The Swainsboro Kiwanis Club has released the schedule of events for the 2007 Pine Tree Festival.

*On Friday Night, May 4th, the arts and crafts fair will open at 6 p.m. at the Boneyard Plaza and Green Street.
*A street dance, compliments of WXRS and E98, is slated to begin at 7 p.m. across from the downtown pavilion on Green Street.
* On Saturday, May 5th, events begin at 8 a.m. with the Knotty Pine 5-K Run. The run begins on Green Street in front of the downtown pavilion.
*At 8:30 a.m., the Pine Tree Breeze Bike Ride will begin behind Spivey State Bank's offices on North Main Street.
*At 9 a.m. Saturday morning, the Arts and Crafts fair will re-open at the Boneyard Plaza.
*At 9 a.m. the tennis tournament begins at Harmon Park tennis courts on Meadowlake Parkway.
*At 11:00 a.m. the Pine Tree Festival Parade will begin at BB&T on South Main Street.

PharmaCentra, an Atlanta-based marketing and services firm that caters to the pharmaceutical industry with a suite of customizable healthcare management programs, has chosen Swainsboro, as the site for its newest healthcare information facility. The call center, which will be conveniently located on Main Street, will be staffed by 60 highly trained healthcare representatives who will support the various PharmaCentra programs that are designed to help leading pharmaceutical companies build strong relationships with physicians and patients nationwide.

"We considered many factors as we searched for a location for this facility, and Swainsboro not only met our criteria, but also exceeded our expectations," explains Barry Green, Executive Vice President and Chief Creative Officer of PharmaCentra. "In addition to its close proximity to Atlanta, Swainsboro offered us access to an educated labor force and the type of cutting-edge technology resources we need to provide our clients with outstanding service."

PharmaCentra will begin hiring healthcare representatives on Monday, May 21. The candidates chosen for the 60 positions within the call center will report to the facility during the second week of June for a comprehensive training program. As soon as the training is complete, the facility will open and immediately launch a variety of projects for PharmaCentra's clientele.

"We look forward to working with both the City of Swainsboro and the people of Swainsboro," Green adds. "We believe that this will be a mutually beneficial partnership, allowing our company and the city to flourish and enjoy great success."

PharmaCentra, located in Atlanta, offers customizable programs that help pharmaceutical companies provide comprehensive support to the physicians and patients who depend on their brands. From compliance and persistency to strategic sales and marketing, PharmaCentra's programs and services represent the future of healthcare management, offering clients integrated initiatives that allow them to effectively manage the flow of information between themselves, physicians and patients while increasing market share.

Applications for employment are currently available at the Chamber at 102 South Main Street.

Emanuel County citizens are in for a treat on May 12th when Gallery RFD hosts its monthly "Art Stroll" through downtown Swainsboro. Appearing in conjunction with the event will be Packway Handle Band, a bluegrass band from Athens, Georgia. The band will be performing at the downtown pavilion beginning at 8 p.m. This new feature for "Art Stroll" is being funded through the Swainsboro/Emanuel County Chamber of Commerce. There is no charge for the event.

Plans are well under way for this year's Wash Pot Festival to be held May 18th and 19th in Garfield. According to Festival Coordinator Pam Riner, two new events are planned. On Friday night, May 18th, "Wrestling at the Wash Pot" will be held with a street dance to follow. Both events are scheduled in the downtown area.

On Saturday, May 19th the annual Wash Pot Cookout will feature the Garfield Volunteer Fire Department and the Garfield Masonic Lodge cooking food over open flames in authentic cast iron wash pots. Selections will include barbecue, fried chicken, Brunswick stew, corn, beans, collards, and much more. A parade, arts & crafts, local dancers and musicians are featured during the event.

Daylilies galore will be found at this year's festival scheduled for June 2nd. The festival is being sponsored by the Canoochee Volunteer Fire Department. Planned for the event are arts and crafts, entertainment, games for young and old, and a tour of the local daylily gardens. For more information please contact Michelle Turner at 478/237-5219.

Evidenced by the favorable comments and the growing list of attendees, the Small Business Classes being offered by the Chamber have been a real success. In last week's class on "Secrets of a Small Business Marketing Strategies," twenty-five people were in attendance to hear Kyle Hensel offer pointers on marketing. Hensel is a marketing expert with Georgia Southern University's Small Business Development Center in Statesboro.

