
• Supporting local businesses online or virtually if possible,

Local businesses are taking extra precautions to keep customers safe and they are open for business.

For our business community, we will continue to provide assistance and resources as they come available to be the most informed:

Businesses, please Fill Out This Form from Illinois Department of Commerce & Economic Opportunity to help the U.S. Small Business Administration economic injury requests.

• Centers for Disease Control & Prevention | COVID-19 Information+ Resources for Businesses & Employers
• Illinois Department of Public Health
• S. Small Business Administration | Guidance for Businesses & Employers to Plan and Respond to COVID-19Including: Economic Injury Disaster Loan Program and SBA Products & Resources
• Illinois Chamber Dispatch | Responding to the Coronavirus Outbreak: Five Questions & Answers for Employers
• Main Street America Network | CDC Resource, SBA Resources, Community Response Examples

As your partners, we are dedicated to working on ways to continue offering support.

In the meantime, continue to check on those friends and family at risk, take food or donate to local food pantries and make sure you have reliable information.

Please do not hesitate to reach out to any of our organizations.

Sincerely,

Marcel Wagner                              Latonya Brock                                 Bruce Guthrie

President                                        Executive Director                         Executive Director

Great River Economic                  Quincy Area                                    The District

Development Foundation           Chamber of Commerce

We welcome you to join us for the Great River Economic Development Foundation (GREDF) Annual Meeting.

Wednesday, January 10
The Oakley Lindsay Center | 300 Civic Center Plaza
5:00p – Cash Bar
5:45p – Program

Special Guests

Les Post | Adams County Board Chair
Kyle Moore for Mayor | City of Quincy
Mark Peterson | President Intersect Illinois

Hear about the Adams County, Illinois GDP
Growth | Development | Progress

Learn more about GREDF’s focus for 2018 and listen to a special keynote on the state of Illinois Economic Development from Mark Peterson of Intersect Illinois.

All are welcome to attend.

Snap Shot | Year In Review

GREDF 2017 Fourth Quarter Report 

A yearlong celebration of Illinois’ 200^th birthday launches with communities around the state next week, as the Bicentennial Flag is raised on December 4^th at noon.

The media and public are invited to join Quincy & Adams County area leaders on Monday, Dec. 4^th beginning at 11:30am at the Adams County Court House, 521 Vermont St., as we participate simultaneously with fellow communities across our historic state in this commemorative Bicentennial Flag Raising Ceremony.

The event commences with patriotic and Illinois-themed music from the Salvation Army Band, a Proclamation, and the Bicentennial flag-raising on the lawn of the Adams County Court House. In case of inclement weather, the ceremony will be moved inside the lobby of the court house.

“The Bicentennial is a once-in-a-lifetime invitation to fall in love with Illinois all over again. It is an opportunity to celebrate all that has been great in our first 200 years and lay the foundation for 200 more years of growth and prosperity. Illinois is home, and the Bicentennial gives us a chance to reflect on what makes it great and how we can continue to make it great for our children and grandchildren,” Governor Rauner said.

For more information on Illinois yearlong celebrations and events, visit the Illinois Bicentennial Celebration website: www.illinois200.com

#IllinoisProud                                                              Illinois200.com

The Adams County Works Transition Planning Team hosted their third quarterly seminar, Effective Communication: Deciphering Communication Styles. The lunchtime event was held Wednesday, November 1 from 11:45a – 1:00p in The Salvation Army Ray & Joan Croc Corps Community Center at 405 Vermont St. Quincy, IL.

Guest presenter was James E. Sours of ALCPC Consulting. ALCPC represents the 5 steps of integrity coaching: Ask, Listen, Coach, Praise and Challenge. “We cannot control the way others communicate with us,” states Sours, “but we can adjust our communication to be more effective.” Mr. Sours was raised and learned how to wok on a small family farm in northwest Ohio. He received an Ag Economics degree from Ohio State University.

Adams County Works Teams focus on 3 areas for strategic workforce development. Representatives from businesses, education, social services and economic development are identifying and overcoming barriers to employment to meet your future workforce needs.

Transition Planning Team focuses on advancing current workers with a mission of nurturing current employees to help advance their level of workplace essential skills to sustain and grow the organization’s competitive advantage. The Transition Planning Team meets the 3^rd Wednesday of each month at 9:00 am in the Oakley Lindsay Center.

A Veteran’s appreciation event that is free for the whole family.

To honor our regions veterans, and active duty military personnel, Great River Economic Development Foundation (GREDF) is joining with national and local partners to host the inaugural Heroes at Heartland, a free event of outdoor adventure and valuable community resource information.

To kickoff event registration, and to learn more, GREDF hosted a press conference on Friday, June 2 at 9a in the OLC lobby – 300 Civic Center Plaza. Marcel Wagner, GREDF President spoke on behalf of the steering committee, with other members joining the press conference. Mayor Kyle Moore also gave remarks on his gratitude to veterans in our region and their importance for our workforce.

