I need you to know something. The work of the Chamber of Commerce is important. It is an organization that can move things toward the future. So many small places have gone by the wayside as people migrate to bigger places. I believe that small matters. It is the only place on earth where you can make a difference in short order. The last frontier that a small business might be truly bootstraped. The very survival of a small place depends on people who are determined to care about it. To get engaged, to run for office, to contribute to the little league team, to volunteer at PALS, to be supportive of the local economy, to invest. To expand their businesses here, to bring world class amenities to a very small place, to be true guardians and stewards of community. To say 'what can I do to help?' rather than just complain.

My son will tell you that Grinnell has been good for him because it is a safe, joyful place. A place to be connected. A place that the phrase 'it takes a village to raise a child' truly comes to life. That village reached out and wrapped its arms around my child and around me. It is something I will never forget.

I leave the chamber and cvb in very capable hands. I have never had the privileged of working with such smart, hard-working women in my entire career. Emily and Rachael will take the chamber to new directions, those that fit young families and young professionals that look to call Grinnell 'home'.

This time of year, I usually do a year in review, a highlight reel in my head of sorts. Some of those highlights include pulling Montefest together in just 6 weeks, winning 4 out of 12 tourism awards, the day I ran to Des Moines to see if Hubbell was granted a rare award (think Charlie & the Chocolate Factory golden ticket) to make their workforce housing project happen here. The board of directors' enthusiasm for a downtown boutique hotel and event center, lunches with my three guardian angels, strategic planning meetings with colleagues, laughs about something funny someone asked about on the phone or the holy crap moments that have happened behind the scenes. Hearing about small business owners having the best year ever, the wayfinding signs and billboards going up after years of talking about them, seeing my husband's business take off, moving into our new house that he built on East St., and Seth thriving in athletics at GHS.

The next few years will likely be the most transformative in Grinnell's history. More than 85 new places for people to live, wonderful facade improvements to downtown storefronts, jobs jobs jobs, a Central Park makeover and hopefully a downtown event center and boutique hotel.   

Look for me to hack into this eblast from time to time when I have something I think you should know. What a wonderful ride it has been. Good people have Grinnell in their hearts. I look forward to supporting Emily and Rachael, and I will hunt you down if you don't support them as well. 

I'm not sure why this readership grew from zero to 6,000 in six years but I sure am grateful that you found our work interesting and entertaining. Please continue to forward this email to new people each week. We are gaining big ground in growing our ability to get the word out about Grinnell, and by reading and forwarding you have played a huge part in that. Thank you.

Love,

Angela