Annual Report 2020
Presenting Sponsor
JEFF WHITE PHOTOGRAPHY
vision mission
The Chamber is the catalyst for business growth, community engagement, and action to drive economic vitality and advance our position as a global leader in technology and innovation. Prepare, develop, and promote our community for economic growth
A Note from the 2020 Board Chair How you respond during a crisis strips away the veneer and shows what an organization values and how effective you are. In 2020, we forged stronger relationships with our public sector partners and reimagined how we supported and stayed connected with our Members. We discarded the traditional playbook and rapidly developed new strategies to ensure we proactively addressed issues and topics that were important to you. By early March, we began to shift how we operated. All of our key functional areas had to change the way they did business. Virtual became the new normal. Our staff and volunteers started making calls to check on our Members, and we hosted daily COVID Membership calls on Zoom. We wanted to provide information you needed to make informed decisions to continue operations, while also protecting the health of your teams. Our events transitioned to virtual formats to ensure you could remain informed and connected. The work of the Chamber continued with committees and taskforces meeting virtually, too. The circumstances changed – however – we never lost sight of our Vision and Mission, and our objective of serving our Members and the Community. We found ways to ensure we maintained momentum during the crisis.
DISTINGUISHED SERVICE AWARD WINNER BOBBY BRADLEY
We made strides in addressing vital community issues during 2020: ■ Implementation of workforce recruitment strategies shifted to virtual formats complemented by social media platforms ■ Plans were developed and refined for a new digital workforce recruitment program, which will launch in 2021 ■ Coordinated Member efforts to produce much-needed Personal Protective Equipment for our healthcare professionals and first responders
Chip Cherry, cce President & CEO
Meghan Nazario Executive Assistant
■ Created a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Taskforce to determine how business and industry can help local government and the community develop a plan to address these issues ■ Assisted with the region’s efforts to advocate for Redstone Arsenal as the site for the U.S. Space Command HQ
Mary McNairy
Your Chamber was mindful of developments and impact due to COVID-19 and made timely adjustments to how we did business. We developed new ways of delivering information and services. The Chamber, while learning every day, excelled in very demanding and uncertain times. We thank the very talented Team of volunteers and staff, who never hesitated to step up and tackle issues and offer ideas and actions on how to improve support to you, our Members.
Vice President
Thank you for empowering the work of your Chamber. It was an honor to serve as your Chair in 2020!
Facilities Manager
Kim Weeks
Accounting Specialist - Receivables
Joe Watson
Sarah Blackmon
Administrative Coordinator – Kevin Byrnes
Tiffany Boyd
Resource Desk Coordinator
The Year
4
in Pictures
PHOTOGRAPHERS: CLAIRE AIELLO HIROKO SEDENSKY JEFF WHITE
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Economic Development & Industry Relations The Chamber is the lead economic development organization for Huntsville, Madison, and Madison County – one of the most dynamic economies in the United States. Even during a global pandemic, our economy grew through expansions and new projects across our targeted industries of aerospace, defense, advanced manufacturing, information technology, and life sciences.
1,026 $1.1B NEW JOBS
Lucia Cape, cce
Senior Vice President
Lydia Pennington
Industry Relations Director
John Roberts
Economic Development Project Director
Ken Smith
Research & Information Services Director 6
CAPITAL INVESTMENT
200+
EXISTING INDUSTRY VISITS CONDUCTED
Ranked in Top 10 for affordability, career opportunities during COVID-19, best places to live post-pandemic, and as a resilient tech town.
Moody’s Employment Forecast
Huntsville Metro
SOURCE: BLS, MOODY’S ANALYTICS
United States
“Huntsville will be an above-average performer in the short term because of the strength in manufacturing and federal government, as well as a skewing toward high-wage jobs. Longer term, Huntsville will benefit from a high-quality workforce and strong population trends, giving it an edge over other Alabama metros.” – Moody’s Analytics –
Adopted a virtual platform to safely continue support for an average of more than 30 projects throughout the pandemic. Supported collection and distribution of PPE to public health and safety workers. 7
Cummings Research Park Cummings Research Park (CRP) is the Nation’s second largest research park with 3,843 acres and nearly 300 companies. We manage, internally market, and promote CRP to expand industry and recruit new companies to a vibrant and connected community that fosters ingenuity, creativity, and scientific achievements that solve our Nation’s most complex challenges.
