

RALPH WILSON/Sunlight-Gazette Correspondent
PMF Industries is presented with the Staiman’s Spouse and children Large Business Award at the Williamsport/Lycoming Chamber of Commerce annual luncheon on Thursday, Feb. 24, 2022 at the Williamsport State Club. Revealed from still left are Rob Glunk, Chair of the WLCC, Renee Flook, M&T Bank John Perrotto and Ken Healy, PMF Industries

A Williamsport espresso store that is additional than a accumulating place.
A fabrication specialty field that features paid out apprenticeships for large school and college or university pupils to obtain the subsequent era of qualified laborers.
A bicycle designer who place his bikes on-line and grew his enterprise to work out of Montgomery Borough.
The current 136th yearly meeting and awards banquet of the Williamsport-Lycoming Chamber of Commerce highlighted winners of the once-a-year awards, presented at the Williamsport Nation Club, and considerably far more.
Once-a-year awards were offered to Precedence Bicycles, winner of the Emerging Company Award PMF Industries, winner of the Staiman’s Loved ones Significant Organization Award and Alabaster Espresso, winner of the Phillips/Plankenhorn Compact Enterprise Award.
Google bikes and the enterprise name will show up, explained Timothy J. Keohane, director of the Penn Point out Small Business Enhancement Heart, as he launched winners of the Emerging Business enterprise of the Year Award, Priority Bicycles, of Montgomery. The award has occur to acknowledge business owners that are new to developing a organization.
Priority Bicycles, 165 Miller Ave., Montgomery, is an independent bicycle model, focused to building cycling easy for recreational riders and bicycles and add-ons that are effortless to purchase, trip and keep.
Started by industry veteran and previous software CEO David Weiner, the enterprise was launched as a socially funded business on Kickstarter in 2014.
The purpose was to produce superior-top quality, reduced-maintenance bicycles, direct to customer, backed by “unmatched consumer support,” Keohane mentioned.
Since then, the business expanded to designs for young children, commuters and adventurers, particularly wonderful with all of the bike trails in the county and location and Pennsylvania Wilds.
Right now, the corporation has come to be a market place leader for custom made-branded bicycles with additional than 400 fleet partnerships.
By means of attempts led by point out Sen. Gene Yaw, R-Loyalsock Township, the company gained a state Redevelopment Guidance Money Software grant that is anticipated to enable them develop regional output of bikes and improve employment figures in the borough of Montgomery.
Weiner and Patrick Sparks, representing Priority Bicycles, approved the award.
They famous how it was their close connection to the chamber and the networking it provides that saved the organization increasing by means of the COVID-19 pandemic and will do so in the days forward.
Machinists sharing their information
For PMF Industries, an staff-owned fabrication enterprise with 20 p.c of its employee foundation currently being veterans, the pandemic decades made available a obstacle to keep on to make high quality products and solutions and factors.
Just after remaining introduced by Thad Will, vice president, senior romance supervisor with M&T Lender, PMF’s John Perrotto and Ken Healy recognized the award but not ahead of Perrotto described the great gain of connecting with area high educational facilities and the Pennsylvania Faculty of Engineering and Lycoming College to uncover proficient laborers to do the job for the enterprise.
The company has a big existence at these educational institutions by presenting tours, speaking in lecture rooms, and serving on boards for the Loyalsock Township College District Work Progression Committee, Hope Enterprises and Penn College’s Production Technologies.
In addition, PMF is associated with Lycoming College or university and the Innovative Manufacturers’ Heart, partnering with the PA CareerLink considering the fact that 2003 and attending numerous nearby occupation fairs and providing on-web-site excursions for lecturers and students.
As an instance of the success of apprenticeships and in-district investment decision, whilst on tour of Williamsport Area Large School’s machining classroom in 2018, two college students were presented employment on the spot. A person of those positions was a next-change portion-time position that was held until graduation, as nicely as tuition reimbursement even though the students attended Penn Higher education.
PMF Industries officers had been credited with continuing to guidance the district by way of investing in tools that presents fingers-on discovering to pupils.
Perrotto reviewed briefly how appreciative the marketplace was to have been recognized at the condition amount for their operate with apprenticeship and pre-apprenticeship systems.
Current personnel are proud of what they’ve aided construct and share their awareness to have ahead the production conventional of excellence at PMF, they claimed.
Phillips/Plankenhorn Modest Small business Award
In a online video and afterward, Jason Fink, chamber president and CEO, spoke about how several region banking companies, which he named, joined jointly in sponsoring the award introduced to Alabaster Coffee Roaster & Tea Co., 400 Pine St.
The enterprise, launched by Karl Fisher, was showcased in a video.
“Alabaster exists for the shopper and also for the group,” Joe Tokay, Alabaster manager, said in the video.
Later on, Fisher agreed.
“We noticed what started off as a need,” Fisher reported. “We did not have a target … It was like heading on a hike on a foggy working day.”
