I want to thank everyone who supported, attended or participated in our downtown Christmas parade this year. We had 23 entries - the most ever - and it was a great evening capping the Christmas stroll.

Thanks also to all of our merchants both downtown and throughout Cody who have done an outstanding job with their Christmas displays this year. I also want to recognize the City of Cody for the work they do to make our town look so festive this holiday season.

I'm excited to announce a new program we're launching in 2013 corresponding with the renewal period for a majority of our members. Our "Member to Member Discount Program" will provide each member with an I.D. card showing your current status as a Cody Country Chamber of Commerce Member. We are asking all members to submit "Members Only" deals that we can put on a dedicated members page of our website: www.codychamber.org.

How the program will work is you go to our website, find what deals are being offered (perhaps 10% off or a ½ price appetizer, etc.) and then show your card at that participating member. This new program will allow members to support each other year-round. The cards are in production now (thanks to member Dash Print and Web for their assistance) so be on the lookout for yours in January. An image of the card is attached below. You can send us your "special offer" at any time. We'll start putting them on the website as soon as we get them. If you have questions on the program, don't hesitate to contact me at 307-587-2777.

We also have a small group of Chamber board members and staff who have been working on revising our Cody Club programs. Cody Clubs are our long-standing lunch programs that happen at 12 p.m. on Monday and feature a speaker and time to network.

Starting in 2013, we're going to hold Cody Clubs TWICE a month Oct-May and ONCE a month June-September. We are also going to make a concerted effort to find speakers from businesses or organizations who will strongly appeal to our members thus maximizing the value of each program. We'll send you information on the programs for January and February as soon as we have them finalized.

Next, if you have interest on serving on our Government Affairs committee, please let me know. We tackle everything from National Parks and public lands issues to local political and business concerns. We meet once a month and have space for at least 2-3 new members. Contact me today if you would like to serve.

Thanks to those of you who attended our c2b at the Sunset House this morning. We'll see you again in January!