The Patio Place Ribbon Cutting

A new beginning has hit the streets of Fresno! Not only is the Patio Place full of great Patio furniture and accessories, they are also committed to the consumer. They are not happy until you are happy. The Patio Place, located at 8805 North Cedar Ave in the Vons Shopping Center at Cedar and Shepherd, had a ribbon cutting on July 22, 2010 and welcomed the Ambassadors with open arms. The Patio Place is a part of a larger operation, from owner Ron Bock. Ron owns two other stores in Palm Dessert. Being a long time Fresno native, graduating from McLane High School in 1970, he saw a need in Fresno for this type of patio furniture, fire pits and also a cushion factory which allows him to make custom-made cushions and sell replacements. All fabrics are washable fabrics. The hours of operation are Monday - Wednesday 10-5, Thursday and Friday 10-7, Saturday 10-5 and Sunday 12-5. Stop by and let Jake a Sanger native, or Carlos who has been with Ron 6 years help you with your decorating patio needs. Ron will also be available to help you with no pressure. Their motto is: "We are not happy unless you are happy with your purchase." Welcome to the Fresno Chamber of Commerce. For more information visit them on the web at www.thepatioplace.com or call them at (559) 435-4333.

This blog provided by Julia Hamilton of Travel Shoppe

Ribbon Cutting for Sebring West

Sebring West Automotive Center began by two friends with little pocket money, and a dream. Today, it is one of the largest independent service and parts facilities in the entire Central Valley.
Sebring West is owned by Tony Pasco. You will find him there on site with 45 of his friendly staff to assist you with all of your automotive needs. The store began by specializing in foreign cars, mainly Japanese automobiles and Volkswagons. However, today they have superior knowledge for all types of cars, both foreign and domestic.
Tony began with a shop out on McKinley, and a parts department adjacent to his shop. He has since consolidated to one convenient 20,000 square foot parts and shop department out on Blackstone Avenue. Their parts department is open 7 days a week, and their service department is open 5 days a week. They also offer fleet services.
Sebring West's Parts Department offers over 100 years of combined experience. Their ASE Certified Master Technicians in their service department have had world class training, so you can trust that you are receiving the very best care.
Tony and his crew are celebrating their 40th anniversary this coming year. The Greater Fresno Area Chamber of Commerce would like to congratulate Sebring West for their upcoming 40 wonderful years of great service to our community, as well as becoming the newest members of the Fresno Chamber. For more information regarding Sebring West please visit http://www.sebringwest.com/ or give them a call at 559 237-2244.

This blog provided by Lynnette Schetselaar of American Tax-Credits Group, Inc.

Fresno Chamber Mixer at Rabobank

Thursday July 15th the Fresno Chamber Ambassadors went to the monthly Chamber mixer hosted by Rabobank. There was a good turn out with business people from all over the community meeting and greeting. There were hors d' oeuvres and beverages placed throughout the room which encouraged people to walk around. While I did my walking around I ran into Peter Lang - Social Media Strategist, Al Solis - Sol Development Associates, Hilary Mathias - MC Solutions, Jane Olvera Quebe - JP Marketing, Bud Solomon - Vernon Promotional Products and Keegan Larson - Uhuru Network just to name a few. It was a fun crowd and there was plenty of good networking and conversation to go around. The highlight for me was talking with John DeRuiter - Regional Manager with Rabobank. He was a pleasure to converse with and gave me lots of information on one of Rabobank's trademarks, agribusiness. John also let me know that Rabobank is one of the few banks that has solar energy financing for commercial and agribusiness projects. A great asset to our Valley! As it says on their website http://www.rabobankamerica.com/ "Rabobank is a valued financial partner for thousands of individuals, businesses, farmers and ranchers, food and agribusiness companies and other select institutions across the Americas. We are the bank of choice in many California communities, meeting the financial needs of local families, businesses and organizations with great banking products and personalized service by friendly, knowledgeable bankers." Thank you Rabobank for hosting July's Fresno Chamber mixer, it was great to get to know you better!

This blog provided by Hannah DeGroot of Realty Concepts

Wells Fargo grand opening for new Fig Garden location

Friday July 9th, Wells Fargo opened a new branch right next to Fig Garden Village and the Fresno Chamber Ambassadors were there to welcome them with a ribbon cutting. Wells Fargo has been around since 1852 and just recently merged with Wachovia. Together they have experience and a reputation you can trust to help you reach your financial goals.