“One of the significant resources in our region are the Veteran’s that have recently left military service,” states Marcel Wagner, president of GREDF. “It is our responsibility as a region to bring together resources that can assist our Warriors. Our Veterans are valuable employees and members of the Quincy regional community. GREDF will be partnering with a number of organizations to begin a comprehensive effort to reach out to provide employment and other community resource information to our warriors.”

The Heroes at Heartland event is scheduled for Saturday, August 5, 2017 from 9a – 5p at Harpole’s Heartland Lodge in Nebo, IL. The event will be a free day of outdoor adventures including off roading, archery, and trapshooting, with a BBQ lunch also provided.

For more information, contact Joi Cuartero Austin at GREDF (217) 223-4313.

Appreciation held Thursday, May 4 at 4pm in the Oakley Lindsay Center Lobby

Adams County, IL – In recognition of National Teacher Appreciation Day, the Workforce Development Partners on the Career Guidance Team held a press conference on Thursday, May 4 at 4pm in the Oakley Lindsay Center Lobby to express appreciation to our regional teachers for their help with youth work readiness initiatives.

Participating teachers were thanked for their partnership with the Career Guidance Team and encouraged to submit their information for a chance at an appreciation prize – a basket filled with certificates and merchandise from local businesses. The winning teacher was presented their prize at the press conference.

Marcel Wagner, GREDF President provided an introduction, and Maddie Corder, K-12 College/Career Counselor on the Career Guidance Team presented the teacher appreciation prize.

Born out of the Workforce Summit, the Career Guidance Team is sponsored by the following partners:  Great River Economic Development Foundation, John Wood Community College, Quincy University, United Way of Adams County, Inc., West Central Region Ed. For Employment System #240, and Workforce Board of Western Illinois.

The Career Guidance Team mission is to Encourage, Educate & Connect: Encourage and foster awareness of careers; educate youth and job seekers about area career opportunities; build connections between families and local employers.

Adams County, IL – On Thursday, April 27 at 11:45am, the Work Readiness Team will launch the Work Readiness Certification process with an introduction. The event will take place in the Holiday Inn Banquet Room at 4821 Oak Street in Quincy, IL. Great River Economic Development Foundation (GREDF) and the Workforce Investment Board of Western Illinois (WIB) are co-sponsors of the event.

The Work Readiness Team is offering the introduction to continue educating Family Service frontline staff, and other human resource management, on the challenges some people face when seeking employment to provide a head of household income.

“The training helps service organizations and businesses become more cognizant of the diversity in our community and the inclusion of everyone for job placement and advancement,” states Angela Caldwell, director of workforce development at GREDF. “We should be more aware of the challenges people in our community face when job searching.”

The launch will begin with a luncheon speaker, Dorothy Nelson, helping attendees see the world from the view of poverty. “Assisting job seekers begins with meeting people where they are and helping them on a path to where they want to be,“ said Blanche Shoup, director of WIB. “We are working on both sides, with job seekers, as well as area employers and agencies to meet work ready needs.”

The Work Ready Certification Process helps un and underemployed prepare for job placement and advancement. The Work Ready Certificate was designed to address the concerns from area employers regarding the lack of soft skills with today’s applicants.

Current training on the Work Ready Certification process is offered through: John Wood Community College, Madonna House and the Quincy Workforce Service Center at the Illinois Department of Employment Securities. Agencies will be able to refer job seekers to those locations.

Agenda Includes:

• Updates from Work Readiness Team
• Guest Speaker Dorothy “Dot” Nelson: “Understanding Poverty”
• University of Illinois Extension Office: Poverty Simulation
• Introduction to the Work Readiness Certification Process

For more information, contact Joi Cuartero Austin at GREDF (217) 223-4313.

Great River Economic Development Foundation is a 501(c)6 not-for-profit organization with a mission to maintain and GROW the economic vitality of the Quincy and Adams County, IL region through the retention and expansion of existing businesses and the attraction of new businesses to our entire region.

Adams County, IL – Registration is open for the 20^th Anniversary Tri-State Development Summit, “Stronger Together,” to be held on Friday, November 18 at Iowa Wesleyan University – 601 N. Main St. Mount Pleasant, Iowa. Check in for the event begins at 9am with sessions starting at 10am. All are welcome to attend.

“Southeast Iowa and Iowa Wesleyan University in Mt. Pleasant are pleased to host The Tri-State Development Summit,” states steering committee member Dan Wiedemeier. “This is our 20^th year of bringing leaders together from the Tri-State region. We have accomplished much with this unique organization and once again this year’s Summit will provide an opportunity for those in attendance to network, exchange information and hear about what is happening in our region and the rest of the world.”

The Summit brings together hundreds of tri-state leaders in 3 states and 36 counties to define common issues; to develop an on-going dialogue to effectively address those issues; and to improve the quality of life of the entire region through economic development activities, which impacts over 700,000 people.

“We have learned that when we speak with one voice we can address issues critical to our region much more effectively,” affirms steering committee member and former City of Quincy Mayor Chuck Scholz.

Tickets for the summit are $40 and include: a morning session with state updates, networking lunch with awards and recognition, and an afternoon session with a workforce development panel. Leading the panel discussion is senior director of ACT Center for Workforce Advancement, Deb Lyons, joined by business representatives from different industries in each state.

