KEEPING YOU IN THE KNOW

You can keep Chamber members and the community in the loop as well as engage them with important or interesting programs, features, and projects by using The Chamber Connection. The Chamber Connection e-newsletter is about "Keeping You in the Know". Submit your eye-catching flyers, announcements, and news to sharon@mhcchamber.com.

C-PEG Launches 2022 Grow Martinsville-Henry County Application for Fall Session

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Lisa Watkins
President
Martinsville-Henry County Chamber of Commerce
276.632.6401

C-PEG LAUNCHES 2022 GROW MARTINSVILLE-HENRY COUNTY APPLICATION FOR FALL SESSION

MARTINSVILLE, VA (September 1, 2022) - The Chamber's Partnership for Economic Growth (C-PEG) is launching its application process for Grow Martinsville-Henry County (Grow MHC) for a new fall round. Grow MHC an entrepreneurial mentoring program with an intensive four-week entrepreneurial boot camp program for growing companies. The Grow MHC component is a complement to Startup MHC, C-PEG’s program for entrepreneurs who plan to start or just opened a business. The application process is competitive and requires that applicants agree to the program guidelines. September 28, 2022, at 12:00 p.m., local time, is the application deadline. Through a grant from the Tobacco Region Revitalization Commission (TRRC) which leverages local funding, it is the first time that C-PEG is able to expand its training to offer two sessions of the Grow MHC boot camp in the same year.

In addition to TRRC, C-PEG’s partners for this initiative include City of Martinsville, Henry County, the Campbell Family Group, both the George W. Lester, II Fund and the Anonymous Fund through the Community Foundation Serving Western Virginia and Patrick & Henry Community College. Additionally, Appalachian Power is a sponsor of Startup and Grow MHC; American National Bank is the small business sponsor for Chamber and C-PEG events.

Since 2015, when the initiative originally began as Startup Martinsville in the Uptown Martinsville area with a Community Business Launch grant from the Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development, the geographic area has grown to include the entire footprint in the City of Martinsville and Henry County thanks to support from both locales and private sector funding. To date, the initiative has successfully graduated 283 individuals from its training program, awarded 58 businesses with over $302,350 in cash and in-kind funding. These businesses have created over $4,356,000 in new capital investment and created 240 new jobs.

C-PEG partners with Patrick & Henry Community College to deliver the entrepreneurial boot camp sessions as well as Longwood’s Small Business Development Center, SCORE and the Martinsville-Henry County Economic Development Corporation and staff from the City and County, local entrepreneurs and business experts.
C-PEG Chair, Amanda Cox said, “Since the first class graduated in 2016, our community partners and our board have been committed to supporting small business growth as part of our region’s strategic economic development plan, and we are prudent to continue to provide increased resources to our entrepreneurial talent in Martinsville and Henry County.”

The application is available online at www.martinsville.com/grow.
Please contact Lisa Watkins with the Martinsville-Henry County Chamber of Commerce with any questions at 276.632.6401 or mhccoc@mhcchamber.com.

Martinsville-Henry County Chamber's Partnership for Economic Growth (C-PEG) is an independent, yet closely aligned, charitable affiliate of the Martinsville-Henry County Chamber of Commerce. C-PEG is charged with funding and supporting the area's efforts to improve economic growth.
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UPTOWN MARTINSVILLE FARMERS' MARKET

65 W. Main Street, Martinsville, VA 24112

Thank you to Martinsville Uptown's platinum sponsors, BTW21, The Lester Group, & ValleyStar Credit Union for not only supporting the farmers' market, but all of Uptown's events!

We also thank Martinsville Uptown's 2022 market sponsors for supporting the Uptown Martinsville Farmers' Market including: New College Institute, SOVAH Health of Martinsville and Southern Virginia Properties, Uptown Music Fest and the Martinsville Henry County Coalition for Health & Wellness (EBT Sponsor)! 

The Uptown Martinsville Farmers' Market now has a waiting list for new vendors.
To be added to the waiting list, please contact kimberly@mhcchamber.com or
phone (276) 632-5688.

This year's Farmers' Market is offering a large variety of local goods. As always, there is a vast variety of local fruits and vegetables for sale. We also have delicious baked goods, farm eggs, assortment of jams & jellies, salsas, local honey, beautiful flowers & plants, soaps, crafts, sweets and much more. Many of our vendors have competitive prices with the grocery store. And in many cases, the Market's produce is healthier and fresher than what you will find elsewhere. The Market is accepting EBT / SNAP cards and is currently offering an EBT match program. Just see our manager to receive tokens to exchange out with the vendors.

Eat Fresh, Shop Local!

2022 hours are:

Saturdays (April 30 - November 19)

7AM - 12PM

Wednesdays (July 6 - September 28)

7AM - 12PM

12 CHEAPEST SMALL TOWNS IN AMERICA

Affordable small towns might not be for everyone, but their charms put them among the best places to live for plenty of folks.

Small-town living has plenty of perks: light traffic, a strong sense of community and a slower pace of life. Perhaps best of all, there's the cost of living, which typically is cheaper in small towns than in expensive big cities.

To get a better sense of what inexpensive small-town living really has to offer, we compiled a list of the 12 cheapest small towns in America, with small towns defined as places with populations of 10,000 to 50,000 people. We based our rankings on the Council for Community and Economic Research's (C2ER) calculations of living expenses in 267 urban areas. C2ER's expansive study tracks thousands of prices under the categories of housing, utilities, healthcare, groceries, transportation, and miscellaneous goods and services (such as an appointment with a physician or a ticket to the cinema).

It goes without saying that you should weigh the pros and cons before you pack up and relocate to one of the 12 cheapest small towns in America. While a low cost of living is attractive, it can be offset by issues such as scarce jobs, small paychecks or a lack of things to do in the area. Plan an extended visit to ensure the small town fits your lifestyle. And if you prefer larger locales, consider our list of the cheapest U.S. cities to live in.

C2ER's Cost of Living Index data is based on average prices of goods and services collected for the first three quarters of 2021, with index values based on the new weights for 2022. Population figures, median household incomes, median home values, poverty rates and other demographic data are from the U.S. Census Bureau. Unemployment rates, courtesy of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, are as of April 27 for the month of March 2022, and are neither smoothed nor seasonally adjusted.

Click the link below to see the 12 cheapest small towns in America.

https://www.kiplinger.com/real-estate/602609/cheapest-small-towns-in-america-2021?utm_source=SmartBrief&utm_medium=email