A big thanks to The Cody for hosting a wonderful Business After Hours last night and thanks to all of you who took the time to attend.
I start this newsletter by saying goodbye to another Cody Chamber employee. Lisa Beres, who was hired as our Visitor Center Manager last year, has resigned.
In the past 12 months, Lisa has worked incredibly hard to redesign our visitor center experience, from new marketing programs and new customer service training to leading our summer team in substantially increasing ticket sales for local attractions. She also redesigned the physical space in the visitor center to be more accommodating and has put us on a good path for future success.
We wish Lisa and her family all of the best in their new endeavors.
With fall here and the recent departure of two of our team members (Jill Osiecki, our Events Coordinator
resigned last month) we are taking a hard look at the needs of our membership and visitors. Events and visitor services are two of our three main pillars - membership services is our first - so we understand the importance of having good people to lead these efforts.
The Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors will hold its annual retreat Thursday, October 30. The conversation there will direct our plans for staffing and priorities. I will let you know when the position(s) are open in case you know anyone who would make a great addition to our team.
Membership Election and Bylaws Change
Each Chamber member in good standing is being mailed a ballot today listing the candidates for the five board seats we have opening in January. These ballots need to be returned by October 25th and can be mailed, emailed, faxed or dropped off at the Chamber. Thank you to those who are running. We have a great slate of candidates!
In addition, a resolution changing the way our bylaws can be amended is also included in the mailing. Our bylaws have grown antiquated and need to be updated. We have had a team of board members working on proposed changes since last spring, however the mechanism to change the bylaws would require a quorum of our members (or nearly 300) to attend a meeting in person and then two-thirds of those attendees would have to approve the changes.
The proposed change keeps the power to make bylaws changes completely in the hands of membership, but lowers the requirement for a quorum/majority in order to make those changes. With nearly 600 members, it's just not practical to get half of them to attend a meeting in person. If you have questions after reading the language on the proposed resolution, please don't hesitate to contact me or a current board member.
Halloween Downtown
Once again, the downtown merchants (and other Cody businesses who generously participate) will be distributing candy to "trick or treaters" from 4-6 p.m., Thursday, October 31. We understand that due to the popularity of this event (each business needs to be prepared to distribute at least 1,200 pieces of candy) that the expense can be substantial.
The Big Horn Radio Network, Albertsons and the Chamber recognize this need and are providing candy to merchants and soliciting donations to help with this effort. You can drop bags of candy off at any of the three locations.
In addition, our friends at Cowtown Candy Company can help you as well. They have a variety of bulk candy available. Cost varies and they want to help everyone have something different and affordable. If you are interested in getting in on the order, please call Kenny Lee at 307-272-7660 or e-mail him at [email protected] and he can help you select something that fits your budget and is something kids will like. You'll need to move quickly - the deadline for ordering is Monday, October 14th, to insure that the product arrives in time for Halloween.
Shutdown Woes
Finally, a short word about the closure of Yellowstone and Shoshone National Forest facilities due to the shutdown. Like you, we have been incredibly frustrated by our government's inability to get its financial house in order and serve those who elected them.
Over the past two weeks we have had to explain to travelers from across the country and around the world that the world's best national park is closed. Early hope of a quick solution has become angry resignation. Many of you have directly felt the pain of this idiocy in the form of substantial lost revenue, early closures and the unplanned layoffs of hardworking staff.
We try to stay fairly apolitical, so I will simply close with a comment: It's becoming increasingly likely in my opinion that we have as many grievances against our current government (if not more) as our founding fathers had against theirs. And that's pretty sad.
As always, thanks for being a Chamber member. I'm excited about the plans we're making for our membership structure, our events and our visitor services and look forward to sharing them with you.
Have a great weekend!
Scott Balyo
Executive Director