April 1, 2015 Meeting, No Fooling!

April 2015 Meeting

Our next regular meeting is Wednesday, April 1 at Grumpy's Roseville, 2801 Snelling Avenue, 

Roseville, MN 55113, (651) 379-1180.

Dinner/social hour in the meeting room from 6:00 - 7:00 pm, with the general meeting at 7 and education following the meeting - come for all or part, everyone welcome.

Our speaker will be Mark Schrantz.

Are quarterly meetings right for the Minnesota Chapter of ALOA?

The question has been raised whether the membership of MNALOA would be better served by fewer meetings.

The quarterly, weekend meeting has clear merit for members outside the metro area who would prefer not to be driving two, three or more hours home after a Wednesday meeting that routinely gets out at 9 pm.

Neighboring chapter Fox Valley has quarterly, Saturday meetings and Iowa is on a less-set schedule than that, frequently incorporating their meetings into education events. It works well for them: the meetings are longer, often on weekends, and the education programming is generally more substantial than we are able to offer in the monthly, mid-week meeting format.

In favor of the monthly meeting: it's great to have a regular pattern that everyone remembers.  First Wednesday of the month? Synonymous with MN locksmiths (except in July and August). High frequency mid-week meetings offer a natural bookend on a work day and a casual, consistent networking opportunity.

It is also relatively easy to get a variety of free educational speakers for short presentations during the week. The targeted greater substance of Saturday programming would potentially come at a cost which would need to be accounted for.

It will undoubtably be a point of discussion at the next board meeting, scheduled for Wednesday, March 18th, 6pm at the Golden Gate Cafe located in the Midway Shopping Center, 1464 University Avenue West, St Paul, MN 55104. And, of course, at regular monthly meetings which will continue at Grumpy's until further notice (details under "Minnesota Chapter Meetings" tab above).

March Meeting Recap

Last night's meeting was a lively event!

Ricardo Ortizcazarin gave a very well-received marketing presentation; he described advertising in terms of identifying personal goals, morals and priorities and then using those dots to point to your customers and gain their patronage. There were many good lessons for business and life: we thank him for sharing his time and insight.

Some highlights of the general meeting:

• Renewed push to publish a newsletter on a regular schedule
• Advance scheduling and member notification of board meeting times and locations
• Updated paper and e-mail mailing lists (many members have expressed a desire receive the newsletter in digital-only format).
• Commitment to getting the financial side of things back on track by April’s general meeting.
• We have 2 vacant member at large positions as well as the vice chair open. A timeline is not yet established, but nominations and special elections are receiving some attention.
• Proposal to go to quarterly, Saturday meetings instead of monthly midweek.

The next board meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, March 18th, 6pm at the Golden Gate Cafe located in the Midway Shopping Center, 1464 University Avenue West, St Paul, MN 55104. 

March Meeting Education - Ricardo Ortizcazarin from Cazarin Interactive

March 2015 Meeting

Our next regular meeting is Wednesday, March 4 at Grumpy's Roseville, 2801 Snelling Avenue, 

Roseville, MN 55113, (651) 379-1180.

5:30 - 7:00 pm Dinner/social hour in the meeting room 

7:00 pm Education *before the meeting* Ricardo Ortizcazarin will give a presentation on websites and internet marketing including information on what you can expect to pay to have a website built, what ongoing hosting costs to expect, and how to find a reputable service provider who is a good match for your business needs. Ricardo is the founder of Cazarin Interactive, a Maple Grove based leader in Twin Cities web design and marketing since 1988.

General meeting immediately following eduction - will start no later than 8 pm

Iowa Chapter of ALOA Announces 2015 Class Schedule

2015 Classes presented by the Iowa Chapter of ALOA

Find all class details on web: www.iowachapteraloa.com/classes 

Saturday, February 21, 2015: CX5 High Security Locks 
Instructor: Mike Merritt www.mikesekeys4cars.com 
Location: 11 Commercial Park Rd, Mason City, IA 50401 
Time: 1:00pm - 5:00pm 
Cost: $15.00 

Saturday, May 9, 2015: Introduction to Safe Servicing (SV001) 
Instructor: Harry Sher, CML, CPS 
Location: Holiday Inn Airport 6111 Fleur Drive, Des Moines, IA 50321 
Time: 8:00am - 5:00pm 
Cost: $150.00 (includes lunch) $125.00 Iowa Chapter Member (includes lunch)
Test: After class PRP Test (L-24), cost: $25.00 
Cancelled due to lack of registrants

Sunday, May 10, 2015: ALOA PRP Sitting - Testing 
Location: Holiday Inn Airport, 6111 Fleur Dr. Des Moines, IA 
Time: 8:00am -12:00pm 
Registration forms must be turned in to ALOA by April 24, 2015 
Cancelled due to lack of registrants

Saturday, August 1, 2015: Tips, Tricks, Transponders & Eeprom 
Instructor: Jim Hetchler, CAL www.keypro.com 
Location: Holiday Inn Airport 6111 Fleur Drive, Des Moines, IA 50321 
Time: 8:00am - 5:00pm 
Cost: $75.00 (includes lunch) $50.00 Iowa Chapter Member (includes lunch) 

September 26 - 27, 2015: Safe Penetration Drilling *2-Day Class*
Instructor: Dave McOmie www.davemcomie.com 
Location: 11 Commercial Park Rd, Mason City, IA 50401 
Time: 8:00am - 5:00pm Saturday & Sunday 
Cost: $225.00 (includes lunch) $200.00 Iowa Chapter Member (includes lunch) Test: After class PRP Test (L-33) cost: $25.00 

Updated 4-17 - per email notice from Iowa chapter, they have had to cancel the May 9-10 events because there weren't enough attendees signed up.

Upcoming Allegion Lock Classes February 24-26

Wednesday, February 24, 8:30-4:30 Schlage ND-Series Cylindrical Lock Servicing (LK101)

Thursday, February 25, 8:30-4:30 Schlage L-Series Mortise Lock Servicing (LK102)

Friday, February 26, 8:30-4:30 Schlage Cylinder Servicing (CY101)

Instructor: Peter Yost

Continuing Education Credit:1 point toward maintaining your ALOA certified status (per class)

Contact: Margie Morgan

Email: margie.morgan@allegion.com

Phone: 952-674-4955

Location Details:

SSC North Central

6230 Bury Drive

Eden Prairie MN 55346 

February 2015 Meeting

Our next regular meeting is Wednesday, February 4 at Grumpy's Roseville, 2801 Snelling Avenue, 

Roseville, MN 55113, (651) 379-1180.

Dinner/social hour in the meeting room from 6:00 - 7:00 pm with the general meeting at 7 - come for all or part, everyone welcome.

Looking forward to seeing YOU there!