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  • 30 Mar 2021 7:59 AM | Kelita Alberts (Administrator)

    Greetings

    It is difficult to believe that April is on the horizon...

    There are a couple of activities coming up in April that we want to remind you about.

    Reminder - Good Friday in April 2nd. Concord Church is hosting a Fish Fry. See the attached flyer.

    Lee County is hosting a Clean Up day on April 10th. 

    Rodeo Giddings is coming up on April 16-17th at the Lee County Rodeo Arena. This includes Muttin Bustin, Kenny Orts Band, Royalty Coronation, and Calf Scramble. The CPRA Team Roping sign up is Friday, April 16th. Rodeo Giddings is fun for the whole family! Tickets are $15 at the gate. Kids 7-12 years are $5. Kids 6 and  under are free.

    Important facts about Holy Week -
    What are the 7 days of Holy Week?

    • Palm Sunday (Passion Sunday)
    • Holy Monday and Holy Tuesday.
    • Holy Wednesday (Spy Wednesday)
    • Maundy Thursday.
    • Good Friday.
    • Holy Saturday (Black Saturday)
    • Easter Vigil.
    • Easter Day.

    Wendish Easter Eggs

    Traditional-Easter-eggs-008.jpg

    We are so amazed at the beauty of the artistry demonstrated by the Wendish Easter Eggs. 

    Have a wonderful week!

  • 25 Mar 2021 8:41 AM | Kelita Alberts (Administrator)

    We want to tell you about our new member!

    Carpenter's Carpentry - Owners, Mary and Richard Carpenter joined the Chamber today. They are a small mom & pop construction company located in Giddings. They are small and prefer to work on renovations and reconstruction in the older homes. They are excited about being in Giddings and look forward to becoming involved. 

    Also, check out the photos from the old BUS STOP... Fischer Langham started renovating the old Kerrville Bus Station this week. They will use it as an office and workshop for Fischer Langham Construction. The original Sunset Garage is a large old place with much history. The property is going to be cleared of old buildings which will be recycled into useful materials on the project. Tim Langham and Brian Fischer said they are using local products, labor, and companies for the project. Notice the Goodson Voight Lumber Company logo on the side of the building where they closed in the garage door. Recycling the tin, wood, and other useful products will help keep some of the historic flavor in the building. 

    It is great to see local business retention and expansion at work.

  • 16 Mar 2021 3:09 PM | Kelita Alberts (Administrator)

    Let's  celebrate St. Patrick's Day at the WELL! Join us for our inaugural ladies event. Women Entrepreneurs in Leadership & Learning will give us a chance to fellowship with women owned businesses in our community. It is never too late to start a business, build a business, or promote your business! Join us from 5-7pm at the Eleanor's Cottage on Wednesday, March 17th. Bring a friend, business cards, or brochures to share. 

    We have been watching the pecan, redbuds, roses, and other plants around our office. Everything is beginning to bud out and really green up! We are amazed at the rose bushes and the prolific growth we have seen. Our pansies, dusty miller, and some of the cactus surprisingly survived the freeze! We look forward to all the blooms bursting forth soon. 

    We are excited that we will be having our first planning meeting for the Giddings 150th Birthday! Can't wait to see what ideas everyone will have for a celebration of Giddings being 150 years old.

    To go one step further about all the blooms... we have some exciting news about Altman Plants. They are going to open their Outlet Store on Friday at 11am to the public. We will have their ribbon cutting on Friday morning at 10am to welcome their new expansion. Altman Plants is a great sponsor of the Chamber and we are so proud of all of their progress. They have grown so much in the past four years and the outlet store has been on their radar for a while. We are excited to be able to help them kick off the Spring Outlet Sale on Friday, March 19th at 11AM.

    Have a great spring break...

  • 11 Mar 2021 12:30 PM | Kelita Alberts (Administrator)

    We are happy that the temperatures are warming up and super impressed with all the new plants and green leaves popping up. I have to say I am extremely surprised about how well the rose bushes have done after the freeze. Every day I check to see the progress on the branches of the roses and it is amazing. Also, the Red Buds are bursting with little red buds and new leaves. The spring growth is just hard to describe. You just have to see it to believe it. 

