a note
PRESIDENT
FROM THE
ANOTHER YEAR FOR THE BOOKS! THANK YOU.
The holidays are here, and it gives me pause to reflect on yet another incredible year at The Chamber. A year that could not have been accomplished without so many important people. First, I would like to thank our Chamber board—a diverse and impressive group made up of highly qualified, engaged and dedicated people committed to the success of the organization and our region. These 16 individuals graciously give their time and talents to better our community. And to the 15 wonderful staff that I have the honor and privilege to work with every day, I say Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you and your families. This team works tirelessly to give all we can to our members throughout the year, sometimes sacrificing time away from their loved ones. I especially want to thank our well over 500+ dedicated volunteers. You are the ones that through your dedicated, time and commitment to The Chamber help us spread the word on the work of our organization and the importance of being a part of the region’s largest business association. Thank you! This year we celebrated many successes! Our events and program grew, and we kicked it off with the largest ever Women Connect, celebrated the first full year of YEA!, enjoyed Shark Tank in March and graduation in May. In March, we launched our newest and ninth committee on Agribusiness, and in June sent the largest group of military families to our Military Appreciation Night at the RedHawks. We ended the year strong with our leadership in the campaign to further efforts to secure permanent flood protection for the region, with both Fargo Measure 1 and Cass County Measure 1 gaining approval from voters. I’d be remiss to not mention Voices of Vision, which we just hosted last month with Robert O’Neill. It’s an honor to hear such inspiring messages on leadership from national figures, and our survey responses indicate that this may have been our best event yet! None of this would be possible without our over 2,100 members representing 109,000 employees. I’m grateful to have such fine folks support The Chamber, and I look forward to another great year in 2017! FMWFCHAMBER.COM · 5