Quarter. This award gives the Chamber and City of Florence an opportunity to recognize businesses that are key to the growth and development of our community. We have continued to maintain a focus on programs like our “Doing Business With” seminars, which offer learning opportunities for existing small business owners to become familiar with the procurement process to become suppliers for government and industry.
Leadership Development
Along with our 9 month Leadership Florence program, The Florence Chamber works on several innovative leadership initiatives. In 2015, Project R.I.S.E. and The Greater Florence Chamber of Commerce hosted its first Leadership & Empowerment Summit at Florence-Darlington Technical College. The event was to inspire male students at FDTC and males within the community with workshops on career readiness, workplace professionalism and money management. Orlando Hudson, a former Major League Baseball All-Star player was the keynote speaker. In continuing efforts to create a more diverse pool of leaders, The Chamber is preparing to launch the Emerging Leaders Summer Institute in the summer of 2016. The purpose is to identify, develop and empower “Emerging Leaders,” or small and minority business owners and diverse professionals poised to move into the next level of community and business leadership.
Festivals, Culture and Arts
The annual Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration of the Arts program with Francis Marion University gives the community an opportunity to celebrate the legacy of one of the greatest civil rights leaders ever. Chili, Brews & BBQ Festival in downtown Florence is quickly becoming another signature event for the Chamber. It is a two-day event that features fantastic food, including a BBQ competition sanctioned by the SC Barbecue Association, a chili competition, domestic and craft beer selections, live music and a kids’ zone. The Florence Chamber takes pride in playing a key role in galvanizing the community in order to, as our mission states, ‘promote and enhance a favorable business climate and improve quality of life in Florence and in the Pee Dee’.
February 2016 | VIP Magazine
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