Last month I wrote about the Food Truck Extravaganza which was held at the Washington County Fairgrounds on June 15th. We estimated close to 9,000 people attending, which we did not expect. We would like to thank the 75+ volunteers who helped make this happened. What a success!

The Greater Stillwater Chamber of Commerce’s mission is to serve, advocate and promote the interests of member businesses while enriching the lives of our communities. Our Core Values are: Business Development and Promotion, Networking and Collaboration, Community Involvement, Local Government Relations and Education.

The Chamber was established in 1881 from a response to a “call for action” to save the Stillwater Manufacturing Co. We serve all the communities from Marine to Afton and all the cities and townships in between. We currently have over 525 members making our Chamber the largest Chamber in Stillwater Chamber history. 

Our focus is to build a culture in the business community where members utilize other members for resources, services, and products; and our residents eat, shop, and play local. This strengthens the economic base of our community and keeps our local businesses in business. Did you know that most of our local businesses are owned by people who live in the community? I continue to be amazed at how much these local businesses give back to our community by ways of the schools, non-profits, and local events.  We see it every day in our office. Here’s a fun fact: 83% of businesses in all of Washington County have less than ten employees! That is a lot of small businesses. 

Our Chamber prides itself on working with our partners. This includes the business community, the municipalities, schools, non-profits, our tourism entity, downtown associations, other Chambers and associations, and of course our community members. Collaboration is how things get done! Our community is strong and dedicated to each other and we are proud to be a part of it.

Our office is located in the Chestnut Building downtown Stillwater and while we are a small team, we are a mighty one. We are lucky to have an Ambassador Team, I coined “The A-Team,” a dedicated group of folks who represent the Chamber and the business community alongside of our staff. They attend ribbon cuttings, events, serve on committees and provide mentorship for our new members. We take service seriously, in fact, our office motto is, “serving you is a privilege, not an obligation.” 

If you would like to learn more about the Chamber, please visit our website at www.greaterstillwaterchamber.com. We have volunteer opportunities throughout the year for our community events and you can also be added to our mailing list. The Chamber is here to serve as we continue “Bridging Business and Community.”