Some GPEDC updates to end your week:
Startup Showcase: The gBETA Distillery Labs Showcase is just around the corner! Join us and community leaders from throughout the region and state as we celebrate the work of the gBETA Distillery Labs Spring 2022 Cohort at the beautiful Scottish Rite Theater in downtown Peoria Wednesday, September 21. The Distillery Labs team and gener8tor have some incredible programming lined up all afternoon and evening. Food, drinks and networking are all free and you are invited to attend.
To kickoff the celebration at 3:30 p.m., join entrepreneurs, innovators, supporters and the wider community for brainstorming and targeted discussion on areas of innovation such as agricultural technology, medical devices, fashion and design, DE&I and smart mobility. Then at 5:30 pm the Showcase Event kicks off. Steve Zika from Natural Fiber Welding will be giving a talk about his company’s amazing growth and how they are disrupting a millenniums old industry. The evening will also include pitch-night from each of the founder’s from the five companies that completed the gBETA Distillery Labs Accelerator earlier this year. Maybe you’ll be getting a sneak peek at the next Natural Fiber Welding.
Registration is free but required. Click here and scroll down to the first event on the list.
Logan County Visit: Lenora had two productive visits with our partners in Lincoln and Logan County. Beth Kavelman, Gene Rohlfs and Jim Wessbecher met to strategize about development opportunities at the Logan County Airport in response to an RFI request for hangar space. She also met with Andrea Runge of Lincoln Economic Advancement and Development (LEAD) to learn about the efforts she is spearheading with businesses in her community. Through grant support, creative thinking about property use and information sessions around topics like social media, cybersecurity, etc, she is providing valuable guidance to businesses in the community. It’s inspiring to see the ways that leaders in our GP support their local businesses and economic growth.
GPMN Meeting: We had a great Greater Peoria Manufacturing Network meeting on Thursday. The meeting was hosted by Enercon Engineering at their offices in downtown Peoria (they have a large manufacturing center just across the river in East Peoria). Enercon shared about their company’s capabilities in power solutions, UnityPlace presented on behavioral health and substance abuse services for employers and employees, Pearl Technology invited people to their A/V showcase (this coming Monday), and of course we shared about GPEDC and GPMN efforts. Thank you to the Enercon team for being great hosts.
CareerSpark Volunteers Needed: We are still looking for volunteers to help guide and wrangle 4200+ students at CareerSpark on October 5-6. Does your company or organization have volunteer groups looking for great projects? If so, sign up here or drop Kari a note at krauh@greaterpeoriaedc.org.
Strategy Report: If it is the first week of the month, that means we prepared our monthly strategy reports. You are missing out on all the great work of GPEDC if you don’t take a peek at the reports. See them here. Like what you see? Wish we were doing something different? Have questions? Drop me a line.
Have a great weekend.
Chris