Wells Fargo's big grand opening was fun for everyone! People won prizes by spinning a wheel. Other features were free food and a ride on a Wells Fargo original stage coach with horses!

Tim Rios, Wells Fargo Community Manager, also presented two $10,000 donation checks to great non profit organizations here in Fresno. The first one was presented to Dan DeSantis, CEO of the Fresno Regional Foundation. This foundation serves California's Central San Joaquin Valley and works to improve lives in the community by encouraging philanthropy. The second check was presented to Janetta McGensy, Principal of Baird Middle School. It is a magnet school for grades 5-8. The school's focus is Technology, International Agribusiness and Foreign Language. The school draws students from all over Fresno Unified School District.

Wells Fargo is ready to help people achieve financial success through their many services. For more information please visit http://www.wellsfargo.com/ or call the new local branch at (559) 436-0477.

This blog provided by: Amber Patt with Multi Marketing Corp.

Tinkler Funeral Chapel and Crematory- June Mixer

On June 17th, Tinkler Funeral Chapel and Crematory hosted the June mixer and were very gracious and hospitable hosts who take pride in their facility and what they do. Tinkler Funeral Chapel & Crematory has been serving Central Valley families since 1919. Their building located at 475 North Broadway Street, was designated a historical building as was added to the local official roster of historical buildings on September 27, 1979. This unique facility has a lovely courtyard and this is where the Chamber Ambassadors, member and their guests relaxed, visited with one another and listened to the wonderful mariachi music provided by Roberto Lopez. They hosted an abundance of wonderful appetizers, desserts and beverages that were provided by Grand Occasions. They also had wonderful gift baskets from Sierra Nut House that were given out for raffle prizes. The weather was wonderful and the company as well. It was a lovely event.

The Chapel is available for services of all denominations ranging from traditional to contemporary and alternative memorials to cremation services. Their location is convenient for gathering of any size, and is equipped to respect all funeral customs. The Tinkler Funeral Chapel & Crematory employs a highly trained, compassionate and caring staff. All are committed to the continuation of a proven professional approach to caring personal attention. Their grief management library of award- winning DVDs, brochures and booklets, is designed to help family and friends through difficult times and is available to the public.

The Tinkler Funeral Chapel & Crematory provides 24 hour a day response. Their staff is available to answer any question you may have. Tinkler is proud to be a member of the Dignity Memorial network of funeral, cremation and cemetery service providers. Dignity Memorial provider offer exclusive benefits, including National Transferability of Prearranged Services, the Bereavement Travel Program, the 24-Hour Compassion Helpline and access to an acclaimed grief management library. As North America's premier provider of funeral, cremation and cemetery services, the Dignity Memorial brand is your assurance of quality, value, caring service and exceptional customer satisfaction. For more information call them at (559)233-2101

This blog provided by: Cheryl Hansen-Abshere of Real Goods Solar

Ribbon Cutting for Real Goods Solar

Real Goods Solar celebrated a new addition to their building with the Fresno Chamber and a ribbon cutting! Real Goods Solar extended the warehouse for products and easy entry way and the local sales team for the Central Valley now has a bigger office to work in. Ambassadors learned a lot that day about solar energy. We started off viewing a video about the President & Founder, John Schaeffer on Fox Business News. Real Goods Solar is offering a customized home built with Solar Energy to power throughout the whole home. Since most of us are going green these days, this would be a new trend toward home building. After the video and a tour of the office, we were welcomed with food from Five Star Catering, the tri-tip was awesome, and I could not say more about the delicious spinach and strawberry salads. Ambassador's Terri and Andrew sat next to me, our whole conversation that evening was about solar panels for our home since it would be more affordable for us to have in the long run versus the monthly PG&E bills. Real Goods Solar offer affordable financing options for those home owner interested in getting solar panels for their home. For those of you interested in saving money, and going green, please contact Cheryl Hansen-Abshere at

(559) 457-8365, or visit http://www.realgoodssolar.com/.

This blog provided by Nichole C. Castillo of the Fresno Convention & Visitors Bureau