    We held a ribbon cutting for Adorable Hair on Monday in their new salon located on Hwy 290 east at 3016 E. Austin Street. Next to the Gaeke Center on the south side of Hwy 290. Owners, Chantel and Eddie Garcia have made the salon very welcoming and beautiful. Check out their photo!

    Smiles all around for our guests! It was a great night to win!

    Reminder to our businesses - Spring Break in Giddings starts on Saturday, March 13th. We may see an increase in traffic on Friday as other spring breakers head out of town. 

    TRAFFIC WATCH -Slow down, watch for people crossing the street, and have a great week! DSC_0787.jpg
  • 25 Feb 2021 10:51 AM | Kelita Alberts (Administrator)

    Today we walked around the outside of the building to check on all the plants outside to see what survived. It will shock you to know that several of the plants had brand new little leaves popping out already! We were amazed by the persistence in the little plants to survive! We should all be so determined to grow where we are planted.

    Yesterday was so busy, with the Community Blood Drive and the Lee County Emergency FEMA Water and Food Distribution. The Blood Mobile is a great way to give back to the community and it actually gives you a report to let you know how you are doing. They recently added the covid antibodies screening to the results panel for your information. That's useful information in this day and age. 


    IMG-4006.jpg

    Then the Lee County Emergency Management office was set up at the Giddings Food Pantry to distribute the meals and water provided by FEMA. 

    IMG-4013.jpg

    We were very fortunate to have lots of volunteers there to help get the 20,000 meals, and 400 cases of water distributed. There were at least 20 people working constantly from 3-5:30pm. The cars were lined up down N. Harris Street for as far as you could see. Texas weather was also very cooperative yesterday which made it nice. 

    The boil water notices have been lifted, thank goodness. Most everyone has electricity now. Several plumbers are working long hours to get people back their water. It may be a while before everything gets back to "normal". 

    Finally, we are excited to finally be able to host our St. Patrick's Casino Night. We postponed it last year and have decided to host it on Saturday, March 6th. Check out our information page about the event. Contact us for more information. Tickets are on sale on our website.  

    Enjoy the wonderful weather and let us know if you need information about SBA or from the Governor's Office. We are getting information updates daily about PPP, Disaster, or Economic Relief from Covid 19 or the Texas Winter Storm.
  • 22 Feb 2021 3:17 PM | Kelita Alberts (Administrator)

    Afternoon!

    Hope this email finds you well and better off than last week. Congressman McCaul and his office has been working around the clock and all fronts fighting for Texans and Texas 10.

    We have gotten a high volume of calls on the Individual Assistance Program and hopefully this email will serve to shed some light on the subject. Congressman McCaul has already sent a letter urging POTUS to approve federal assistance for all 254 counties in Texas (see attached letter).

    Additionally, his office has been working with FEMA daily and we just received some clarification. Please share accordingly.

    As always, don’t hesitate to reach to me if I can be of any assistance.

    V/r Drew

     

     

    On February 19th, President Biden approved a Major Disaster Declaration for the State of Texas authorizing FEMA to provide Individual Assistance to 77 counties.

    Eligible Expenses

    FEMA’s Individual Assistance (IA) program provides financial assistance and to eligible individuals and households who have uninsured and underinsured necessary expenses and serious needs for their primary residence. 

    The program is not a substitute for insurance and cannot pay for all losses caused by a disaster. You can, however, apply for assistance after having filed an insurance claim if you have unmet needs that FEMA may find to be eligible.

    Disaster assistance may include grants to help pay for:

    • Emergency home repairs for disaster-related damage to the primary residence.
    • Uninsured and underinsured personal property losses.
    • Lodging expenses reimbursement, for individuals whose home was inaccessible or unhabitable during the disaster, if not covered by insurance or any other program.
    • Medical expenses incurred from the disaster.
    • Other serious disaster-related expenses.

    It is important to note that FEMA does not provide assistance for energy price spikes or to address utility bills. FEMA also cannot reimburse for food lost due to a power failure. Voluntary organizations in your communities may be able to assist. Residents are encouraged to call 211 for assistance.

