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Member News- March 17, 2021

B.I.D.A. Executive Director Selected as Top 25 Women in Business 

Berwick Industrial Development Association (B.I.D.A.), a leader in economic development focusing on industrial development and manufacturing is excited to announce their Executive Director, Kelly O’Brien for her nomination and selection to the Northeast Pennsylvania Business Journal’s Top 25 Women in Business, published March 2021 in honor of women’s month. 

Kelly O’Brien has been working in economic development for 15 years, with most efforts in the entrepreneurial arena. Ms. O’Brien, in her role with B.I.D.A. has focused her efforts on the Northeast Central PA region in recruiting, retaining and developing business and industry of all sizes. 

Since Ms. O’Brien joined the B.I.D.A. team, the organization has implemented a vocational scholarship for Berwick Area School District students that are extending their education in a vocational arts profession. B.I.D.A. is a founding partner and current facilitator of the Employer Round Table focus group (working with employers to identify and implement solutions for workforce development), created the virtual and physical manufacturing incubator (set to launch this year) with partners, Ben Franklin Technology Partners of NEPA, Community Strategies Group (CSG), Rural Business Innovation Corporation (RBI) and Wilkes University’s Small Business Development Center (SBDC), written and awarded grants for business retention and development, and closed on the purchase of the former Ingredion manufacturing facility in the B.I.D.A. Industrial Complex. 

B.I.D.A. is proud to have Kelly O’Brien with this on their team and working with our economic development partners in the Northeast Central PA region to bring ideas to reality. B.I.D.A. would like to thank Ms. O’Brien for her service and ask the rest of the region to celebrate the women in your business and industry. 


BloomCON Hak4Kidz

This year The Bloomsburg Children’s Museum is excited to partner with the Bloomsburg Fairgrounds and open the conference up to anyone who wants to attend.  Hak4Kidz will be held on March 27th from 10 am-4 pm at the Bloomsburg Fairgrounds.

Ethical hackers, information security professionals, and educators will bring the benefits of white hat hacking to the children and young adults at the conference. The conference features, guest speakers, workshops, and STEM work stations. Attendees have a chance to win prizes, expand their knowledge, and explore the world of hacks!

General admission tickets are free to this event. There is a limited number of swag bag tickets which gets you general admission and a swag bag!

Add-on workshops ($2.00 additional charge) for the Hak4Kidz event! To participate in the workshops, you MUST have a ticket.  You must show up to the workshop location 10min before your start time. No Refunds. No exchanges for a different time. The ticket is only good for the time you sign up for.

Workshops available are: 
1. LEGO MANIACS (Stop Motion with Legos): It’s time to get your Lego freak on! Every Lego Maniac has an epic movie just wanting to burst out of their brain and into the world. This is the chance to make that happen! Learn Stop Motion Animation. You’ll build Lego sets, use Lego mini-fig characters, and learn how to make your vision into an actual animated clip. – 30min workshop.

2. Escape Room – MUMMY’S TOMB – “Fools! You dare to enter the tomb of your king, your god! Prove your mettle by finding and returning the scarab to its rightful place, or spend eternity with me! You have 15 minutes to leave and reseal this crypt, or the curse of Amun-Ra will be released upon the land!”The Valley of the Kings, Egypt’s fabled necropolis of ancient pharaohs contains many undiscovered secrets. As the fog from the chamber not opened in over 3,000 years starts to clear, you can’t believe your eyes—or your ears—as you hear an impossibly large sandstone block seal off the passage behind you. 15-minute workshop 

3. Escape Room – TOP SECRET– You and your team break into a top-secret government research facility. Bioweapons intelligence suggests the experiments being conducted here could be extremely dangerous in the wrong hands. Getting the exact coordinated wasn’t easy, and the timeline is tight. Can you break in, gather intel, and get out without being caught? 15-min workshop

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