Dear Members,
As Chairman of the Board of
Directors, it is a privilege and an honor to serve you
this year. I realize that many of your businesses, along
with my own, are facing challenges due to a change in
the economic conditions throughout the past year. A few
of you have even expressed that you don’t know if you
can make it, yet you continue to hold on. To me, that is
a positive sign. You have not given up, and I will do
all that I can to help you and your businesses.
Based upon your comments to
me while I served as Chair-elect, I chose the theme of
“Membership to Partnership”. We continue to encourage
you to “Always Buy Chamber”, but now we want to focus on
partnering with other Chamber members to grow your
business. We need to think creatively; think out of the
box. As partners, we Chamber members can support each
other, and each other’s businesses in ways that we may
or may not have considered before.
Despite economic conditions,
we continue to bring in new members while struggling to
hold on to existing ones. In response, our Divisions and
committees are taking on new roles, and your
participation is encouraged. If you haven’t yet signed
up to join a particular committee, or if you just want
to participate and help out for certain events, please
let Mary Finlan, the Executive Director, any of the
Committee Chairs, or me know.
Our network breakfasts
continue to draw large numbers, and each month you are
likely to see a new face and/or meet a new member. Our
monthly membership luncheons, noted for our guest
speakers (who can spark some interesting discussions,
and present more avenues for you to promote your
businesses) also provide another networking opportunity.
And let’s not forget our “Lunch and Learn”, “Spotlight
Tours” and ribbon cutting events. If you participate in
any of these (if not all), you are sure to grow your
business and make new friends along the way.
You can look forward to more
networking opportunities, more visibility for your
businesses, and more communication from the Board of
Directors to you, our members. We have a number of
projects in mind to support you. As Chairman, I
encourage your suggestions and comments, for they are
important to all of us.
I want to thank all of you
who sponsored a Chamber event or activity this past
year, especially our Trustees. I also want to thank
those of you who participated and made the events
happen. I encourage all of you to get involved. After
all, it is your Chamber.
Again, I want you all to
know that I welcome your questions, comments and
suggestions. As chairman, I am here not only to lead,
but also to serve you, the members.
Sincerely,
Jerome
Jerome Williams |
