Chamber has much to be proud of

Last week a number of our staff members had the pleasant experience of attending this year’s Houma-Terrebonne Chamber of Commerce annual banquet.

We are proud to be associated with the Chamber, and to therefore be a part of all the fine work it does. Whether encouraging young achievers or recognizing a Houma Teenager of the Year, we see this organization as a positive source of good in our community and will do all we can to ensure that this fine work continues.

In its own words, the Houma-Terrebonne Chamber of Commerce is a member-driven, volunteer organization dedicated to improving the quality of life by building a strong economy through promotion of services to members, partnerships and alliances, legislative advocacy, economic development, and programs of action and value to sustain a prosperous and vibrant community. The Chamber and its members have been actively involved in community support for over 95 years and that work is still proceeding with strength and vigor. We note in particular the younger business owners and entrepreneurs who are involved with the Chamber, some of whom were present during the banquet. They are proof that our community continues to grow.

As a leading advocate and champion of business, the Houma-Terrebonne Chamber of Commerce fosters economic growth and development in the area and can connect business folks with the people, information and resources they require to grow and prosper. Nobody knows Terrebonne Parish like the people who live and earn their livings here, and that sum total of knowledge fuels much of what the Chamber does.

Among recent accomplishments has been the leading role Chamber members have taken in educating the public on alternatives to the current way recreation matters are handled in our parish. In a thoughtful and well-researched presentation, Chamber members helped spread the word of why our current recreation scheme is not necessarily living up to its potential. As anyone who has carefully reviewed the Chamber material likely agrees, this organization has laid the groundwork for action that has already resulted in reform. Beyond the programs, opportunities and business-building initiatives of the Chamber that have long focused on Terrebonne’s critical priorities, this work has taken the organization, and therefore the parish, above and beyond what might otherwise have been expected.

The strength of the organization lies in attracting the greatest number of individuals, thus creating a pool of resources from which can be drawn ideas, energy, and finances. By leveraging the support, talent and resources of its members, the Houma-Terrebonne Chamber of Commerce is one of the leading organizations helping to improve the economic vitality and quality of life for everyone that calls Terrebonne Parish home.

We know that not everyone in our community is as enamored with the Chamber as we are. Questions have arisen in the past about inclusiveness, including how well certain industries — such as seafood — are represented through its work.

Our response to those concerns is that as an organization that relies on member input to steer itself, the more voices that can be heard within its ranks the better. And we know Chamber leadership agrees with this. For those who feel the Chamber can do a better job, we suggest membership as a first step toward making their views better heard, in a way that matters.

The annual banquet is a very public display of how relevant what the Chamber does is to each and every one of us. We look forward to seeing the Chamber grow, and in so doing watching our community grow. The involvement of Chamber members current and future bodes well the future of the Good Earth.