Local Chapters Go Above and Beyond for NPW
Community Outreach Includes Education and School Supply/Food Drives

By Liz Herrera

A special "thank you" goes out to the chapters who went above and beyond to promote NPW 2011. These payroll professionals are wonderful role models for their communities and corporations. By collecting items for shelters, school supply drives, and educational outreach, these chapters prove giving back is what APA chapters do best. All the chapter members agree that you get back far more than you give when you experience the positive outcomes of community service. The following are highlights of some individual, company, and chapter NPW efforts (also see more in your January PAYTECH issue):

American Payroll Association Chapter of Acadiana
*2nd Annual Work Clothes Drive collected lightly used work clothing to be donated to the Acadiana Outreach. This helps homeless men and women get back into the workforce. 

*Chapter dinner for payroll professionals in the Acadiana area on Sept. 8.

*Radio station 99.9 KTDY, in Lafayette, La., made an announcement with all the details of National Payroll Week, August 4 through September 8.

*Posted chapter events on The Daily Iberian newspaper community/events calendar website.

*Chapter members interviewed on KATC TV 3 in Lafayette, La., on the August 25 Good Morning Acadiana Show. 

Alamo Chapter American Payroll Association
*School Supply Drive at their September NPW Luncheon Celebration where donations of backpacks, paper, crayons, markers, pens, pencils, and money were presented to Communities in Schools of San Antonio.

*Requested 39 proclamations, and received 12 signed NPW proclamations. 

*An announcement about the "Getting Paid In America" survey was made at each luncheon beginning in July.

*The chapter president asked everyone to promote the survey at their place of business by adding the notation and link to the survey to their email signatures. Also she mentioned for everyone to speak to their IT Department about adding a link to the internal company websites.

Birmingham Chapter of the American Payroll Association
*Chapter Luncheon recognized chapter members, announced and honored their Payroll Person of the Year, and formally introduced their members to the Lovelady Center.

*The Lovelady Center offers medical services, state-certified drug rehabilitation, childcare and post-secondary education. All year long, every month the chapter collected donations for the Lovelady Center. A donation of $2,000, along with toiletries and personal hygiene items, were presented to the Lovelady Center during a luncheon.

Charlotte Chapter of the American Payroll Association
*Celebrated NPW with cake, fun payroll trivia and discussion, networking, and community outreach. A representative from Promising Pages, a Charlotte-based non-profit, spoke at the meeting about the organization's dedication to children's literacy. 

*The chapter collected books, and then sanitized, wrapped, and labeled the books to hand out to children in the community. 

Chicago Chapter of the American Payroll Association
*Held an all-day August chapter meeting to kickoff NPW. All those who attended received five RCHs for participation. The lunchroom was decorated with all NPW items and the place setting had an NPW certificate, reminder sign about taking the NPW online survey, information card on the upcoming events, and a PAYGO card. All 82 attendees received an NPW pin.

*ADP NPW chapter event promoting the benefits of chapter membership and to show their partnership with ADP. Displayed a board with the proclamations, event and chapter information.  About 70 visitors stopped by the booth.

* School supply drive for U.S. military family children.

*Through MasterCard Money Matters National Education Day,  members taught approximately 170 teens.

*Online survey promotion initiative.

*The Chapter Board meeting/celebration brought together chapter officers to conduct business and celebrate their hard work and dedication to the payroll profession and their local payroll community.  All chapter officers received an NPW pin as a token of appreciation.

*NPW Family Appreciation Event/Enchanted Castle Outing included PayDay and 100 Grand candy bars, NPW pins, pens and money-themed items like playing cards and note pads for attendees.  Families of members received a special thank you for their support. A raffle featured NPW items, such as teddy bears, travel mugs and bags, and additional game tokens and tickets.

*Requested 117 proclamations, and received 17 signed NPW proclamations. 

