Last month the San Marcos Area Chamber of Commerce celebrated our Annual Meeting, where the gavel was handed from David Case to Keely Sonlitner. Most remember that the Annual Meeting has always been held in November with a nice dinner, allowing people to dress up and celebrate the Chamber’s outstanding accomplishments and our business community.
Like everything else, due to COVID things were a bit different this year. When we moved the dinner from November 2020 to March 2021, we hoped we would still be able to host a dinner allowing people the opportunity to get out and celebrate. Unfortunately, we soon realized that a lunchtime event that allowed both in-person and virtual participation was the better decision.
David took his position as Chair in October of 2019. At that time, everything was calm, the economy was strong, and David had a plan to expand the Chamber’s reach. A few months later, everything came to a stop, and the Chamber turned its attention to COVID. I know it wasn’t the year David hoped for, but in a time of uncertainty, he stepped up and led the Chamber out of rough waters. With David’s leadership, Chamber staff was able to help the business community navigate through the many different stages of the pandemic. I would like to take this opportunity to thank David Case for all his work as Chair of the Board of Directors for the San Marcos Area Chamber of Commerce.
With just as much passion as David, Keely Sonlitner has stepped into the Chair role and has been the Chair of the Board of Directors for the past six months. Keely has set the goal to reevaluate the Chamber and make sure the organization is moving in the right direction. Keely has a passion for San Marcos CISD and helps connect our students and teachers to the business community.
Over the next few months, the Chamber will be rolling out new programs to connect our education community with the business community. Real-world connections provide more opportunities for students to learn a better understanding of how things work. This year San Marcos CISD invested in a platform called SchooLinks, a college and career readiness platform that empowers students. The Chamber and the district invite our business community to sign up and engage in positive student outcomes by providing resources and opportunities like job training, internships, mentorships, and much more.
It’s programs like this that help build a strong and supportive community. We as a Chamber will always push to help San Marcos be the best that it can be. To join as an industry partner, visit www.app.schoolinks.com and help shape the future for generations to come.
