October 2020
Chamber Connection
Your connection to the greater Hanover business community.
Chamber News Pages 1-7 Workforce Spotlight Page 4 Ambassador Spotlight Page 4 Business Briefs Page 8 Main Street Hanover Page 9 Upcoming Events Page 11-12
A Letter from Our President, Gary Laird 2020 was a year like no other. Prior to the COVID-19 outbreak, the Chamber experienced a busy and fulfilling start, thanks to support from our members and the community. We kicked off the year by printing the most copies of Discover Hanover Magazine ever, with an all-time high of 40,000; graduated 14 business men and women from our Leadership Hanover program this spring; transitioned 80 new members to our new value-based dues model; secured $100,000 in grant funds for our apprenticeship program; and made plans to add a healthcare track to our apprenticeship program. When the COVID-19 pandemic took hold, the Chamber stepped up to take care of our members. We immediately created a landing page on our website to disseminate information to the community. We also started sharing information from the U.S. and PA Chambers via weekly email updates, created a group on Facebook for businesses to share information with community members, met with legislators weekly to get on top of the state’s plans, and hosted various webinars and town halls to keep our members connected and well-informed. We advocated for local businesses after collecting feedback through our Business Impact Feedback Form, and we created a reopening guide for local businesses to help them navigate York County’s green phase. Most recently, the Chamber has created another new feedback form to gather information on how businesses are navigating the reopening and recovery phase of this pandemic. While taking care of our members and the community, we were also trying to keep our own organization afloat.
As a 501(c)(6) organization, the Chamber does not qualify for many of the relief programs offered by the federal government like the Payroll Protection Program. In addition, cancelling our major summer events will have a huge impact on revenue over the next several years. The Chamber is in a solid financial position with a healthy reserve, but we needed to protect our reserves and manage cash flow, so we put our staff on a reduced work schedule. This is the first time in our nearly 100-year history that we have been forced to make decisions like these. Moving into this new year, our organization is here to be your voice, sustain business, and be a part of a robust plan for recovery. I thank you for your continued confidence in the work of your chamber; we truly value your support. If you ever have a question about how we can help support your business or organization, please contact us. We welcome the opportunity to serve the needs of our members and the community. If you would like to learn more about the chamber's goals for the coming year, we invite you to join us at our Annual Meeting at 12 p.m. on October 15 via Zoom. This event is complimentary and open to all members. To register, visit our website. Thank you,
Gary Laird President
146 Carlisle Street Hanover, PA 17331 717.637.6130 www.hanoverchamber.com