March is upon us and as of the publishing of this letter we should be very close to hiring a new CEO for the chamber. Although we are certainly sad to see our beloved Donna retire. These are exciting times as we will have new leadership, a new set of eyes and hopefully some new ideas for the betterment of the membership experience. I wish to thank the members of the selection committee for dedicating their time and expertise in sorting through resumes and conducting interviews. Larry Strain, Robin Vickers, Debbie Kemp, Mike Johnson and Anna Weaver all took time from their busy schedules to diligently work toward finding the right fit for a CEO that can lead us into the future. We have also contracted with Brenda Kay Hammel and Express Employment Professionals to fill the much, needed part time position in the Chamber office. Thank you, Brenda!

March events include the Renaissance Faire Beer tent on the second and third of the month at the Santa Rosa County fairgrounds. Volunteers are needed to help set up and sell beer throughout the two, day event. If you would like to volunteer or just show up to lend a hand you will have a ton of fun. There are lots of interesting vendors, people and animals at the Faire. The proceeds from this event go towards the mortgage on our building and has proven in the past to be a huge fundraiser for us.

We have a committee working hard to find a new venue for our AM Network. Sadly, Grover T’s restaurant has closed, leaving us without a location. Our best wishes to Brandon, his family, the management, and employees of Grover T’s. Your restaurant will be sorely missed!

The Business After Hours as well as the Networking Lunch will go on as scheduled this month. These events are a lot of fun as well as often productive for building contacts within the business community. Business After Hours will be held on March 5th at the Beardless Brewhaus at 5:30 pm sponsored by Blackwater Bay Tours. The Networking Lunch will be held on March 8th at The Hanger and is sponsored by Fast Cash ATM Services. The guest speaker for this event will be Marty Stanovich. Mr. Stanovich will be speaking about First Tee Gulf Coast. First Tee is a nationwide golf-based program that develops strength of character and life skills in today’s youth.

On another note, I would like to extend a huge Chamber of Commerce THANK YOU!! to Commander Justin Moss and VFW Post 4833. The Post donated a flagpole, flag, as well as the installation cost to the Chamber. It has been erected and looks great. Finishing touches like this make our beautiful building stand out above and beyond the rest in the area.

There will be a Member Orientation held in the McKenzie room on March 19th at 2:30 pm. Please be aware this meeting is not just for new members. The Chamber has much more to offer members than we had just a few years ago, and I encourage you all to attend or send a representative to attend so that your business or organization can take full advantage of your membership.

If you have tried to use our website or sent emails to us that went unanswered, I extend an apology. Our website as well as our email have been hacked and it has taken some three weeks to get our Chamber email back up and running properly. The website is still in a state of disarray. We have a team working to get it corrected. Hopefully it will be back up and running smoothly soon.

Spring is upon us here on the Gulf Coast. I am excited to see it coming as I am an avid fisherman. This cold weather doesn’t suit my activities very well. I wish you all happiness and prosperity this month and hope to see you at some of the upcoming events.

Frank Hoskins
2024 Chairman of the Board