USDA Collaborates with Montana Small Business Partners and Stakeholders

adult books business coffee

Please join Oscar Gonzales, Assistant Secretary for Administration, U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), for a meeting with Montana’s community based organizations which support their local small businesses. USDA will be discussing opportunities to collaborate in support of small businesses owned by rural, minorities, women, veterans and those with disabilities.

The meeting has been scheduled for Tuesday, September 28, 2021, from 3:30 pm to 4:30 pm EST, for Montana Partners and Stakeholders.  USDA will use the Microsoft TEAMS platform. 

Please RSVP with to Jacqueline Davis-Slay Jacqueline.davis-slay@usda.gov by Wednesday, September 22, 2021, and confirm your participation by accepting the TEAMS invite.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact Jacqueline by email or at 202-422-2551. 

Choteau Childcare Work Group Survey

If you are a parent of children who need childcare, please take the Port Authority’s survey so we as a community can better assess our childcare needs. Please share the survey with other parents you know in the Choteau Community!

On January 9th, the Choteau Area Port Authority held a work meeting to establish it’s Childcare Taskforce. We here at the Chamber know that finding childcare is not just a challenge for families and their home life, but for businesses and their employees, too.

Article after article notes that lack of sufficient childcare is not a problem unique to Choteau, or even Montana, but the solutions to our problems are going to have to come from within our community.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation has great information about the types of partnerships that can help our community succeed:

It is clear that high-quality, affordable, and accessible childcare plays a significant role in ensuring our companies and our country remain competitive and contribute to our overall economic growth and development.

U.S. Chamber Foundation – Building Bridges: Creating Strong Partnerships for Early Childhood Education

If you have thoughts or are interested in Childcare in Choteau, please contact Blair Patton who is Chairing Port Authority’s Work Group.

Choteau Area Port Authority Receives Marketing Grant!

Choteau Area Port Authority Logo

Congratulations to the Choteau Area Port Authority! They received the Department of Commerce Tourism Grant to create marketing and branding materials for the Choteau Area!

We in the Choteau Chamber are excited to be a part of this historic collaboration between Choteau’s 3 primary economic development and business organizations: the Choteau Chamber of Commerce, the Choteau Tourism Business Improvement District, and the Choteau Area Port Authority!

If you know a marketer or designer who would be interested in submitting an RFP, please have them contact Choteau Area Port Authority President Mary Sexton at msexton@3rivers.net

Choteau Economic Development Efforts Highlighted in Governor’s Office of Economic Development Whitepaper

across the state

Download the whitepaper Across the State: A Picture of Local Development Efforts by Main Street Montana Rural Partners

“Like many small communities in Montana, Choteau relies heavily on volunteer support, which can be overwhelming and exhausting for the handful of volunteers that serve on every board, committee, and organization in town. Communities often look for new ways to increase capacity for community projects and economic development initiatives.”

Read the whole whitepaper here: