January Newsletter - Leading the Way

Contributed by Rick Schum, 2008 Chairman of the Board
Greater Cheyenne Chamber of Commerce
January 2008

2007 was a remarkable year at the Chamber. We celebrated our 100th anniversary, said goodbye to our long time President and welcomed Dale Steenbergen and his family to Cheyenne, along with an untold number of other accomplishments Now that Stephanie Teubner will have significantly more free time on her hands (a comment I have heard from many "Past Chairman") if you see her around town, be sure to thank her for her leadership and commitment to the Chamber this past year.

Looking forward to 2008, I can’t begin to tell you what an honor it is for me to serve the members of the Greater Cheyenne Chamber of Commerce as your Chairman. I am confident the momentum we built in 2007 will continue in the coming year. Speaking of the new year, January is truly a remarkable month. Unfortunately, many people think of January as the month of short days, long cold nights and something to simply endure until spring. In business, as it is at the Chamber, January marks the beginning of a new business year with new opportunities and challenges.

We begin 2008 with a new structure to our Board of Directors which is a culmination of the planning process we have undertaken the past few years. In order to better meet the needs of our members we have realigned the Chamber Board into five key strategic areas, Governmental and Military Affairs, Business Prosperity, Finance, Marketing and Fundraising and Community Relations. Each of these areas is being guided by a Board Member who will serve as a Vice Chairman, one of whom serves at the Chairman-elect for 2009. Each of the five key areas will focus on various aspects of the strategic plan and help to insure that the Chamber reaches its strategic goals. Many new activities are on tap for 2008, including a new website with a new look, improved communications with members, a more active role in representing business to government, exciting lunch programs, and the continuation and enhancement of the great programs we have become accustomed to as Chamber members.

As a native of Cheyenne, I have watched our community grow over the years and have never been more encouraged for the future of our community. If you haven’t had the chance to read the book "We’ve Worked Hard to Get Here: The First One Hundred Years of the Greater Cheyenne Chamber of Commerce", by local authors Bill Dubois and Shirley Flynn, I would encourage you to do so. The vision of those who founded our Chamber was one of an economically prosperous community. One hundred years later I think they would be pleased to see just how well our economy has developed and what a great community we have become. It is now our turn to carry on this vision for the next 100 years and I can happily report to you that we are on our way. Our Chamber remains committed to assisting our members build an economy for the future and a community we are proud to represent.

On a closing note, during this past year I gained a lot of appreciation for the commitment it takes to serve as Chairman Elect. I would like to personally thank John Balser for the commitment he has made to serve as my Chairman Elect (he will also be serving as Vice Chairman of Governmental and Military Affairs) during the coming year as well as those Board Members who have agreed to serve as Vice Chairman. I will be sure to highlight each of them in the coming months. Have a Happy and "prosperous" New Year.