Dallas Chapter APA
*Chapter education meeting, proclamations were displayed during the meeting attended by 140 attendees, including members and guests.

*Requested 48 proclamations, and received 21 signed NPW proclamations. 

Denver Chapter Payroll Association
*Requested 30 proclamations, and received six signed NPW proclamations. 

*Attended Channel 9NEWS TV station in Denver during NPW on Wednesday, Sept. 7 to promote NPW in the state of Colorado. Four CPP-certified payroll professionals hosted a Paycheck Line9 during NPW, fielding more than 200 calls about payroll issues. 

*They also promoted NPW through the chapter newsletter, dinner meetings, and networking.

American Payroll Association -- Greater Nashville Chapter
*Requested 15 proclamations, and received five signed NPW proclamations. 

* Lisa Wachter, CPP, contacted several local television stations and received an invitation from WC-TV (Williamson County's Government and Education Channel) for a 30-minute interview. The interview was aired during the Williamson County Connection National Payroll Week segment.

Greater Milwaukee Chapter of the American Payroll Association
*APA NPW Celebration held at Briggs & Stratton Corporation that included networking, NPW prize giveaway, chapter survey results, and dinner. Decorations included an NPW cake, balloons, and NPW gifts. 

*Collected items for a local homeless shelter.

*Board and Officers went to a local restaurant opening and shared NPW information during the event.

*Chapter members spoke at Walworth County and St. Joseph's School for MasterCard Money Matters National Education Day.

*Requested 11 proclamations, and received one signed NPW proclamation from the City of Milwaukee. 

Northern Colorado Payroll Association
* Held two free seminars where attendees could receive RCHs. The first two-hour meeting discussed child support payments. The meeting was advertised in Loveland, Fort Collins, and Greeley newspapers. The second two-hour meeting had guest speaker Phyllis Bell from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. She explained the dos and don'ts of I-9s;  the chapter mailed postcards to promote the event.

* School Supply Drive for Realities for Children, promoted going green by recycling old notebooks,

* Gathered gently used coats, shoes, and clothing for yearly Drive for Homeless Gear.

*Marines received a free lunch and collected toys for the Toys for Tots drive,

Northstar Chapter of the American Payroll Association
*More than $15,000 was donated to the Salvation Army in school supplies to be given out to kids in the Minnesota Twin Cities area. This was the largest donation of school supplies the Salvation Army had ever received.

*Requested 25 proclamations, and received five signed NPW proclamations. 

*Volunteers spent about 20 hours trying to get proclamations for NPW.

American Payroll Association Richmond Chapter, Inc.
*Robert Half Finance & Accounting and Accountemps NPW Open House Celebration -- Chapter members contributed fruit, snacks, soft drinks, water, and a cake. Announcements were made at chapter meetings, email, and in the Great Richmond Chamber of Commerce Newsletter. 

*USO NPW lunch for 600 soldiers. The chapter raised $2,000 for food, beverages, and gifts for the event. A church youth group bagged 2,200 cookies for the soldiers. Local radio station Lite98 and the Fort Lee newspaper covered the USO NPW event.

*Everyone who made a financial donation received a thank you letter from the chapter.


2012 Chapter Contest Season Now Upon Us
Showcase Your Chapter's Achievements,

Win Prizes

By Liz Herrera

Now is the time to look back on 2011 and show off your chapter's successful enhancements, events, and community service by participating in the 2012 chapter contests. In addition to entering the contests, this is the perfect opportunity to share with APA your chapter activities and conduct your own evaluation for future enhancements. Each chapter has its own unique way of sharing its creative ideas and showcasing achievements.

This prestigious competition gives chapters the opportunity to share their developments, accomplishments, innovations, and activities. Every activity your chapter has organized or participated in during 2011 should be part of your campaign to be APA's Chapter of the Year.

*NEW for 2012, the COTY questionnaire has been redesigned. New questions have been added and the format has changed. 

