2018 VACCE Annual Conference
Hotel Madison
It's Not Too Late to Register! 

You won't want to miss the 2018 VACCE Annual Meeting being held at the new Hotel Madison and Shenandoah Valley Conference Center .  

Thursday & Friday, June 21 & 22, 2018
Harrisonburg, VA 
 
The event is  geared toward Chamber Executives and your professional staff members, and we'll have sessions that cover a variety of industry topics:
  • Grow Your Chamber Online with Google
  • Clarifying Your Message so Your Members Will Listen
  • Entrepreneur Programs
  • Recruitment & Retention for a Strong Membership Foundation
  • Crisis Communications
  • How to Better Advocate for Your Members Locally
  • The Value of Leadshare Programs
We're also excited to announce that Bill Graham with Graham Corporate Communications will join us as our featured keynote speaker on Friday morning.  A U.S. Chamber Institute faculty member and leader in the field of communications, Bill will lead two sessions for us - Make Your Message Repeatable and High Focus Communication: Are You Chamber-Focused or Member-Focused?

For the current agenda and to register for the event, please click the button below...
 
Virginia Chamber Update
VA Chamber Logo
After weeks of negotiations, the House of Delegates and Senate of Virginia passed a budget on Wednesday. Perhaps most notably, the budget includes language to begin the process of expanding Medicaid in Virginia. The passed budget also includes a few other important initiatives related to Blueprint Virginia 2025, the Virginia business community's long-term economic development plan. As we continue to work to improve our ranking in national business climate surveys, these items will help improve Virginia's economic competitiveness grow our economy.
Click here for the full article and some additional highlights.

Mark your calendars for our upcoming event:
  • June 7 - Virginia Health Care Conference
Learn more about this and other events at www.vachamber.com. 
 
VACCE Member Updates 
Chincoteague Chamber  
The Chamber is pleased to announce Theresa Stanfield as their new Membership & Visitor Services Coordinator.

Colonial Heights Chamber  
The Chamber is hosting its first of our Summer Business Development Seminars on June 7th from 8:00am - 11:30am at the Colonial Heights Public Library.  "Developing your Company Culture" will be led by Jim Pourteau.  $25 and is open to anyone that wants to grow personally and professionally.  More information can be found here.

Danville Pittsylvania County Chamber  
As of June 11, Rachel Covington will serve as Director of Member Services at the Chamber. Since December 2014 Rachel has served as the Director of Community Engagement at the Center for Community Engagement (CCECC) at Averett University.  A magna cum laude graduate of the University of Mary Washington, Rachel holds a degree in Political Science and Spanish. She also earned her TEFL Certification and Duke University's Certificate of Nonprofit Management. Her position at the Chamber will focus on member recruitment and retention, development of a communications strategy, dynamic programming that benefits members and the further development of Leadership Southside and WE Lead.

Greater Reston Chamber  
The 28th Annual Taste of Reston has been voted "Northern Virginia's Best Food Festival" for the 7th year in a row. The event - Northern Virginia's largest outdoor spring festival to feature nearly 30 restaurants, a Craft Beer Lounge, YMCA Family Fun Zone, cooking demos and live entertainment - will be held June 15 & 16 at Reston Town Center.

Greater Williamsburg Chamber & Tourism Alliance   
The Chamber has several updates this month:

ASCEND of Williamsburg, our new Young Professionals program within the Chamber, plans an event monthly (either social/networking or educational). 

The Chamber Travels Abroad Program is a great way for families, friends, and chamber members to come together and join us as we travel to beautiful cities overseas.

The Chamber's " 411 Business Explorers" and Epsilon Delta Boule "757 Medical Explorers" wrapped up another year and gave presentations of the different professions they explored.

The Chamber's Women's Business Council meets every month and focuses on empowering, uniting, and inspiring women through business and community endeavors.

Harrisonburg-Rockingham Chamber  
Sara Wittig has been named the new Marketing and Communications Director for the Chamber.  Our most recent addition to the team, Sara reported for work on May 3rd, having been responsible for events and related duties at The Mimslyn Inn in Luray. Sara oversees marketing, communications and Chamber events, including the annual meeting, ValleyFest, Connections, the Golf Tournament and ValleyVines5K.