Motion Masters Begins to Blog



Well it is great to see our member companies blogging. With Maple Creative, the most informed blogger I know, Bob Coffield, and Terradon Communications, we now can add Motion Masters to our member business blogs!

Motion Masters Blog.

Please note, if your company is a member of the Alliance and the company has a blog, we would love to add you to our link list on the right side of this blog. Let us know. Just one benefit to being a member of the Alliance!

Uno/Mattel Breaks World Record in Charleston West Virginia

Well it was a fun day today in Charleston. First, Mattel celebrated the 35th year of Uno by setting the world record for largest amount of players of a card game at the Power Park in Charleston. Over 321 people played Uno today. I was a participant and it was certainly exciting to be part of a Guinness Book of World Records event. A representative of Guinness from London was on hand to certify the game.

Earlier in the morning, the WV Wild Basketball Team announced the details of their 2007 season. We certainly wish them luck with their season this year. You can find the WV Wild Team website at www.westvirginiawildhoops.com

Governor Welcomes Brookfield Power's Significant Investment in Hydroelectric
Power Generation

- October 18, 2006
Contact: Tom Hunter, 304-558-3848; Grace Pollock, 819-561-8072

CHARLESTON, W.Va. - Gov. Joe Manchin today joined officials from Brookfield
Power in announcing the North American energy leader has completed its purchase
of two West Virginia hydroelectric power generation facilities, resulting in a
significant reinvestment in these facilities and the retention of hundreds of
area jobs.

On August 28, 2006, the Gatineau, Quebec-based energy company announced it had
reached purchase agreements with Alloy Power LLC (Alloy) and West Virginia Alloy
LLC (WVA) under which Brookfield Power would acquire Alloy’s two hydroelectric
generating plants – the Hawks Nest and Glen Ferris generating stations, which
are located on the New River and Kanawha River respectively – and subsequently
sell power to WVA for its integrated ferroalloy smelter under a 15-year
contract. Together, the Hawks Nest and Glen Ferris generating stations have a
total installed capacity of 107 megawatts and produce on average 526 gigawatt
hours of electricity annually. Financial details of the purchase are subject to
confidentiality agreements.

“This is a significant investment by a global leader in hydroelectric power
generation that will help West Virginia Alloys remain competitive, preserving
more than 200 good-paying jobs with benefits in the Upper Kanawha Valley
region,” the governor said. “We welcome this Canadian-based company to West
Virginia and look forward to assisting with the continued growth of our state’s
newest business and energy partner.”

“We are pleased to establish our presence in West Virginia, and add meaningful
hydro capacity to our portfolio of generating assets,” said Harry Goldgut,
Co-Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Brookfield Power. “We look forward to
building a long and successful relationship with the state and local communities
in which our facilities are located.”

ABOUT Brookfield Power:
Brookfield Power comprises the power generating, transmission, distribution and
marketing operations of Brookfield Asset Management Inc. Brookfield Power has
developed and successfully operated hydroelectric power facilities for almost
100 years. Brookfield Power’s portfolio comprises almost 3,700 megawatts of
capacity and includes 137 hydroelectric power generating stations and 1 pumped
storage facility located on 49 river systems, 1 wind energy project, 2
co-generation facilities and transmission and distribution assets, principally
in the northeast North America (See www.brookfieldpower.com for more details).
Brookfield Asset Management Inc., focused on property, power and infrastructure
assets, has over US $50 billion of assets under management and is co-listed on
the New York and Toronto Stock Exchanges under the symbol “BAM” (See
www.brookfield.com for more details).

Jim Cramer, Mad Money, Kanawha County Mentioned

I was watching Jim Cramer, "Mad Money" last night. A caller from West Virginia called in with a question
During the lightning round, "Bouya Jim." Anyway, when the caller identified herself as from West Virginia,
Jim immediately knew that John Chambers was from West Virginia.

For those of you who don't know John Chambers, John Chambers is President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Cisco Systems,
the worldwide leader in networking for the Internet.

In fact John Chambers was the speaker for the 2004 Charleston Area Alliance Annual Celebration held at the Clay Center.

So back to Mad Money, Jim Cramer, says, "yeah I know West Virginia, John Chambers grew up there."

Then he says, "Kanawha County is in West Virginia, I'm a big fan of Kanawha County."

Turns out the caller into Mad Money was also from Kanawha County and told Jim so live on the air.

Jim Cramer, if you are reading this, we hope to see you back here in West Virginia again soon.

Call us; we'd love to have you as our next annual celebration speaker.

SBA OFFERS SMALL BUSINESS FINANCIAL & COUNSELING ASSISTANCE

Second Annual Contract Connections Event October 11 in Charleston



CHARLESTON, W.Va. - The U.S. Small Business Administration will be providing FREE small business financial counseling AND an opportunity to apply for an SBA guaranteed unsecured business loan during the 2nd annual Contract Connections event on Wednesday, October 11, 2006 at the Charleston Civic Center.

Representatives from local and national lenders, the Region 1 Workforce Woman's Business Center, and the SBA will be available to meet with existing and potential entrepreneurs to provide expert financial and small business guidance on issues such as: contract lines of credit; commercial loan products; small business financing; utilizing contracts as collateral; and much more.

Entrepreneurs interested in learning about business financing options and expansion into government contracting will receive personalized one-on-one assistance during two sessions set to begin at 10:00 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. To reserve your time slot for the financial counseling sessions, contact Barbara Carder (email: barbara.carder@sba.gov) at the SBA's West Virginia District Office at 1-800-767-8052 option 8 then extension 222. Companies interested in meeting with federal, state or prime contracting officers to learn more about government contracting opportunities can call 888-982-7232 or email lcoffman@wvsbdc.org. Registration can also be made on the Contract Connections web site at www.contractconnections.org.

Information will be provided on SBA's 7(a) Loan Guaranty and 504 Certified Development Company loan programs. The 7(a) loan program provides loan guarantees through lending institutions for business related purposes of up to $2 million. The 504 loan program provides affordable long-term, fixed-asset financing to help healthy, expanding small businesses grow. The maximum SBA guaranty amounts range from $2 million to $4 million. Also featured will be SBA's CommunityExpress loan program which provides financial, technical and management assistance to for-profit businesses with a maximum SBA guaranty up to $250,000. One segment of CommunityExpress provides UNSECURED working capital loans up to $50,000.

The UNSECURED segment of the CommunityExpress loan requires no tax returns or business plans. Qualified small business owners can apply for loans up to $50,000 which have a 7-year term. Interest rates are based on Prime plus 4.75 percent. CommunityExpress lenders require an application fee which is refundable if the loan is not approved. Loan proceeds are to be used for any business related purpose, such as the purchase of machinery/equipment; working capital; business expansion; inventory; or hiring of personnel. To be considered for an SBA-guaranteed loan, eligible applicants must have good credit and must not have defaulted on a prior government loan, be delinquent on child support or have an IRS tax lien filed against them or the business.

Don't miss out on this opportunity to learn from the EXPERTS about the various types of financial and small business assistance available to help your small business start or expand!

All SBA programs are extended to the public on a non-discriminatory basis.

East End Main Street Creates East End Eatery Guide.

Here you will find the most up-to-date guide to more than 25 East End Eateries.
Check out the link below to see the new guide which has eatery names, phone numbers, web site links and more.

http://www.eastendmainstreet.com/pages/restaurants.htm