Greetings RRMEA members!
 
We are pleased to bring you the first issue of the RRMEA newsletter!!!
 
After a few months of conversations and planning the Red River Manufacturers & Engineers Association came to fruition late last year. We are currently at 31 members and growing quickly!
 
One of our first items of business was to partner with Midwest Manufacturers Association (MMA), a manufacturers association management company, and create our bylaws and a board of directors. After a time of recommitment to greater board engagement and the organization and its mission, the current RRMEA Board of Directors includes:
            Rick Lemke, Interstate Assembly Systems, RRMEA President
            Will Cromarty, Airial Robotics, RRMEA Vice President
            Russell Martinson, Be More Colorful, RRMEA Secretary
            Thomas Stromme, First Western Bank & Trust, RRMEA Treasurer
            Lacee Bjork Anderson, The Birch Group
            Bernie Dardis, City of West Fargo
            Jenna Meuller, Fargo Moorhead West Fargo Chamber of Commerce
            Kriss Burns, PRO Resources
            James Leiman, Institute for Economics & Peace
 
Thank you to all the board members for your willingness to serve. As a nonprofit organization with minimal staff, it is critical to our organization’s success to have an engaged board that is knowledgeable and available to help deliver value to our members.
 
Our board of directors is bringing energy and focus to moving our mission forward throughout 2023 and beyond. One of our key initiatives is to create committees and find a broad base of volunteers from our member firms to join and have active engagement on a committee. 
 
Joining a committee gives individuals a voice in the direction of the association and creates an army of promoters for RRMEA. We’d like to extend an invitation to all employees at member firms to consider volunteering for a committee that you have a passion around. The committees and their purposes are:
 

• Membership Recruitment & Retention Committee
  • Create and maintain pipeline of new members 
  • Member value recruitment materials 
  • Member satisfaction
• Program Committee
  • Actively assist with planning and execution of lunch/tour/speaker meetings, fundraising events, and more
• Government Relations Committee
  • Monitor and inform members of pertinent legislative activities
  • Offer a collective voice of advocacy for members in our region.

• March 22 at 11:00 am online.  Workforce Development webinar: Cracking the Code to Rising Stars: How to Find, Motivate, and Create Engaged Young Leaders
• April 18 at 2:00 pm online. New member orientation for RRMEA members
• April 26 at 11:00 am online. A Manufacturers Guide to Implementing a High School Internship Program