Community & Business
11 August, 2022
Search continues for new Atherton chamber president
A NEW president and secretary are being sought for the Atherton Tablelands Chamber of Commerce after the group failed to fill the positions at its recent AGM.
All executive positions were declared vacant before the meeting and all were filed except for the president and secretary positions which are being managed by interim president Melissa Wilson and interim secretary Sara Isherwood.
Outgoing president Bree Hargreaves is encouraging people to step up and put them names down to take on the president and secretary roles.
Ms Hargreaves was president for the past three years and lists the Shop Tablelands Gift Cards campaign as her greatest achievement during her tenure.
“I felt underqualified for the position when I took it on, but I certainly had the passion to get things happening.
I have learned a lot in the three years and made some wonderful connections,” she said.
“In my opinion, the Shop Tablelands Gift Cards have been my greatest achievement – $33,411 of gift vouchers have been purchased and $18,695.80 has been spent with participating businesses.
“That is $33,411 of gift vouchers that may have otherwise been purchased and spent at large corporate companies.
This project has so much potential with some additional time and promotion.”
Ms Hargreaves said when she took the president position in 2019, things started well with a new logo, branding and website but the advent of Covid changed their plans.
“Sadly, Covid changed the course of our plans, but we have continued to support the business community throughout those unprecedented times,” she said.
“I personally started Tablelands Unite Facebook page to complement my efforts with the Chamber of Commerce and to help get our messaging out to the community.
A small business owner herself, Ms Hargreaves said it was time for her to move on so she could put more effort into what she does well.
“I have a passion for small business and our community and have decided to continue my efforts and ‘share the love’ by helping more of our local not-for-profits in more of a background support and sponsorship role through my business, BizOffsider,” she said.
As far as replacing her as chamber president, Ms Hargreaves is urging anyone with the passion for small business to step up and nominate for the role.
“I will continue to support the chamber, I encourage small business owners to join for the minimal annual fee, and to also volunteer their time and skills as much as possible,” she said.
“Work Together, Grow Together is our tagline, and if we all give a little, we can go a long way to make our community even greater.”
The Atherton Tablelands Chamber of Commerce currently has 54 members.
The new chamber committee includes vice presidents Louise Livingstone and Maree Nasser, treasurer Tony Freeman and the executive committee – Chantelle Pederson, Greg Thiedecke, Shelia Tait, Sally Rinehart, Leah Stevenson and Bob Ramsey (Interim).
