Northeast Metro Business 01_VHEDC_20_DE | Page 6

WELCOME! from the VHEDC T he VHEDC (Vadnais Heights Economic Development Corporation) is in its 35th year of engaging with community stakeholders to enhance the economic vitality of our community. The northeast metro business community is thriving and the goals of making it a great place to live and work are being met, but we always want to do better. In the past year since I’ve been named executive director, I have met community business leaders who have worked tirelessly to execute the vision that the VHEDC founders sought decades ago. We are fortunate to have them in our community. The history is rich and the future is vibrant. Liz Moscatelli Our goals over the past few years have been focused on workforce development. This rings true with many economic development entities around the country. We gear our programs toward giving options to high school students who may want to branch out beyond the four-year degree track, working with our current businesses to create viable solutions to their workforce needs by addressing such things as training and job shortages, and planning for housing and transportation needs to get employees to and from work. We also fulfill a need by offering niche programs, such as women in leadership sessions, along with human resources and nonprofit networking and training opportunities. You can read about these and more in this magazine. VHEDC Executive Director To make all of this come together, we partner with all facets of our community – schools, colleges, manufacturing, healthcare, financial institutions, hospitality, media, city and county government and special government programs like Youth Skills Training and BizRecycling – to help bridge the gap. We hope you enjoy reading about the many great people in our business community and how “Everybody is Working Together!” Liz Moscatelli VHEDC Executive Director Thank you to those that contributed to this magazine: Rachel Anderson, RMA Publicity | Editor Joe Vruno, Spicy Meatball Photography | Photography Jeff Remme | Graphic Designer Nicola Hyser | Editorial Direction 6 Northeast Metro Business