This week, my Chamber leader-inspired travels took me to Pottsville. Yep, you guessed correctly, to the Yuengling Brewery. But hold on…those amber-delicious, time-honored products that have made the Yuengling Family name, and more importantly, their brew tanks world famous were not my focus, at least during this trip.
Rather, my goal was to be an active participant in Congressman Dan Meuser’s (PA-9th) annual Small Business Roundtable. This year’s roundtable was held in the very modern and highly impressive Yuengling Middlecreek Road Brewery. This facility is located just outside of the City of Pottsville, where the more-famous “Old Brewery” is located and still operating.
The Summit panelists included two Congressional Small Business Committee staffers, as well as representatives from the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the US Small Business Administration (SBA). The audience also included top staffers from the US Veterans Administration (VA), and the US Department of Transportation-Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), as well as two high-ranking PA Chamber staffers.
Seated with the federal officials were four PA State Representatives, including our own Rep. Joanne Stehr (R-107th) who represents Northumberland County’s eastern municipalities. Congressman Meuser had his district staff along with his D.C.-based staff members sprinkled throughout the Summit room to ensure that any issues brought up by small business owners were attended to immediately.
My key ‘take-away’ from the Summit is that Congressman Meuser, who represents Montour and Northumberland Counties in our Chamber footprint, has the seniority and the savvy to make sure that good things, in terms of funding and policy, flow our way from the halls of Congress. His answers to the two questions which I asked of the panelists, one about the status of possible investments in Federal Opportunity Zones, and the other dealing with Ag-related guest worker visas (H1-A and H1-B) made it crystal clear to me that his strong grasp, thanks in large part to being a small business owner himself, of these topics have earned the respect of the federal administrators of the relevant programs.
So, my day in Pottsville was well spent. I’m more certain now than ever that Congressman Meuser ‘has our backs’ when it comes to the prosperity of commerce, communities, culture, and citizens in the Greater Susquehanna Valley.
Thank you, Congressman, by working together, I’m sure that our best days lie just ahead.
Postscript: thought you might be interested in this video with my fellow Summit participant, Kristen Moyer of SEDA-COG. You’ll notice that we’re standing inside of the historic and stunningly beautiful Yuengling Bar. Just a few words about the importance of your advocates working on your and every Chamber member’s behalf.
From Where I Sit
