The State of Our Community

Culpeper Star Exponent

Business Monday

Jim Charapich

03-10-14

The Culpeper Chamber hosted State of the Community on Friday March 7th at Germanna’s Daniel Technology Center. The event showcased facets of our community that are sometimes unseen and yet vital to our economic success. Given that there were 15 speakers - the timing of each speaker was limited to 5 minutes each. This encouraged the speakers to focus on the highlights in their area of subject matter expertise.

I would like to say a special thanks to the speakers for taking the time to prepare and deliver the unique facets of Culpeper from their perspective. Dr. Reynolds and Greg Napps provided an excellent summary of the progress at Culpeper Regional Health System. The recent announcement of the increased partnership with the University of Virginia Health System in advancing our health system as a community hospital is significant. Chris Miller of Aging Together described the benefits of support for our aging population. The data that she shared pointed to above average health care in Culpeper compared to other areas of Virginia. Anthony Clatterbuck representing the volunteer fire and rescue departments in Culpeper shared that they made 6282 calls for help in 2013. The volunteer fire and rescue departments would cost $20,000,000 to replace with dedicated County resources.

Rob Wilson Director of the Culpeper State Theatre described his collaboration with community groups and nonprofits. In addition, He described the efforts of the State Theatre and Culpeper County Public Schools to open opportunities for more student artistic inspiration. Gary Close described the efforts of the Arts Council established by the Culpeper Town Council . He described the May 2015 Arts Festival in collaboration with the Culpeper Ruritan Club, drawing art lovers from Northern Virginia.

Kelsey Carlson - Owner of the Green Roost and President of Culpeper Renaissance pointed out that more Culpeper residents are shopping local,  bucking the online buying trends of other communities. Dewey Cashwell, Culpeper Town Manager highlighted that the Town employees are focused on customer service to our residents. Speaking to a largely business audience the words “customer service” in public service is very meaningful.

Dr. Johnson, Superintendent of Culpeper County Public Schools shared that enrollment is up for elementary age groups, adding pressure on space and resource availability. In addition, she described the Germanna Scholars program that will allow Culpeper County High School Students to enroll in courses at Germanna to accelerate degree attainment for students in the program. Jon Krawchuk described the partnership with the Young Professional Group in Culpeper and the local executives holding mentoring luncheons during the year. The group has grown from a core group of 40 to over 100 YP’s in the group roster.

Dr. Sam described the efforts of Germanna Community College to advance training opportunities in Culpeper addressing the constant demand for skilled workers. Rod Gentry - Union First Market Bank and speaking for the Piedmont Workforce Network / Workforce Investment Board, shared the progress in supporting the workforce needs in the region. He commented that economic vitality is a complex system requiring a balance of talent and jobs to maintain a strong workforce.

Cole Johnson, Director of the Northern Piedmont Community Foundation announced the Piedmont Give Local Campaign set for May 6th. The campaign will open opportunities for nonprofits in the region to engage existing and new contributions through an online campaign. There are 87 nonprofits signed up and she would like to see 100 before May 6th. Finally, Steve Nixon representing Culpeper County government shared some of the statistics and legislative issues facing the County.

Cole Johnson summed up the event well - Culpeper is on Fire… This is a great place to be.