    Applying for Individual Assistance

    FEMA recommends that survivors contact their insurance company to file a claim before applying for FEMA assistance. By law, FEMA cannot duplicate benefits for losses covered by insurance. FEMA does not cover insurance deductibles.

    The quickest and easiest way to apply for Individual Assistance is by visiting www.disasterassistance.gov or by downloading the FEMA App.

     If it is not possible to register online, call 800-621-3362 (TTY: 800-462-7585).

    What you need to apply:

    • Proof of occupancy or ownership;
    • Proof of identification;
    • Insurance determination letter; and
    • Description of damage, including photos if possible

     

    Survivors who registered with FEMA IA and were ineligible or have received no decision, will receive notification explaining the eligibility and the reason for that decision. Some common reasons for a no decision or ineligible determination include:

    • The survivor is insured and needs to provide an insurance settlement or denial to be considered for assistance.
    • Additional information is needed from the survivor.
    • The home is safe to occupy, and/or property had minimum or no damage.
    • There were multiple registrations using the same address.

     

    Many of these issues can be resolved by uploading necessary or missing information to disasterassistance.gov or by contacting the FEMA helpline at 800-621-3362 (TTY: 800-462-7585).

    What’s Next?

    Once you have registered for assistance, you can check on the status of your application, or add new information to your application such as change of email, home address, phone number, insurance settlement, additional damage that have been discovered, by visiting the disaster assistance website or calling the toll free number listed above.

    PLEASE ADVISE: The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) is now accepting applicants. Homeowners, renters, and businesses in the 77 designated IA counties are eligible for low-interest disaster loans from the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA).

    The SBA can be contacted at 1-800-659-2955 or by visiting www.sba.gov/services/disasterassistance.

    Avoiding Scams

    Scam attempts can be made over the phone, by mail or email, or in person. It is important to remain alert, ask questions and always ask for identification when someone claims to represent FEMA or another government agency. The most common types of post-disaster fraud include phony housing inspectors, fraudulent building contractors, pleas for disaster donations, and offers of municipal or federal aid in exchange for a fee.

    Please share with your constituents that they should report suspected fraud to local law enforcement agencies. They can also contact the Texas Office of the Attorney General by calling 800-621-0508 or call the free FEMA Disaster Fraud Hotline at 866-720-5721 available 24-hours a day.

    Undesignated Counties

    No county has been denied for Individual Assistance as of now. FEMA considers a combination of factors when evaluating major disaster declarations and the determinations on the initial 77 counties was made using the best available data at the time. Each of the 177 counties that were not included under the initial declaration remain under active review.

    The State of Texas has a website (www.tdem.texas.gov/warm) for residents to self-report damages to their homes from the storm. Texans living in an undesignated county can utilize this survey to assist the State in quantifying damages in their community. 

    Local elected officials should continue to coordinate with their city/county emergency management department to facilitate requests to TDEM.  Road conditions improved yesterday and will continue to improve over the next few days allowing for equipment to move across the state more quickly. 

    Texans living in an undesignated county should also document all damage related to the winter storm and keep receipts for all expenses related to repairs.

     

     

     

     

    Andrew L. Ross (Drew)

    District Director 


    Office of United States Representative Michael McCaul (TX-10)

    Ranking Member, House Foreign Affairs Committee

    3301 Northland Drive | Suite 212| Austin, Texas 78731

    phone: 512.473.2357 | fax: 512.473.0514 | cell: 202.957.1941

  • 22 Feb 2021 12:20 PM | Kelita Alberts (Administrator)

    Governor Abbott, TDEM Urge Texans To Submit
    Self Reporting Damage Survey

    AUSTIN - Governor Greg Abbott and the Texas Division of Emergency Management (TDEM) are encouraging Texans to complete the Self Reporting Damage Survey to help the state identify damages across Texas and help emergency management officials gain an understanding of damages that occurred during the recent winter weather. This data is also needed to provide information to FEMA and highlight the need for federal disaster assistance for individuals. 

    The voluntary survey, available in both English and Spanish, can be accessed by visiting: www.TDEM.texas.gov/warm. Reporting damage to the Texas Division of Emergency Management is a voluntary activity, is not a substitute for reporting damage to an insurance agency, and does not guarantee disaster relief assistance.

