The Chamber Block Party was held on this past Thursday and we had a great crowd.  Thank you to each of you who came out.  We had over 300 attend and were overwhelmed by the success.  Thank you to our Board Members and volunteers who came and helped set up, clean up and serve our members.  You are the backbone of our organization.  And other special thanks to the businesses who supported us: Ink Trax, True Soul, Coca Cola, Doral Bank, The Celebration Place, Waste Pro, Blue Bell, WMBB for the popcorn, Bagel Maker for the cotton candy, B & S Liquor, Sonny's Bar B Q, The Gainer Family, The Downtown Improvement Board, Bayside Church, Lamar Advertising, Bob Evans, and Clear Channel Media. To view photos from the event, click here.

Chamber Staff is busy planning for fall and have some exciting events to roll out.  Mark your calendar for Industry Appreciation Celebration in September, First Responders Appreciation in October and we can't forget about the ColorVibe 5K Race that will be held on November 15th. 

Color Vibe 5K 

The Color Vibe 5k will be held on November 15th at the former Panama City - Bay County International Airport site. If you are one of the first 500 to register, you will receive $5 off by using the coupon code "PANAMACITY5". Click here for more information. A portion of the proceeds benefit the Bay County Chamber of Commerce Education Foundation.

The group began their nine-month curriculum with a weekend retreat at Tyndall Air Force Base in October. Every other Wednesday the class explored the various segments of Bay County's economy, i.e., Tourism, Industry, Military, Law Enforcement, Local and State Government, Community Volunteerism, Communications/Media, Healthcare and Ecology. 

Each class is responsible for developing a project of benefit to the Chamber and/or the community.  This year's project was the creation of the Internship Marketplace. This marketplace will provide on-line access to businesses and students alike, matching one to another, supporting quality opportunities for employers while attracting our most valuable resources to Bay County.

Of course, we can't have Leadership Bay without the support and hard work from the 2013-2014  Leadership Bay Steering Committee:  Chairman Tammala Spencer; Petie Bailey, Gulf Power Company; Nick Beninate, Harrison Sale McCloy; Michael Calidonna, Edward Jones Investments; DeAnne Carlson, Summit Bank;  Joe Chavarria, CareerSource Gulf Coast; Tricia Petty, Edgewater Beach & Golf Resort; Irene Field, Girl Scout Council of FL Panhandle; Mario Gisbert, City of Panama City Beach; Jenny Howell, Naval Surface Warfare Center; Frances Martin, Gulf Coast Medical Center; Megan Meints, Booz Allen Hamilton Engineering; Samantha Miller, Trustmark Bank; Shannon Sheibe, FSU Panama City; Trevor Walls, Gulf Coast State College; Kevin Wattenbarger, Sperry Van Ness/Southland Commercial Group.  

Congratulations to the 2013-2014 Leadership Bay Graduates: 
Sheila Bradt, Gulf Coast Medical Center; Elouise Bryant, Naval Surface Warfare Center PC; Jeremy Hinton, Innovations Federal Credit Union; Rebecca Kelly, FSU Panama City; Ann Leonard, Gulf Coast State College; Nycole McKissack; Kristopher McLane, PCB Chamber of Commerce; Cassidy Nelson, Sonny's Real Pit Bar B Q; Dr. Andrew Norton, Ideal Dentistry; Isioma Ogwude, Gulf Coast State College; Nick Pohl, Trane; Marilyn Rogers, Booz Allen Hamilton Engineering; Jamie Shepard, RSAE LLC; Chris Thomas, Brown & Brown Insurance; Andy Weddle, Harrison Sale McCloy; JD White, ReliantSouth Construction Group; Suzanne Windham, Life Management Center of NW FL; and Jennifer Wolgamott, Luster National.

The mission of the program is to cultivate a broadened network of well-informed leaders whose strengthened commitment to community involvement will affect positive change in Bay County.

Leadership Bay was founded in 1983 and is a community leadership development program of the Bay County Chamber, in conjunction with Gulf Coast  State College.  Based on the premise that people are our most important resource, the purpose of the program is to offer potential leaders a curriculum in community leadership training. 

Leadership Bay sessions begin in October with a mandatory overnight kick-off retreat on October 3rd-4th at Tyndall Air Force Base.  The selected class will participate in full day sessions held every other Wednesday beginning in October and graduating in May.  Participants are responsible for producing a project of benefit to the Chamber and/or the community outside of the regular curriculum hours.     

The deadline for applications is Friday, August 1^st at 4 p.m.  Applications and information are available by clicking here. If you have any questions, please contact Kevin at 215.3757.