News & Updates

Member Spotlight: Help 2-1-1 Rock the House!

Member Spotlight

January 29, 2016

211logoAbout 2-1-1:

Everyone knows 9-1-1, but do you know about 2-1-1? You may know us as a disaster response organization. You may have contacted us during the wildfires for disaster support services. But what you might not know about 2-1-1 San Diego is that every day we help thousands of San Diegans find the help they need. From veterans returning home, to seniors looking for support, to families struggling to make ends meet, we connect customers to more than 15,000 community, health, and disaster support services across the county.

What’s On the Horizon:

After serving millions of customers, 2-1-1 is working on better ways to connect people to services and build stronger community collaborations. In February, to accommodate the growing needs of the community, and to foster greater collaboration amongst community partners, we are moving to a new state-of-the-art, facility equipped with incubator space for organizations to come together and create new and improved ways to better serve our communities.

Rock the House with 2-1-1:

To celebrate this milestone in our history, 2-1-1 San Diego is putting a new twist on our historical 2-1-1 Connections Luncheon by hosting the “Rock Our New House,”; the region’s largest “housewarming” celebration on Friday, February 12, at 6pm.

Along with “Rock Our New House” Title Sponsor, SDG&E, and dozens of other sponsors, funders, partners and supporters, more than 700 attendees will be coming together at the Connections Center to enjoy live entertainment from Grammy award-winning group OZOMATLI, amazing eats and signature sips, and first class tours of the new Connections Center. For more information about how you can join in on the celebration as a sponsor or supporter, go to “Rock Our New House” or contact Meg Storer at mstorer@211sandiego.org.

Say Hello to San Diego’s Next Generation of Business Leaders

NewsPolicy

January 25, 2016

(click for larger image)

(click for larger image)

Last week, the San Diego Chamber Young Leaders hosted its first Board of Directors meeting. Leading the group are Honorary Chairman Mark Kersey, San Diego City Councilmember; Board Chair, James Lawson, President of Presidio Public Affairs Group; and Vice-Chair, Star Huges-Gorup, Director of Hughes Marino.

Chamber Young Leaders is designed to provide a platform for young leaders to share their insights and unique professional perspectives, as well as foster professional growth. Guiding the group’s activities are four pillars: professional development, mentoring, regional activism/causes, and networking. The full membership will vote on two to three causes which will be their focus for the year.

(click for larger image)

(click for larger image)

Chamber Young Leaders will be governed by a Board of Directors, who were carefully selected through an application process based on participants’ proven success as industry leaders and commitment to community involvement and professional growth. In total, the Council’s membership consists of over 100 diverse, bi-partisan young professionals representing a wide variety of industries.

While membership for the Chamber Young Leaders’ Board of Directors is closed for this year, applications for the general membership remain open. Individuals aged 21-40 who are interested in learning more or applying may do so at www.sdchamber.org/sdyl.

To see more photos from the inaugural Board meeting, visit the Chamber’s Facebook. A full roster of the Young Leaders Board can be found here.

Chamber Staff Attends North America Competitiveness Working Group

International

January 22, 2016

As part of the George W. Bush Institute’s North America Competitiveness Initiative, Chamber staff participated in a working group to discuss the advancement of economic integration within North America. During the session, participants toured several of our border area’s unique projects including the El Chaparral Port of Entry, the Cross Border Xpress, and Energia Sierra Juarez, Sempra Energy’s wind farm located east of Tecate. Following the tour, participants also participated in a day-long session during which three priority areas were set: workforce and education, infrastructure and energy.

Former president George W. Bush will present specific recommendations in these policy areas this spring.

Go-Biz and ProMéxico Host Economic Summit

International

January 21, 2016

(click for larger image)

(click for larger image)

Chamber President & CEO Jerry Sanders moderated a panel on cross-border business opportunities during a Chamber-sponsored economic summit hosted by Go-Biz and ProMéxico. The summit, which reviewed recent agreements made between California and Mexico, also focused on strategies for the movement of people and goods, and, specifically, economic advantages of the San Diego-Baja region.