    "I urge Texans to fill out the Self Reporting Damage Survey and provide crucial information on the winter weather impacts to their home or property," said Governor Abbott. "The information gleaned from this survey will help our state identify the full impact of this winter weather and help emergency management better serve Texans."
  • 01 Feb 2021 5:02 PM | Kelita Alberts (Administrator)

    Greetings,

    Today marks 15 years with the Giddings Area Chamber of Commerce. This is quite a milestone for me. It is also the best job/career I have done in my life. During the last 15 years I have achieved numerous educational certificates and designations that have helped me to excel in my industry. I have met individuals from across the nation and the world because of my particular job. I am extremely blessed to be able to work with all the best people in our community and businesses. I feel so fortunate to be able to wake up every morning and do what I do. 

    Over the past 15 years we have moved twice, created numerous events and activities, and seen many changes. We have supported our city, county, state, and national government on many levels. I have served as a board member on numerous boards and as an advisor on several boards.  It has been my pleasure to help promote Giddings in Austin on Lee County Day with many of our community leaders. 

    I will continue to advocate, promote, refer, and represent Giddings and Lee County. Thank you for all the great days as your Chamber Director.

    Denice Harlan

  • 25 Jan 2021 2:35 PM | Kelita Alberts (Administrator)

    It looks like Tampa Bay and Kansas City are going to be in the Super Bowl on February 7th. The two quarterbacks are from two different generations and both Super Bowl winners. It should be a great show.  

    This week we do have exciting news for our members. Our new member J. E. Bashaw and Company is hosting their Ribbon Cutting and Open House on Tuesday, January 26th, from 5-7pm. Jeb and Laurel Bashaw divide their time between Giddings and Houston. We are excited to see them open their new office located at 1174 E. Austin, in the building next to Whistle Stop Antiques. 

    In other exciting news this week we are getting ready for the 2nd Annual Sip & Shop Cupid Market at The Silos on 77. Lori and Lisa are co-sponsoring this event and we are thrilled to have them as partners for this event.  We are looking forward to having the vendors here and will be getting our Valentine gifts early this year. The event is open to the public and there is no cost to attend. The venue will be taking temperatures and encourages everyone to wear their mask. 

    cupid poster.jpg

    Finally, we are ready to get back to work and help you get busy in 2021!

    We are  excited for our workshop on Feb 2ndPlease use this link to the Eventbrite page for this workshop: https://giddings-chamber-5ways.eventbrite.com

  • 18 Dec 2020 12:39 PM | Kelita Alberts (Administrator)

    Happy Friday! We hope you have had a great week and that most of your Christmas shopping is done by now. You still have time to go to our many wonderful local businesses and pick up something for your favorites! There are so many choices and really cool stuff for every hard-to-buy-for family member! 

    I got so excited last night while I was at Gourmet Divas for the Sip & Shop late night shopping event. I was wandering around looking at all the cool kitchen gadgets to see what all they have and I discovered a life-changing tool for my kitchen! Y'all know I make hot sauce every year for the holidays... The food processors that you buy over the counter are too small to make one gallon of hot sauce in, much less three gallons. WELL... I found an immersion blender. OMG! I am excited to go home tonight and start making some HOT SAUCE. I'm a little excited to say the least. It takes so little to make me happy!

    In other news, the Christmas Lights Extravaganza was a huge success and we want to start thinking about how we can make it better and bigger for next year. The City of Giddings has once again hung the Christmas Angels on the light poles through town, but they are going on 20 years old, have been restrung once already and need a rest. The Courthouse Nativity Scene that lights up is getting so old the lights won't work anymore. We really need to start talking about how we can light this town up for Christmas next year. Call me or Judge Fischer if you want to be included in the discussion. Our Christmas Spirit is really shining!

    Denice Harlan, PCED, IOM

    Executive Director


Giddings Chamber of Commerce
183 E. Hempstead
Giddings, TX 78942
Located in the Lee County Museum, off the Courthouse Square

Contact:  (979) 542-3455
Chamber email:  chambergiddings@gmail.com
Tourism email:  giddingschamber@gmail.com






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