From the COTY contest entries, four Gavel award winners also are chosen. The Gavel Awards recognize specific achievements, activities, or aspects of a chapter’s COTY entry in four separate categories: Innovator, Mentor, Facilitator, and Communicator.

Chapter Pictorial Contest

Deadline: March 7, 2012

This contest allows chapters to be creative and display their successes through the use of photos in a PowerPoint slide show. A creative and unique electronic montage gives everyone a glimpse into your chapter's hard work, chapter meetings, study groups, community service, NPW, and statewide conferences. All the pictorials will be displayed at the 30th Annual Congress in Orlando, Fla.

Best Chapter Website Contest

Deadline: March 7, 2012

Local chapters are awarded for their efforts to be innovative and informative while serving their members using their chapter's website as an educational tool. Share how your chapter has successfully created a user-friendly website to educate, stimulate, and inform local members.

The Dream Theme Contest: Promoting Your Statewide and Regional Meeting Awards

Deadline: March 7, 2012
NEW for 2012! Planning for a successful conference takes a lot of time, hard work, and teamwork. Share the fruits of your labor by entering the Best Statewide or Regional Meeting Contest. Winners are determined by how well the chapters execute the planning/marketing of the statewide/regional meeting, chose a theme, the education provided, and the recognition of chapter members.

Your chapter's entries will not be judged on the size and volume of your chapter’s activities, but on the quality, creativity, originality, enthusiasm, and service your chapter has provided to the payroll profession over the past year. All awards will be presented on Monday, May 7, 2012, at the 30th Annual Congress in Orlando, Fla.

Chapter President Profile

Brenda Emerson

Denver Chapter Payroll Association

By Caren Bennett

When Brenda Emerson, president of the Denver Chapter Payroll Association, was asked to temporarily fill in for a payroll clerk, she didn't realize it would become a career. However, she kept learning more and more about payroll, became involved with the Denver Chapter, and never left the field! Over the past eight years, Brenda has been involved in the chapter in different capacities, but she was nonetheless surprised to be nominated for the position of president. 

"I never imagined I would become chapter president, and I am honored to have been nominated," she said. "I do not take my responsibility lightly."

As president, Brenda oversees the chapter's Board of Directors throughout the year, and makes sure everything runs smoothly. She also became editor of the chapter newsletter. Brenda's main goal is to be available to the members and to work to meet their expectations for the chapter. 

"The members are the reason we exist, and our priority is providing them with quality chapter offerings," Brenda explained.

Under Brenda's leadership, the Denver Chapter was awarded third place in the APA Chapter the Year 2011 contest. The chapter was also awarded an honorable mention for their 2011 Chapter Pictorial, as well as third place in the 2011 Dream Theme Contest for their "Rock-n-Payroll" theme.

Brenda enjoys volunteering in her community, and has brought that passion to her role as chapter president. The Denver Chapter is very active in their local community, and Brenda is most proud of the high level of member participation. Each year in the fall, members volunteer at their local food bank, Food Bank of the Rockies.

Along with community service, the Denver Chapter uses their celebration of National Payroll Week to provide exposure for their chapter. In 2011, the chapter organized a group trip to a Rockies baseball game and had the chapter's name featured on the scoreboard. Members also participate in a media outreach, in which they appear on their local news channel and answer questions that are phoned in from viewers. Many members have participated in Money Matters National Education Day, teaching courses in local high schools.

For Brenda, serving as chapter president has helped her grow both personally and professionally in her role as Manager of Payroll, Benefits and Human Resources.

"I have learned a lot managing such a large group," she said.

With a membership of 225, there are many different opinions and perspectives, but Brenda and the board work together as a cohesive team to get their goals accomplished.

"Seeing my vision for the chapter and our goals met has been the most enjoyable aspect of being President," Brenda said.

In her free time, Brenda enjoys spending time outdoors, wakeboarding, waterskiing, swimming, and biking.