This Chamber officially began on Valentine’s Day in 1921 and included a president and fourteen “managers” (directors). Within three years the town of Bridgton was discussing the new benefit of this resource (Chamber of Commerce) and in the fourth year, 1925, money was appropriated at town meeting to “help maintain a Bureau of Information.” To this day the Greater Bridgton Lakes Region Chamber of Commerce exists to support the members and member towns of our Lakes Region community.

Of course our geographic area has grown over the years. We added a thirteenth town a few years ago when the town of Raymond requested we begin to officially serve that town and business community. To interact in such a large area and with so many towns and businesses is a challenge and so the charge for us is to be organized, good communicators and respond to our members’ needs to the best of our ability.

The creators of this Chamber (that kind of sounds like a Star Trek line…) had the forethought to entrust us with a diverse vision. We are expected to advance the business and industry efforts of the Lakes Region and our membership. However, our Chamber Mission goes further in that it also expects GBLRCC to be involved in tourism, recreation, civic and other economic areas that affect our towns and members. Having said that, GBLRCC is a busy place as staff, volunteers and board members all work hard for you and the Lakes Region.

While this list of efforts and activities is a long one, I will be limited today in what can be listed. The key point to our membership (well over 400 now) is that this is YOUR Chamber and we are here to serve YOU.

Probably the best example is our Information Center, located in Bridgton. Given the importance to members and towns of “selling” the Lakes Region as a four-season destination, members feel it is imperative that we operate a year-round presence. This means that seven months a year GBLRCC is open to the public (representing you) for six days each week. From late-May through mid-September we are here seven days. The Executive Director’s office is located at the Information Center so that this full-time employee is available to members, staff and visitors.

I am probably most proud of our work at the Info Center. We clearly are advocating here for each town, each member. With one full-time Office Manager and one part-time employee there is much continuity to the effort and reception you receive upon entering our offices. Add the ever-growing volunteers from our communities who are available to serve members and visitors and you can see that we are The Information Center of the Lakes Region!

One detail that says much to who we are as an organization is our membership growth pattern. In the past two years we have added over 150 members to GBLRCC. This is due to our focus on members…remember, members are why we are here. GBLRCC offers many benefits to our members and we are flexible enough to accommodate their various need. New members who join in mid-year are given a prorated dues structure. All members are able to utilize our strong communication system. GBLRCC is a Chamber for both large and small business operations.

In conclusion, I commend the Lake Region Suburban Weekly for their new business page. I appreciate their willingness to include GBLRCC as a regular contributor given we cover many of the towns LRSW covers. I look forward to this new avenue of communicating and serving GBLRCC members and towns. The Greater Bridgton Lakes Region Chamber Of Commerce is growing…join us for the ride!