Normally a coffee hobbyist, when Alabaster was proven in 2010, Fisher sought to devote in the downtown small business and include a thing particular.
Currently Alabaster has turn into additional than a accumulating web site.
Pete Swift, of Camp Susque, mentioned Alabaster is extra than a “watering gap.”
A lot additional.
It is a place in which just one can sit and take it easy or operate on a laptop, a protected place in which discussion flows conveniently, operated by a founder who has transformed life.
Fisher has not only brought to light-weight the relevance of finding good quality coffee beans and espresso and teas to the consumer, he has culled the very best of resources by developing functioning partnerships with intercontinental farmers and he’s introduced his enjoy of espresso to region superior universities and faculties.
For example, Alabaster teamed up with Lycoming School for its Warrior Coffee program, in which learners journey to the Dominican Republic to help indigenous farmers have a voice in the worldwide coffee market place.
He begun a franchise enhancement plan at Williamsport Location Substantial University, receiving college students concerned in the coffee organization and mentoring learners who took on the management part in arms-on finding out about tiny enterprise ownership via his partnership.
Ronald A. Frick, president of the Lycoming United Way, explained Fisher usually donates cups, creamers and supplies discounted espresso at events for the United Way.
In February, Alabaster took part in an event to acknowledge heart health and sponsored a “Cup of Love” for Valentine’s Working day. For each and every cup purchased a proportion of the income went to the United Way, which, in switch, is put into fantastic use between its lots of partnering companies through the county.
In reality, in excess of the years, Alabaster has donated much more than $60,000 to community nonprofits and Fisher has served the community in techniques unseen and witnessed.
Throughout the pandemic, Fisher and the workers took coffee to difficult-doing the job employees, which include instructors, and held Christmas Eve coffee runs for area emergency and community basic safety staff.
“We really like coffee and our group,” he claimed.
Achievements, struggles, hope
Highlighting small business and field achievements as they arise from the COVID-19 pandemic, several in the course of Lycoming County are in a rebounding method, even as some struggle to find laborers and raw resources.
But their close interaction with the colleges and superior faculties, to pique pupil curiosity in paid out apprenticeships, teaching individuals that are primary to the next technology of workforce gainfully utilized at firms and industries in Lycoming County, is a hopeful theme relocating in advance in the year.
Honoring all of the chamber members’ successes
“We honor the achievements of the group and much more importantly, you, our membership,” mentioned Rob Glunk, Chamber of Commerce board chairman.
Glunk also outlined the volunteer effort that authorized the chamber, positioned at 102 W. Fourth St., to “prosper, expand, and participate in a very important position in the economic vitality of Lycoming County.”
The awards have been exclusive considering the obstacle posed by the pandemic and financial forecast pursuing the preliminary outbreak in 2020.
In closing remarks, Fink touched on the pandemic’s impact on the small business local community and the chamber itself and reported shifting ahead it is significant to deal with the area’s populace decline.
“No for a longer period can we say that it is due to the fact persons really do not want to get the job done,” Fink mentioned.
Unemployment regionally at just around 5 percent.
“We have to have to appear at ways to get individuals to transfer right here and handle some of the crucial hurdles that prohibit individuals from going to our local community,” he stated.
Housing is a person of these crucial aspects.
“If we never deal with it now, we’re not only heading to see it effect firms, but also other sectors of our county.
Municipal and faculty taxes, for example, will carry on to rise exponentially thanks to owning to maximize them on much less folks residing below just to manage the same level of solutions presently shipped,” Fink explained.
Luckily, he additional, the regional elected officials are partaking the small business neighborhood and the group at significant in making an attempt to arrive up with options to these issues, he explained.
Fink also thanked outgoing chairman Larry Allison.
“Larry’s push and eyesight for bettering Lycoming County has kept us on the path of continued growth and excellence,” he claimed.
Fink also credited the lots of volunteers and a “fabulous team” functioning to accomplish “our organization’s objectives.”
The workforce involves: Cindy Robbins, Gina Edwards, Meghan Quinn, Nancy Eischeid, Sharon Jones and Tayrn Mueller.
The chamber supplied recognition of outgoing board associates (AC Cruz, State Farm Insurance policy and Mike Reed, Pennsylvania College of Technology, and a welcome of new 2022 board customers and recognition of community officers for aid of organization together with state Rep. Joe Hamm, R-Hepburn Township Frank J. Mazza, Northeast Pennsylvania regional supervisor for U.S. Sen. Pat Tomey, R-Zionsville.
Williamsport Mayor Derek Slaughter also was in attendance.
Involvement is critical
“I stated it before and will go on to say it if for some purpose you have an desire somewhere else and are not already volunteering in the local community, please get involved anywhere that is,” Fink reported.
“We’re just one particular of numerous excellent organizations out right here in Lycoming County that you can give your time to in supporting to expand our community.”








