Albert Lea - Freeborn County Chamber of Commerce

Mission: To promote and develop a healthy and positive business climate to improve the quality of life in the Albert Lea - Freeborn County Area of Minnesota.

[Albert Lea - Freeborn County Chamber of Commerce @ALFC_Chamber]

The ALFC Chamber will sunset the Chamber Bucks program beginning June 1, 2026.

📌 No new sales after June 1, 2026
📌 Redeem existing Chamber Bucks through June 1, 2027
📌 Businesses have until June 30, 2027 for reimbursement

New local business support initiatives, coming soon!

[Albert Lea - Freeborn County Chamber of Commerce @ALFC_Chamber]

🚲Yesterday, our Chamber Ambassadors celebrated the new ownership of Martin’s Cycling & Fitness with a ribbon-cutting!

Justin & Sarah Bolinger’s Grand Opening is this weekend, so stop in Thurs-Sat for a chance to win a $200 gift card + FREE e-bike demos Friday! 🙌

[Om Patel @om_patel5]

ANTHROPIC JUST BANNED A 110 PERSON COMPANY OVERNIGHT WITHOUT WARNING

monday morning at an agricultural tech company, every single employee wakes up to an email saying their claude account has been suspended

110 people locked out at the same time with zero warning and the email even pretended it was an individual ban with a link to a personal appeal form

it took them 10 minutes on slack to realize the entire org had been wiped at once.

not even the account admins were told it was coming

they submitted the appeal form and got no response, even after 36 hours later there was still nothing

AND it gets worse:

> their separate API account is still active and still billing them
> their admins can't log in to view usage or billing because the email addresses are banned
> they got hit with a renewal invoice the day AFTER the team account was suspended
> they have no idea what triggered it. fertilizer conversations? GPS satellites? agriculture in general?

so they're paying anthropic to get banned by anthropic while anthropic ignores their support tickets

the founder of the company laid out the bigger problem perfectly

banning an entire organization for one user's behavior means a single employee or careless intern can revoke claude access for your whole business.

there's no per seat guardrail, no admin override, no way to limit the ban radius

his words: "you have to ask yourself if this is a platform you can entrust your daily workflows to as a business"

every founder reading this who runs claude through their company should be checking right now what their actual exposure looks like

billion dollar AI company with zero enterprise customer support

[Albert Lea - Freeborn County Chamber of Commerce @ALFC_Chamber]

This month's Business After Hours is sponsored by all THREE of the Kiwanis clubs in our community!

Join us to learn more about what they do, why it's important, and to spend some time just hanging out with some incredible folks. 🙌

April 21 - 5pm at Wedgewood Cove - Be there!

[Albert Lea - Freeborn County Chamber of Commerce @ALFC_Chamber]

A ransomware attack in Winona County this week shows how real cyber threats are, right here in our region.

Join us tomorrow over lunch to learn how to protect your organization with expert tips from WCTA.

🔐 Register: https://t.co/OYhRbFLgx4

#Webinar #SEMinnesota #ChamberLEAD

[Albert Lea - Freeborn County Chamber of Commerce @ALFC_Chamber]

🎉 Congrats to our ALFC Chamber members recognized as 2026 Best Places to Work in SE MN!

👏 Arcadian Bank
👏 @FMCSCooperative
👏 @RiverlandCC

Proud to see our local employers leading in workplace culture & employee engagement 💙

#ALFCChamber #BestPlacesToWork

[Albert Lea - Freeborn County Chamber of Commerce @ALFC_Chamber]

It’s National Ag Day! 🌱

This is the day to celebrate the role our farm families play in our economy and our lives, every day.

Later this afternoon, the 2026 Freeborn County Farm Family of the Year will be announced, but today is a celebration of them all! ❤️

[Albert Lea - Freeborn County Chamber of Commerce @ALFC_Chamber]

🔐 Don’t wait until it’s too late... protect your business from cyber threats.

