Friday, April 27, 2012

GREENVILLE NEWS: "Community 9/11 Memorial in Progress"

By Katie Jones
Greater Greer News
Brick Masons Working on Construction of BSFD 9/11 Memorial Plaza
(PHOTO CREDIT: CrescentMag.com)

It’s been a long journey, but the 9-11 memorial at the Boiling Springs Fire District is coming to fruition. The department broke ground in early April.
The memorial, scheduled to be dedicated July 4, will give the community a place to remember and reflect on events of 9-11.
“Eleven years ago, we lost a bunch of people, not only out of the fire service and the police service, but a lot of American citizens,” said Bill Sizemore, operations chief. “We don’t want to forget. We want the people who ride up and down Pelham Road, which is a lot, the people of our community to be able to stop and look and touch something that will remind us.”
Nearly 3,000 people died, the vast majority at the World Trade Center Twin Towers in New York City, when al-Qaeda terrorists hijack four airliners on Sept. 11, 2001. Two crashed into the World Trade Center, one crashed into the Pentagon, and the fourth crashed in a Pennyslvania field, believed to have been forced down when passengers attacked the terrorists. The target was thought to be the U.S. Capitol or the White House.
The Boiling Springs chief applied to get the nearly 7-foot, 1,361-pound steel beam, a piece of one of the Twin Towers, said Jeff Nelson, fire marshal. A committee from the fire district picked it up about a year ago from a hangar at the John F. Kennedy International Airport, he said.
They transported it back in the back of an F-250 pickup truck, draped in an American flag, said Jim Hayes, a volunteer firefighter.
“We were just excited about it and now that it’s here we can’t wait for the memorial to be built,” Hayes said. “It should be pretty awesome, be something the entire community can come out and share.”
The department has been raising money for the memorial for almost a year, Sizemore said.
“It just started clicking,” he said. “People started showing an interest in getting involved, that’s what’s making it happen.”
Nelson said donations can still be made at BB&T into the BSFD/WTC account.
The memorial will mean something different to everyone, Nelson said.
To Nelson, who has been in fire service for almost 30 years, the memorial will honor the brothers he lost in the tragedy.
“It’s like a big brotherhood,” he said of firefighters. “It’s not just here in Greenville or Greenville County or in South Carolina. No matter where you go, you’re part of the brotherhood. To see something like that happen to those guys, it’s just like family members to me.”
The beam sat in front of the fire station on Pelham Road for the last year, Sizemore said, and people often stopped to see it.
“Some people will lay their hands on it. Some people won’t even get near it, touch it. It’s amazing what that piece of steel brings back in different people,” he said. “I think it’s going to be a great addition to our community for a long time to come.”

Tuesday, April 10, 2012

Say Goodbye to Dead Weight


Our business doesn't operate in a vacuum. We can't do everything in-house, but at the same time, whether it's a news release, a feature story pitch, an event, a strategic plan, or something tangible like printwork, ultimately it's our name that goes on everything that comes out if TMPR.

That's why our vendors are so valuable.

We don't green-light just anybody to be a vendor. We're picky. We expect our vendors not just to be providers of goods and services. We expect them to be our strategic partners, too. We expect them to understand our business and our customers. We expect them to take an interest in what we're doing.

Why? Because we take the same attitude toward our clients.

We work to make sure we understand our clients' businesses, goals, and objectives. They place their trust in us. They count on us to help them succeed. We want to help them succeed, and we want our relationships to continue for years to come.

Every now and then, we make a mistake. We find out that for one reason or another, our judgment was misplaced. We allowed a vendor in to our circle believing it would be a long-term partner only to find out that it wanted the quick buck -- a one time or short term deal that would get them a couple of shekles.

As convenient as that vendor may be, we have to say goodbye. That vendor doesn't care about us or our business or our values or, most importantly, our clients.

While that business model may be perfectly fine for that vendor, it's unacceptable for us.

A situation arose over the past couple of weeks and caused us to sever certain vendor ties for future relationships. The details aren't important other than to say that what the vendor thought may have gone unnoticed or wasn't a big deal WAS noticed and WAS a big deal because it showed that the vendor ultimately didn't care about what we were doing -- even though there could have been a benefit down the road.

When you're signing a new client, when you're signing a new vendor, realize that at some level, you're entering in to a strategic partnership. Your names will be linked. Your actions and conduct will, in some way, reflect on each other. You have a vested interest in each other's success.

If you find out down that road that your philosophies don't align, get rid of the dead weight. Move on, and replace that vendor with one that wants to be with you and your clients or the long haul.

Oh, and if you're a vendor who's just in it for the cash without having an interest in what we do. Keep walking, and don't knock on our door. We don't have time for you.

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