In the six short weeks that I have been President of the Demopolis Area Chamber of Commerce, I have come to the conclusion that there are many businesses and individuals who are not quite sure what the Chamber is, what we do or how we go about doing it.

So, at this time, my greatest mission is to make sure that every ‘Demopolis area’ resident (and beyond) knows what this Chamber is all about. Starting now and running for the next several weeks I will be discussing our structure, purpose, mission, goals, duties, events, schedules, partnerships and activities.

Since I’m a firm believer in beginning at the beginning, I’ll start this series by describing our structure and purpose.

The Demopolis Area Chamber of Commerce is a voluntary organization comprised of businesses and individuals interested in the well being of our community. Our purpose is to establish, maintain, promote and strive to improve the civic and commercial qualities of Demopolis and Marengo County.

This is to be accomplished by energetically representing the collective interests of business in the private and public decision-making process of the community, by disseminating relevant information to the membership and by becoming involved in other aspects of community life that affect the business climate.

We are to properly reflect the image of an organization with prestige and influence. Our mission is to be financed through fair and equitable dues from existing and potential members, through sales of services and publications, and through special grants for programs that meet the mission criteria of fostering our business climate.

Because our purpose is to serve our members, increase commerce and promote the economic vitality of the City of Demopolis we work very closely with the City of Demopolis even though we are not a direct department of the City.

The Chamber of Commerce is governed by a Board of Directors who serve as the policy making body of the Chamber. Its members represent the business and professional leadership of the community. The Board consists of twelve members each elected for three-year terms on a rotating basis. These directors perform essentially a legislative function; however, historically they serve on task forces, sit on committees, assist with events and are active within the membership.

Keep in mind this is just a brief overview of the Chamber. Next week I’ll discuss our mission, goals and I’ll touch on some of our duties. If anyone would like a more in-depth view of the Chamber or has any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact us!