“For this coming year, the chamber is going to focus on serving our member businesses, improving business communication and education, and making chamber something worth being involved with.”
That’s the commitment from Merlin Blackwell, Clearwater and District Chamber of Commerce’s president following an annual general meeting held Jan. 11. Blackwell, who moved from the vice-president’s into the president’s chair following the resignation of Steve Pelton as president last spring, was picked to serve another term during the meeting.
“Things are pretty slow around town, but with potentially two mines on the way and some stabilization in the global economy, this could just be the calm before the storm,” Blackwell added. “We need to sharpen our skills, prepare growth plans and have plenty of shovel ready ideas on the shelf if the economy goes the way we hope it will.”
Following the annual general meeting the chamber’s board of directors was as follows: president Merlin Blackwell, vice-president Shelley Sim, secretary (acting) Cheryl Thomas, treasurer Allison Wesnoski, and directors Joanne Ovenden, Leslie Groulx, Drake Smith, Jackson Rempel, Marilou Roy, and Goldie Krawec.