Join our Chamber LEAD Webinar for practical, real-world cybersecurity tips for SMBs.

April 13 | Zoom
Register:
https://t.co/OYhRbFLgx4

#Cybersecurity #SmallBusiness #MNTech #Chamber

[Albert Lea - Freeborn County Chamber of Commerce @ALFC_Chamber]

Agriculture isn’t just an industry in Freeborn County—it’s a legacy. 🚜❤️

Every year, we honor the families who are the backbone of our community. Join us March 24th to celebrate our 2026 Farm Family of the Year!

Secure your seat at the table: https://t.co/bS1NVpS9Il🎟️

[Albert Lea - Freeborn County Chamber of Commerce @ALFC_Chamber]

In our most recent episode of Chamber Voices, we talk with Jenna Overland, Regional Manager of Workforce Development, Inc. 💪

Listen today on Spotify (and don't forget to subscribe!)
https://t.co/CeG817V0cM

[Albert Lea - Freeborn County Chamber of Commerce @ALFC_Chamber]

The 2026 Farm Family has been chosen!
But you know what's cool? We will actually be celebrating ALL of the Farm Families in Freeborn County at the upcoming Ag Luncheon.

Get your ticket today and join the party! 🎉
https://t.co/3qhKe3qRq5

#FreebornCounty #FarmFamilies #AgLunch

[Albert Lea - Freeborn County Chamber of Commerce @ALFC_Chamber]

Albert Lea just got a little more freaky fast. ⚡

We’re excited to welcome @jimmyjohns as one of our newest Chamber members!

Great food. Great team. Great energy.

Stop in, grab a sandwich, and show them how Albert Lea supports local business.

#AlbertLeaMN #ChamberProud

[Albert Lea - Freeborn County Chamber of Commerce @ALFC_Chamber]

Healthy employees. Stronger businesses. 💪

Join us for a practical conversation on Worksite Wellness and the real programs employers can tap into to build healthier workplaces and happier teams.

Register here:
https://t.co/CqMzoUWdes

Let’s build workplaces that work better.

[Thread Reader App @threadreaderapp]

@ALFC_Chamber @thisdudelikesAI @ALFC_Chamber Hello, here is your unroll: https://t.co/JXsyyYfNzG Share this if you think it's interesting. 🤖

[Albert Lea - Freeborn County Chamber of Commerce @ALFC_Chamber]

@thisdudelikesAI @threadreaderapp - unroll, please

[Albert Lea - Freeborn County Chamber of Commerce @ALFC_Chamber]

Minnesota small employers: You may qualify for state grant support when an employee takes Paid Leave.

✔️ Up to $3,000 per leave
✔️ Reimbursement for temp hires, added wages, training
✔️ $5M annual fund (first come, first served)

Learn more: https://t.co/HzWZv0ncgB

#Resource

[Albert Lea - Freeborn County Chamber of Commerce @ALFC_Chamber]

Albert Lea’s City Council voted this week to expand local cannabis retail opportunities and refine how applicants are reviewed.

Before you apply, make sure you understand the entire process.

👉 https://t.co/J8Kx8b88ta

[Albert Lea - Freeborn County Chamber of Commerce @ALFC_Chamber]

🌟 Real Impact. Real People. Real Freeborn County. 🌟

When we invest locally, we build momentum, create opportunity, and shape our future.

Post a photo at a local business this week & tag #RealImpactFreeborn

Learn More: https://t.co/PXxXudCmCj

#FreebornCounty #SupportLocal

[Albert Lea - Freeborn County Chamber of Commerce @ALFC_Chamber]

@Whizz_ai @threadreaderapp Please unroll

[Albert Lea - Freeborn County Chamber of Commerce @ALFC_Chamber]

Our Chamber Ambassadors recently stopped by Ignite Nutrition and had a great visit with Alicia to learn more about how they’re helping people boost their immune systems and stay healthy this season 💚

Check out the video here and subscribe!
👉 https://t.co/xBBViDm2V2