I’m now over halfway through my Chamber Presidency and I knew from the get go that there would be an uptick in my activity level. I wasn’t, however, really prepared for my mug to end up in the paper. And to have this image show up….. well, I have a better idea how my subjects sometimes feel. I have to admit, after 28 years of photography, I have no shame… I have learned over the years that my main job is to be a problem solver. Whether its a 3yr old that want to really stand over there and not here or if its a group of overly serious executive. I do what it takes to get the image. That philosophy has also followed through to my chamber service, If if helps me start a discussion or make connections for our members then I’m all in. We live in a connection economy now and the real purpose of our chamber in the 21st century is help our members make these connections. From these connections friendships and alliances can form that go far beyond simple leads and cards being handed out.
The back story on the images… This is from our golf outing this June, the theme was Super Heroes. We wanted to recognize our long term sponsors as being super heroes to the chamber for their commitment to the event. The committee dressed as their favorite Super Hero to accentuate the point. I, being a little of my rocker, decided that, since I’m president and the original Super Heroes were Kings… Why not dress the part, I had a cape, a crown, a scepter, a cigar, and my sword. I even had two ring pops for my bling, turned my fingers purple from cutting of the circulation – they were meant for smaller fingers. I had a heck of a time finding two coconut halves, no unladen swallows to be found unfortunately. I had a ton of fun, my character was a bit of a mix between Python and Futurama.
Thanks to Mary Compton for the photographs. Mary has taken over much of the photography since I have become president. Between the great images and press releases she writes, she has become a great asset to the chamber.