Former Daystrom workers reunite

Several hundred former employees, spouses and family members didn’t let chilly April temperatures dampen their spirits Saturday when they reunited to celebrate Daystrom Furniture’s 50th anniversary year.

Huddled under the picnic shelter at Edmunds Park, former employees and friends shared old stories and caught up on each other’s lives.

South Boston Mayor and former Daystrom Director of Personnel Relations Carroll Thackston welcomed the crowd.

“It’s so great to see so many friends and employees here today,” he said thanking the committee and all those who made the reunion day possible.

The first president of Daystrom to live in the county, Frank Piechota, now 92, gave a brief synopsis of how Daystrom got its start in South Boston.

“Some people thought we were a brewery coming in, and people didn’t want a brewery coming,” said Piechota.

“South Boston was head over heels better than the other three communities…we had good production, good sales and good profit. Thank you, and thank you from the bottom of my heart,” he added.

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Free Blogging Workshop to Feature Renowned Online Marketing Expert

Those attending the Social Media Workshop Tuesday evening at 6:00 PM are in for a very special treat. Andy Beal, internet marketing consultant, award-winning blogger, professional speaker and coauthor of the critically-acclaimed book Radically Transparent: Monitoring & Managing Reputations Online will be the special guest speaker via Skype.

Lisa Kipps-Brown, President of Glerin Business Resources, is working with the Riverstone Energy Center to use the modeling and simulation “Cave” to host an interactive discussion during the workshop. “We couldn’t afford his fee to come and speak to our group, but Mr. Beal graciously offered to attend via Skype. Our next challenge was to figure out a way for those attending the workshop to be able to see and interact with Mr. Beal,” Kipps-Brown said. “Without Riverstone Energy Center's assets and lots of help from Energy Center employees Ben Thompson and Kristy Johnson, we wouldn't have been able to make this happen; they're also enabling us to live stream the entire workshop for those who can't attend,” she added.

Riverstone Energy Center team members Kristy Johnson (on screen) and Ben Thompson (standing) make first trial run using the modeling and simulation “Cave” for immersive teleconferencing.

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Free Twitter Workshops Offered in February

The IDA is partnering with the Halifax County Chamber of Commerce and Halifax County Tourism to sponsor a series of free workshops aimed at helping local businesses learn how to use social media more effectively to influence their bottom line.

The February session will focus on Twitter; space is limited so please register early. The sessions will be held February 20th and 21st in the conference room at Riverstone Centre.

The free social media workshop series was developed and is presented by Glerin Business Resources, a web and mobile design company headquartered in Halifax.

The December workshop was a general overview of social media, and January focused on using Facebook in business marketing.  Click here to download slides used in the workshops and view video of the full workshops.

American Le Mans Coming to Halifax County

The first ALMS race at VIR - located in Halifax County, Va. - also will mark the first competition on the track's impressive 4.1-mile, 21-turn Grand Course. It's a safe bet that track speed records will fall at the hands of the world's most exotic prototype sports cars and premier production-based GT cars. The race will be broadcast on ESPN2.

"For years we have received numerous inquiries from fans and competitors on when we would race at VIR, I'm proud to say that time is now," said Scott Atherton, ALMS President and CEO. "Virginia International Raceway is an excellent addition to what no doubt will be a fantastic 2012 season for the American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patrón. Given VIR's history and acclaim as a world-class road racing facility, this is a natural fit. We look forward to working closely with the VIR team to introduce their fans and lots of new ones to the fastest, toughest and most entertaining competition VIR has witnessed."

Competitors over the years have heaped praise on the circuit. Paul Newman once opined that "if there's a heaven on Earth, it's VIR." Car and Driver named it one of the six best road courses in the U.S. and called a lap around the Grand Course the closest thing in America to a lap of the Nürburgring Nordschleife.

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Free Facebook Workshop

The Industrial Development Authority of Halifax County is partnering with the Halifax County Chamber of Commerce and Halifax County Tourism to sponsor a series of free workshops aimed at helping local individuals, businesses, groups and organizations learn how to use social media more effectively to influence their bottom line.

The free social media workshop series was developed and is presented by Glerin Business Resources, a web, mobile and graphic design company headquartered in Halifax. The next session will be January 23rd and 24th in the conference room at Riverstone Centre.

The January session will focus on Facebook.  Due to the success of December's kick-off social media workshop, we've added a second date to January's.  The workshop is offered at 6pm on both Monday, January 23rd and Tuesday, January 24th; the same workshop will be presented each night, so pick the night that's best for you.

Space is limited, so register early.

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Former Burlington Plant Snags Grant

The former Burlington plant in Halifax County is among six projects awarded $2.8 million in Industrial Revitalization Fund grants, Gov. Bob McDonnell announced Wednesday.

Halifax County Industrial Development Authority was awarded $50,000 out of the grant funding aimed at construction projects aligned with local and regional economic development strategies, primarily in distressed communities.

"These grants will leverage local and private resources to achieve redevelopment of these derelict structures," said Governor McDonnell.

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Faneuil announces 150 new jobs for Dominion Virginia Power call center

From The News & Record

If Southside Virginia painted Gov. Bob McDonnell as a green Grinch for announcing the closing of Mecklenbrg Correctional Center last week, it surely saw Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling as bright-red Santa Claus himself today as he announced that the 150 new workers would be employed by … Virginia Dominion Power.

Bolling made the announcement at Riverstone Centre on Thursday morning before a buoyant audience of community leaders, some wearing festive touches for the season.

"What a great time," said Bolling, citing the pre-Christmas date. Halifax County has known for months about the jobs – most of the community just didn't know exactly who the employer would be, as economic developers had wanted to keep the name under wraps.

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Riverstone Energy Center Has Productive 2011

Riverstone Energy Center – Bringing Hi-Tech Projects, Jobs, and Technology to Our Region

The Riverstone Energy Center is a clean-energy incubator and commercialization center located in South Boston, Halifax County, Virginia that was established to help transform our region into the 21st century. The Energy Center was created by the vision of the Virginia Tobacco Commission and the Industrial Development Authority of Halifax County, and is located in Building 1 of the Riverstone Technology Park.

The mission of the Energy Center is to catalyze long-term and sustainable economic revitalization in the region of Halifax County and Southside Virginia by initiating, supporting, and growing high-tech “renewable energy” projects and ventures. The Energy Center has active projects within four key areas: biomass to energy; energy coatings; energy storage and generation; and energy efficiency. By providing a unique combination of both human capital and technological resources, the Energy Center is positioned as a resource to generate leads and attract a diverse array of industry to our region. The Energy Center aligns with an extensive network of educational and commercial partners to accomplish its mission.

At the beginning of 2011, the Energy center was absent a staff, and by the end of the year, the Energy Center was staffed with an Executive Director (Dr. Douglas Corrigan), a Director of Modeling Simulation and Media (Ben Thompson), and a Director of Business Development and Marketing (Kristy Johnson). Staff wasted no time to begin planning, developing marketing materials, initiate new projects, and leverage partnerships throughout the region.

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