This summit is will be the first of several hosted across the state.

Chamber Hosts 250 Business and Policy Leaders at Cross-Border Leadership Luncheon

EventsInternational

January 19, 2016

Ruben Navarratte, Jr.

(click to view larger image)

Last Thursday, the Chamber hosted a successful Cross-Border Leadership Luncheon, sponsored by Bank of America. Syndicated columnist and CNN contributor, Ruben Navarrette, Jr. delivered an entertaining and thought provoking keynote address on US Mexico relations “in the season of Donald Trump & El Chapo”.

As election season continues to dominate the national conversation, Navarratte’s message was an insightful look at how the United States and Mexico’s long history of interdependence will continue to prosper, regardless of our next Commander-in-Chief.

(click to view larger image)

(click to view larger image)

The luncheon also featured comments from Consul General Remedios Gomez-Arnau (Mexico), Consul General William Ostick (United States), and Consul General Frederic Fournier (Canada).

Thank you to everyone who attended and contributed to the event’s success, with special thanks to our title sponsor, Bank of America.

For more information about the event, visit the Chamber’s photo album on Facebook, follow the #XBorderLunch hashtag on Twitter, or watch our quick recap video below:

Chamber VP Paola Avila Signs Historic Maritime Emergency Plan

InternationalPolicy

January 13, 2016

Port of San Diego Emergency Plan

(image courtesy of the Port of San Diego)

On behalf of the Chamber, Vice President Paola Avila – along with Captain Johnathan Spaner, representing the U.S. Coast Guard, and Chief John Bolduc, representing the San Diego Harbor Police – signed The Port of San Diego Maritime Emergency Restoration Plan, which establishes a single, unified plan to be executed across multiple agencies in case of a security incident. The purpose of the plan is to ensure that reopening of the port would be conducted in a safe and seamless manner.

From the Port of San Diego:

In the past, multiple agencies at all levels of government had independent protocols and plans outlining actions for port and waterway reopening after a serious incident. It was necessary to integrate and coordinate the information into a single plan. The planning effort engaged public and private-sector partners to develop an integrated, all-hazard, multi-agency plan for reopening of the port.

A full list of participating agencies may be found here.

Community Partner of the Month: Hope Through Housing

Community Partners

January 7, 2016

HopeThroughHousing3
Our Mission

To provide individuals and families access to the resources and tools that foster dignity and success.

Who We Are

The Hope through Housing Foundation was created by National Community Renaissance – one of the nation’s largest nonprofit builders of workforce and senior housing– to provide life-changing human services for the residents and communities it serves. Together, our vision is to transform lives and communities by aligning National CORE’s industry-best standards for building and managing high-quality housing with the resources that allow residents to live better lives and achieve economic independence and financial self-sufficiency.

HopeThrough Housing1Our programs

  • Family services. We are focused on helping families attain greater economic prosperity and mobility. Financial literacy training provides needed information and assistance on budgeting, banking and overall money management with the goal of assisting our residents in becoming more self-sufficient.
  • Child services. HOPE partners with Head Start and licensed preschool services onsite at many of our multifamily complexes. All services are designed to prepare preschoolers for entry into kindergarten. This emphasis on school readiness includes a focus on developing children’s social and emotional skills as well as early reading and writing skills.
  • HopeThroughHousing2Youth services. Our quality afterschool programs serve children in grades K-12 who live in our properties or surrounding neighborhoods. Trained staff provide homework assistance, a healthy snack, physical recreation, and activities that reinforce math, literacy, and other academic skills. Programs also emphasize violence prevention.
  • Senior services. Hope’s model offers seniors and individuals with disabilities the opportunity to remain in their homes with dignity for as long as possible. Care Managers ensure that residents have sufficient basic needs, preventative and basic health care, and that they maintain social interaction.

For more information, please visit our website.