Board Chair Address

Our BOARD Chair

The Bangor Region – Home, Again

The Bangor region has been a port in the storm for some new faces from away in recent months. Maybe you have seen some new people in your neighborhood, at work or new kids at school. Some sought refuge from the pandemic elsewhere to be here in Maine, and our Bangor Region, a relatively rural, safe place, and quite naturally socially distant. They also sought Maine’s outdoors for the scenic beauty and outdoors activities to suit most anyone. They sought the quality of life we might be inclined to take for granted. Seeing our region through others eyes and in times like we have experienced in the past year – why wouldn’t we live here? My appreciation for Maine and the Bangor Region grew while looking from the outside in too. While I was born in Bangor, at the age of two months my parents chose to leave Maine for a better opportunity. We returned almost every summer for a week or two and even a few winter holidays. Every David Dunning visit included a stop in Bangor at my grandmother’s. Our Bangor stops inevitably included VP of Marketing & HR visits to a number of local businesses to stock up on food and vacation supplies for the week S.W. Cole Engineering – bakeries, sandwich shops, department, drug and sporting goods stores, and visits to some of our favorite restaurants. Some of those businesses were institutions that have since been replaced, and some still exist today. I liked the feel of arriving in Bangor each visit - the old architecture, the rich history, regional food we had come to love once a year, the sense of community, and of course the people. We ventured from camp often to visit family and friends, and enjoy the outdoors. I grew fond of the Bangor region and Maine during those short visits. When my parents returned to

Maine, I followed and soon made the Bangor region home, again. The quality of life here is what inspires many to want to run a business from here. From a relatively remote corner of

New England, we have many of the services you need to grow and expand – legal, finance and banking, IT, accounting, marketing, trucking, construction, engineering, and more. Businesses can build off these services and the many assets and resources of the Bangor region. Multiple colleges, an international airport, a trauma center and multiple medical resources. Balance that with the entertainment - an outdoor concert venue, a world class arena and conference center, a network of multipurpose trails, active waterfront, a local casino, opportunities for many outdoor activities, and so much more. That’s not to say businesses and our region don’t have challenges. The

Bangor Region Chamber of Commerce is regularly helping our members address those challenges and promoting a vital, healthy business environment to attract and grow more businesses. Whether you are thinking of starting or growing your Bangor region business, or considering moving here, please join us - come home, again.