Share Memorial Garden

GVMH Share pregnancy and infant loss support group is planting a memorial garden and holding a memorial service in honor of all the babies who have gone before us on Saturday, May 11th at 10:00 A.M. at Picadilly Park on the Clinton square. If you have experienced a miscarriage at any stage, stillbirth, or infant loss or know of a baby lost this way please come join us in planting the garden. We will be reading off all the babies names who we are there in honor of. This is a great way to honor those babies who we never got the chance to watch grow and whom we love so dearly. Any questions please contact Kelsey Himes at gvmhsharegroup@yahoo.com or GVMH at 660-890-8452. 

Legislative Luncheon

The Greater Clinton Area Chamber of Commerce is hosting a Legislative Luncheon for Chamber members and their guest, sponsored by KCP&L, with honored guests MO. Sen. Ed Emery and MO. Rep. Wanda Brown.

The luncheon will be held April 5th from 12-1:30pm at the Clinton Elks Banquet Room, 115 West Franklin, Clinton. Please RSVP to the Chamber at 885-8166 by April 3rd if you would like to attend.

Downtown “Big Idea” Supper

Clinton Day at Whiteman Air Force Base

February 7, 2013, was the day that Clinton was recognized as the featured community at the monthly Base Community Council (BCC) luncheon. Approximately 20 Clintonians were on hand to receive the applause of those in attendance from other communities involved with BCC as well as military personnel assigned to Whiteman AFB when the contingent was asked to stand and be recognized.
In addition to the recognition, a very complimentary overview of Clinton and her progressive, proactive nature was given by the Commanding Officer of our assigned unit on base, Lieutenant Colonel Keith Justice, who leads the 509th Logistics Readiness Squadron (LRS). LtCol Justice praised Clinton for all the impressive updates to our infrastructure which members of the 509th LRS observed during a tour conducted by the Clinton Area Chamber of Commerce in April, 2012. Among the highlights of the tour were the new Clinton Senior High School and the refurbished middle and elementary schools, as well as the Community/Aquatic/Benson Centers, the new airport runway, Artesion Park, the Historic Downtown Square and many other sites in town.
A delicious lunch was enjoyed by all in attendance, as well as an informative speech concerning the manufacturing history and low-observability attributes of the B-2 Stealth Bomber given by the lead Northrup-Grumman civilian on the only active Air Force base hosting the B-2’s, Mr. Ken Gallagher.
Following the conclusion of lunch, the majority of the Clinton group was given a guided tour of an actual B-2 in its assigned hangar bay, including a visit to the cockpit if desired. Four individuals from Clinton were treated to a “flight” in the B-2 simulator to get an idea what it is like to operate that large vehicle.
Clintonians attending the February 7th Whiteman visit were: Charles Bailey, Galen Carter, Sharon Gilkey, Cynthia Glasscock, Kelli Jenkins, Major Norman King, Lynn Lear, Byron McCoy, Gary Mount, Logan Nold, Linda Plumlee, Leland Smith, Craig Thompson, Debby and Ron VanWinkle, Beth and Chris Walker, Rick Watson, and George Wilson.
The Whiteman AFB Base Community holds a monthly luncheon meeting, usually on the first Thursday each month, at Missions End club on Whiteman AFB. There are 22 surrounding communities comprising the BCC, from Kansas City on the west to Jefferson City on the east, Lexington to the north and Warsaw to the south. Purpose of the BCC is to enhance relations between the Base and the surrounding communities.

Positioning Clinton for Economic Development Success

Craig Thompson, Past President Greater Clinton Area Chamber of Commerce

As the immediate Past President of the Greater Clinton Area Chamber of Commerce and a long time board member I’ve learned a lot about economic development over the past several years. I’ve learned that every community in the country is competing to attract the same new businesses and working hard to retain current businesses.

I’ve also learned that there are several factors that make a community attractive to business. Those factors include infrastructure, tax base, access to transportation routes, access to health care and strong schools.

The Vision of the Greater Clinton Area Chamber of Commerce is “To be the catalyst for economic growth in the greater Clinton area” and in keeping with our Vision the Chamber Board voted unanimously to recommend that our membership support the school bond issue on the April 2nd ballot.

When we host site visits and respond to information requests from potential businesses they always ask about, and want to see, our schools. Businesses interested in Clinton want to know that we have a strong school system with up to date facilities. They know that the quality of the school system will impact their success as a business. The quality of schools will have a direct impact on their ability to recruit staff and provide a qualified and sustainable workforce.

The April 2nd ballot issue provides an opportunity to invest in our schools without increasing taxes. By Voting “Yes” on the bond issue you are helping position Clinton to be a viable competitor on the world stage because every community in the country is competing with Clinton for the same opportunities.

Elite Dry Cleaners

Home Grown, Locally Owned

The Clinton Chamber of Commerce salutes the many businesses that are the backbone of our community. When you support local businesses, you help maintain the character of our community, provide continuing opportunities for entrepreneurs, create local jobs and strengthen our community’s economy.

This week our featured business is Elite Laundry & Dry Cleaning, Danny & Jama Eidson, owners. Danny and Jama purchased the business in 1981 and have been growing it ever since.

For many years, Elite was located on Jefferson Street just east of the Square. After a devastating fire in 2011, they are now located on South Orchard Street. The Dry Cleaning store is located at 1200 E. Ohio just across from Walgreen’s.

Elite has two dry cleaning stores in Warrensburg and several pick-up locations in other communities.

Elite Laundry & Dry Cleaning has several components to their business. They of course do dry cleaning and laundry for individuals, but they also do commercial laundry for large businesses like hospitals, clinics, universities, restaurants, and military bases.

Many of these same accounts also utilize Elite Linen for rentals of walk-on mats, mops, table linens, napkins, etc.

Elite provides 33 jobs to the area. Danny says, “After the fire where we lost everything, our people got us through. They knew what to do and they did it. We are very grateful to the entire community for the support they showed us.”

After the fire, Elite’s temporary headquarters were on North Main. Elite immediately began outsourcing to other facilities as far away as Grandview, Kansas City, KS, and Joplin in order to take care of their accounts. Elite ran trucks everyday from their accounts in Clinton, Warrensburg, Knob Noster, Nevada and El Dorado Springs to their competitors who were helping them out. A few years earlier, Elite had done the same, helping their competitors while rebuilding.
The commercial laundry is the largest part of the business. Trucks run out from Clinton everyday to deliver to businesses that depend on clean laundry.

The current plant has been completely remodeled. Danny scoured the entire country for equipment. They laid out plans very carefully for the new plant. There is more room and it is more orderly. The trucks can drive in one side of the building to be loaded.