The next two classes, "Understanding Financial Statements: Managing by the Numbers" and "The 25 Biggest Sales Mistakes & How to Avoid Them," will be held on May 8th and 22nd. The classes will begin at 6 p.m. in the Chamber Annex on North Main Street.

The classes are free and are held in conjunction with East Georgia College and the Small Business Development Center and Georgia Southern University.

Call the Chamber today to sign up for these remaining classes.

The Swainsboro/Emanuel County Chamber of Commerce participated in "Georgia On My Mind Day" at the U.S. 301 Visitor Information Center near Sylvania. This was the first time the chamber had attempted to promote tourism for Emanuel County by being a part of this statewide event. These events are held across the state at each of the Visitor Information Centers during peak visitor visitation days. Over 400 people visited the Center during the day with the majority of visitors being from the Screven County School System.

"This was a great way for us to present Emanuel County as a tourism destination. With Geo. L. Smith State Park, Flat Creek Lodge, a number of Bed & Breakfast operations coupled with great hunting and fishing, we do have lots to offer," stated Executive Director Bill Rogers. "We look forward to participating in the I-95 and I-20 "Georgia On My Mind" events which will be held later in the year".

In addition to promoting tourism, the Chamber also displayed a number of local products made and produced in Emanuel County. "Anytime we have an opportunity to present Emanuel County, local businesses and the products they make to a receptive audience, we need to take advantage," he added.

The inaugural symposium for the National Nanotechnology Manufacturing Center recently held in Swainsboro has generated excellent news coverage for Emanuel County.

In addition to coverage in Georgia Trends Magazine, the Savannah Business Report & Journal recently featured news on the symposium in an article entitled "Swainsboro Has Major Nanotech Site in its Sights."

Written by feature columnist Strother Blair, the article states, "The overall vision for the Swainsboro area includes fusing the center and private companies into a network that will provide the U.S. military with a manufacturing infrastructure, regardless of the country's level of military involvement, by coupling it with commercial production."

On Thursday, April 19th, the Chamber joined with the Emanuel County Board of Education, East Georgia College, Swainsboro Technical College and the Joint Development Authorities of Emanuel County to present a special program to the county's rising ninth graders.

Held at East Georgia College, some 75 students and parents heard presentations on the challenges and opportunities facing students as they approach their high school years.

The chamber presented information on trends in the job market and current job opportunities here in Emanuel County.

The Chamber recently launched efforts to become a designated "Entrepreneur Friendly Community." On April 19th, nine committee members representing banking, accounting, law, insurance and local business were present to hear Adela Kelly, Regional Project Manager with the Governor's Entrepreneur and Small Business Office, present the program.

The state of Georgia is offering a community-based program that helps communities build an entrepreneur culture and environment that encourages local business growth. The program calls for identifying local leadership, increasing community awareness, enhancing relationships with existing state and federal resource providers and mapping out local assets for small businesses.

According to Kelly, the program should take from 4 to 6 months to implement.

Over 100 Administrative professionals enjoyed the Chamber's luncheon held at the Coleman House on April 25th.

Ashley Ellis from Statesboro was this years guest speaker. The granddaughter of the late Ephraim and Sypper Youngblood, Ashley is the vice president of Benefits of Blount, Burke, Wimberly and Hendricks of Statesboro. Her inspirational talk centered on balancing family life with business aspirations.

The Chamber is continuing to host "Chamber Coffee Connections" in May. A meeting is planned for Tuesday, May 15th at 9 a.m. These meetings are being held to discuss membership services and the Chamber's role in the community. Invitations are being sent out to all members. If you have already received an invitation yet were unable to attend, please call the Chamber if you would like to make our May meeting. Call 478-237-6426 to be included.

On Thursday, May 3rd at 6:55 a.m., Swainsboro's Gallery RFD will be featured on WTOC's segment: Eye on Business. WTOC is a station that is beamed to most homes in Southeast Georgia. The interview consist of three and a half minutes of hard hitting questions about the Arts in Swainsboro. A DVD will be released shortly via Gallery RFD with extra footage.

Members of the Stillmoreroots group, Swainsboro's local art collaborative, were interviewed by Southern Living this past week. The interviewer was very interested in the emerging art scene in Swainsboro and Art in the Woods in Stillmore. The article should be out in February 2008, just in time for the 6th annual Art in the Woods exhibitions. Congratulations to the group for putting out the word on Swainsboro and Stillmore!