Press Kit

NORTH CONWAY -- The Mt. Washington Valley Chamber of Commerce (MWVCC) and the Mt. Washington Valley Economic Council's (MWVEC) joint Annual Meeting, Dinner and Awards Ceremony was held on Thursday, October 22, 2009 at the Red Jacket Mountain View Resort, Spa & Water Park in North Conway. The Chamber and Economic Council would like to extend a huge thank you to Rob Graffam, Ken Rokes and the entire staff at the Red Jacket Mountain View Resort for their exceptional service and assistance with this year's Annual Meeting. The Annual Meeting, sponsored by Woodland's Credit Union, UBS Financial Services - Investments, Ruthie's Flower Shop, Fairpoint Communications and Boston Globe Media was a tremendous success as the collaboration of these two non-profit organizations was seamless.

"The staff and board of directors of both the Chamber and the Economic Council recognize today's tough business economy and wish to do well by our membership by alleviating costs wherever we can. It was with this in mind that we decided to hold a joint Annual Meeting, and I am pleased that it was such a success," said Janice Crawford, Executive Director of the Mt Washington Valley Chamber of Commerce.

Event attendees heard annual reports from both the Economic Council and the Chamber during the Annual Meeting portion of the evening. The Mt Washington Valley Chamber of Commerce was pleased to announce that their membership is up from last year. Despite cutbacks and budget tightening, the Chamber is glad to see that membership is still a valued business and marketing tool within Mt Washington Valley.

"While times have been challenging, your Chamber has not sat idle waiting for the recovery. Over the last twelve months the Chamber continues to market the Mount Washington Valley aggressively," said Mt Washington Valley Chamber of Commerce President, Ben Wilcox in his annual report. He continued, "Add the continued exposure on mtwashingtonvalley.org; direct mail and email broadcasts; public relations campaigns: event marketing and other marketing network opportunities and your Chamber membership value has never been stronger. In fact, our membership has not declined at all even when companies have had to make difficult choices regarding association membership."

The Annual Meeting segment of the evening was a time for both the MWVCC and MWVEC to reflect on issues that shaped the year, highlight the accomplishments and discuss upcoming priorities. The MWVCC announced new membership benefits and marketing initiatives such as their mobile and social marketing campaigns, hands-on member orientation sessions and upcoming healthcare benefits. Additionally the Economic Council reported that they are continuing to move forward with a full schedule of business focused programs in addition to the proposed expansion of their Technology Village property.

"The Economic Council is excited about the quality of programs we have scheduled for 2009 and into the spring of 2010," said Jac Cuddy, Executive Director of the Mt Washington Valley Economic Council. The Economic Council is also working on gaining conditional approval for the development of the subdivision in addition to continually striving to bring businesses to the area.

At the dinner portion of the event, the Chamber, presented by Sharon Lydon of Woodland's Credit Union, honored two very important Mt Washington Valley citizens as ‘White Mountains Treasures,' who have had an immeasurable impact on our community's development. This year's recipients were Bernadine ‘Benny' Jesseman and Bobbi Steele-Marotta. It was the dedication of these two instrumental Valley residents to volunteerism and the support of community services, that made them such ideal candidates for this award. Their impacts are far reaching within our community and they have had great influence in making our Valley such a quality place to live, work and play.

During the awards ceremony, the MWVEC announced the winners of their ‘Board Member of the Year' and ‘Volunteer of the Year' awards. Receiving the ‘Board Member of the Year Award' was valued member, Paul Chant of Cooper Cargill Chant for his dedication and willingness to challenge the board to think creatively and address tough issues. ‘Volunteer of the Year Award' was given to Tom Roberts of Leone, McDonnell & Roberts, P.A., for his unwavering dedication to the overall success of the Economic Council.

The last award to be presented that evening, was the Economic Council's ‘Bob Morrell Award,' established in honor of the late Bob Morrell. This award was presented to Terry O'Brien of the Red Parka Steakhouse & Pub during an honorary salute of her community focused entrepreneurism. Respected Valley residents; Chuck Henderson, Tom Eastman, Wally Campbell and Dick Delaney as well as daughter Sandra Iacozilli honored Terry during the ceremony noting her giving spirit and exceptional business sense.

The Economic Council and Chamber of Commerce would like to thank all those who donated prizes for the silent auction and raffle held during the annual meeting. In addition, thank you to the Framed Art Superstore who donated a giant canvas artwork which was raffled off to support of the North Conway Village Association.

For more information about the MWVEC & MWVCC Joint Annual Meeting or the Mt Washington Valley Chamber of Commerce call 603-356-5701 or visit www.mtwashingtonvalley.org. For additional information about the Mt Washington Valley Economic Council and current initiatives call 603-447-6622 or visit www.mwvec.com.

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