Throughout my life, I have had so many mentors that have shaped the way I think, the way I act and the way I lead. These mentors have been men and women, older and younger, similar and diverse backgrounds. One thing that each and every one of them has believed in is the power of investing in others. I have instilled this into my personal core values. I believe in empowerment. I believe that the best thing you can do for someone is to not only believe in them, but have the courage to invest in them.

I share all of this with you because I know one of the greatest assets of a chamber is our ability to bring people together to invest in others – to invest in our future. Our Chamber already has some great programs like Women Connect, Leadership FMWF and the Young Professionals Network that leans into professional and personal development. I am excited to announce that in the future, our team at The Chamber will lean even more into spaces that will push the status quo, will create even deeper connections and allow for greater impact on people’s lives.

As I have been analyzing our current programs and gathering insight from our members and stakeholders, I have come to realize that not only do we have opportunities, but we have a unique responsibility to focus even more on these areas: enhanced and targeted women’s leadership programming; diversity, equity and inclusion conversations, training and programming; business mentorship; and increased, intentional student engagement within our companies and our communities.

The future of The Chamber and this region is exciting and dynamic, but in order to truly achieve ultimate success, I am encouraging – no actually, I am challenging you to get involved with us. I have witnessed first-hand that when dedicated people find passion in the work we do and get involved, we experience unimaginable results.

If this has piqued your interest at all, let me know. We have great opportunities available just for you.

Shannon Full
President/CEO
The Chamber