BY JEFF BACON
The Hailey Chamber of Commerce recently announced its decision to change its name to The Chamber – Hailey and the Wood River Valley to better serve the needs of its membership that represent every city throughout the Wood River Valley. For many, the change has been a long time coming.
In the years since the dissolution of the Ketchum/Sun Valley Chamber of Commerce, numerous Chamber boards have looked at the possibility of creating a more valley-wide resource for businesses in the Wood River Valley. To a certain extent, the possibility for this recent name change has existed since that time, but, as the old adage goes, timing is everything.
The Chamber finds itself at a point in time when the valuable resources it has offered Valley businesses for years can truly be used to help develop a more connected Valley. Too often we hear that the business environments in the cities throughout our Valley are so different from each other that no one resource can truly identify with each. While businesses in Ketchum do have different needs than businesses in Hailey or Bellevue, the business community within the Wood River Valley is more connected than ever.
Starting next month, The Chamber will begin asking its members to renew their annual relationship with The Chamber. The goal of any Chamber of Commerce is to have an active and involved membership that sees the value of being connected to the community. For us, that value is easily understood when we see the response to our promotion of the Valley in increased attendance numbers at the events we help promote. We are proud of our efforts to help our member businesses feel they have a voice when it comes to matters that affect our community and we strive to develop new ways to help our members through training classes and networking events throughout the year.
Next year – 2017 – will be the inaugural year of The Chamber and it’s already shaping up to be a good one. Earlier this month Idaho Commerce announced the annual grant funds that it awards organizations around the state to help boost tourism. The Chamber has been a longtime recipient of these grant dollars to help promote the area and many annual events. For next year, The Chamber will receive grant funds nearly double any previous year and these additional funds will be used to broaden our promotion of the Wood River Valley.
If you are not already a member, please consider joining us today. Your membership dues give The Chamber the necessary funding to bring important programs and assistance to our membership. But, becoming a member is just the start. One way to turbo-charge your membership is to get involved and make a point to regularly take advantage of the many benefits The Chamber offers.
Jeff Bacon is The Chamber’s membership director. For more information, visit www.haileyidaho.com, call The Chamber at (208) 788-3484 or email members@haileyidaho.com.