To register and pay online, as well as see details on schedule and speakers, please visit TriStateOfMind.com/Stronger-Together, or follow the facebook event “20^th Anniversary Tri-State Development Summit” hosted by Great River Economic Development Foundation.

“This 11^th Summit marks the 20^th Anniversary of the 36 County, Tri-State Development Summit (TSDS),” confirms Patrick Poepping, steering committee member. “When I look back and see what our regional approach has done for developing 4-lane highways to and through this three state area, I find it hard to believe what we accomplished.”

Poepping continues, “We set out to improve 1,677 miles of roadway and 1,311 miles, or 78% of our regional highway priorities are complete. These modern 4-lane roadways position our Tri-State Region for important, long overdue, economic growth, and more importantly, they provide for the safer passage for our family, friends, and visitors to our TSDS Region.”

For more information about the Tri-State Development Summit, and to register, please contact Joi Cuartero Austin at JoiA@gredf.org or visit TriStateOfMind.com.

Great River Economic Development Foundation is a 501(c)6 not-for-profit organization with a mission to maintain and improve the economic vitality of Quincy and Adams County, IL through the retention and expansion of existing businesses and the attraction of new businesses to our communities.

###

Adams County, IL – Registration is open for the 20^th Anniversary Tri-State Development Summit, “Stronger Together,” to be held on Friday, November 18 at Iowa Wesleyan University – 601 N. Main St. Mount Pleasant, Iowa. Check in for the event begins at 9am with sessions starting at 10am. All are welcome to attend.

“Southeast Iowa and Iowa Wesleyan University in Mt. Pleasant are pleased to host The Tri-State Development Summit,” states steering committee member Dan Wiedemeier. “This is our 20^th year of bringing leaders together from the Tri-State region. We have accomplished much with this unique organization and once again this year’s Summit will provide an opportunity for those in attendance to network, exchange information and hear about what is happening in our region and the rest of the world.”

The Summit brings together hundreds of tri-state leaders in 3 states and 36 counties to define common issues; to develop an on-going dialogue to effectively address those issues; and to improve the quality of life of the entire region through economic development activities, which impacts over 700,000 people.

“We have learned that when we speak with one voice we can address issues critical to our region much more effectively,” affirms steering committee member and former City of Quincy Mayor Chuck Scholz.

Tickets for the summit are $40 and include: a morning session with state updates, networking lunch with awards and recognition, and an afternoon session with a workforce development panel. Leading the panel discussion is senior director of ACT Center for Workforce Advancement, Deb Lyons, joined by business representatives from different industries in each state.

To register and pay online, as well as see details on schedule and speakers, please visit TriStateOfMind.com/Stronger-Together, or follow the facebook event “20^th Anniversary Tri-State Development Summit” hosted by Great River Economic Development Foundation.

“This 11^th Summit marks the 20^th Anniversary of the 36 County, Tri-State Development Summit (TSDS),” confirms Patrick Poepping, steering committee member. “When I look back and see what our regional approach has done for developing 4-lane highways to and through this three state area, I find it hard to believe what we accomplished.”

Poepping continues, “We set out to improve 1,677 miles of roadway and 1,311 miles, or 78% of our regional highway priorities are complete. These modern 4-lane roadways position our Tri-State Region for important, long overdue, economic growth, and more importantly, they provide for the safer passage for our family, friends, and visitors to our TSDS Region.”

For more information about the Tri-State Development Summit, and to register, please contact Joi Cuartero Austin at JoiA@gredf.org or visit TriStateOfMind.com.

Great River Economic Development Foundation is a 501(c)6 not-for-profit organization with a mission to maintain and improve the economic vitality of Quincy and Adams County, IL through the retention and expansion of existing businesses and the attraction of new businesses to our communities.

###

Inspire Works kick off and press conference was held Wednesday, September 14, at 8:30a in the Oakley Lindsay Center – 300 Civic Center Plaza.

Adams County, IL – Workforce development partners on the Inspire Works Team held a press conference on Wednesday, September 14 at 8:30a in the Oakley Lindsay Center to kick off the launch of the Inspire Works program in Adams County, IL.

Inspire Works is an online resource designed to increase communication between students, job seekers, educators and employers. The goal of Inspire Works is to bring those aforementioned groups together to help individuals achieve their career goals and address the workforce development needs of our community. The Inspire Works program was made possible through a number of generous partnerships and grants.

We are excited to be launching this program through our schools, with our partners and with local participating businesses of all sizes. Having programs like Inspire Works strengthens our regional advancement in workforce development, providing important strategies and solutions.

Information regarding Inspire Works, along with participating partners and businesses, will be available at the press conference. For more information, contact Joi Cuartero Austin at GREDF (217) 223-4313.

Great River Economic Development Foundation is a 501(c)6 not-for-profit organization with a mission to maintain and improve the economic vitality of Quincy and Adams County, IL through the retention and expansion of existing businesses and the attraction of new businesses to our communities.

###