Erin Koshut
Executive Director
Julia Kaye
Marketing & Events Coordinator
8
Staying Connected We offered a drive-thru Popsicle event in the summer as a way to offer a little happy to those in and around CRP. We pivoted to safety and health measures in our Food Truck Fests (mask wearing, spacing of tables, designed truck waiting areas, wiping down tables/chairs after each use). This allowed us to operate July through November. We collaborated with Christmas Charities Year Round (which was founded by Milton Cummings, CRP’s namesake) to stuff stockings.
Special Events
In-person ribbon cuttings were held early in 2020 for Blue Origin, Radiance Technologies, and Trideum Corporation.
A virtual groundbreaking was held for the Alabama School of Cyber Technology & Engineering with Raytheon Technologies.
Digital Marketing Launched CRP on LinkedIn. Launched two new CRPeople video profiles. Held five Warm-Up Wednesdays – Facebook followers could submit their company name to be randomly selected for free coffee from Alchemy delivered to their company location.
The City of Huntsville announced that the U.S. Paralympics Cycling Open – the first return to racing for Team USA – will be held in CRP April 17-18, 2021.
cummingsresearchpark.com Join us by signing up for our monthly e-newsletter at the top of our homepage.
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Government & Public Affairs The Chamber represents the business interests
Provided guidance to Governor Ivey concerning “Essential Industry” designations prior to shut down.
of the Huntsville/Madison County area on all levels of government, promoting policies and legislation that allow for the continued economic prosperity of the region. Roughly half of the local economy is a function of federal spending on military, space, and homeland security concerns. As a result, much of the
Provided election guidance – how to vote during a pandemic.
Chamber’s government and public affairs are focused on the growth and protection of these activities and Redstone Arsenal.
Provided support for the 2020 Census efforts.
Mike Ward, cce
Senior Vice President
Amberly Kimbrough Events Coordinator
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Facilitated a meeting with Senator-elect Tuberville to discuss community priorities and potential Senate Committee assignments.
State of the City Address with Mayor Tommy Battle and panelists John Hamilton, Kathy Martin, & Shane Davis
Shift to virtual format for our events & completed all planned Updates
Washington Update with U.S. Senator Doug Jones
Washington Update with U.S. Rep. Mo Brooks
Alabama Update with Governor Kay Ivey
Redstone Update
Prior to April, we held in-person events for the Alabama Legislative Update, the State of the County Address with Chairman Dale Strong, and the annual Montgomery Trip. We supported Marketing & Communications with key state and federal officials joining our regular Zoom meetings with Chamber members. We held virtual meetings for the Armed Forces, National Government, and State Government committees. Redstone Update featured presentations from 18 Redstone agencies and commands 11
In February, we held the 8th annual breakfast with education and business leaders, co-hosted by The Schools Foundation. This year’s event featured teacher spotlights, a superintendents panel and “text to give” options to support Industry Insights and National Board Certification for teachers.
Workforce & Education
We are passionate about developing, recruiting and retaining smart people in our region. In 2020, we shifted our programs to virtual platforms to safely continue attracting talent to the community and raising awareness of smart careers among our students.
• Held 15 virtual college recruiting trips that reached more than 1,500 students • Held 2 virtual events for transitioning military and veterans that reached more than 70 people
Produced an 8-video series about Huntsville’s hot spots and cool activities that had 63,000+ impressions.
Used a virtual platform to connect 180 Young Professionals with activities and organizations in the community.
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Social Media Campaign Reach STEM Day 1,112 516 4,292 522
Veterans Day
Lucia Cape, cce
Senior Vice President | Foundation Executive Director
Katelyn Sides Baker
Workforce Recruitment Director
1,185 150 1,991 349
Kent Ballard, Jr. Workforce Education Specialist, Chamber Foundation
Manufacturing Day 8,683 268 916 36,545
Stripe Worker Ads
22,526
Organized the Childcare Taskforce that was able to respond quickly to COVID by establishing a remote learning supervision fund at The Community Foundation that distributed more than $53,000 to five nonprofit childcare providers. Organized Upwards, a virtual training and job fair for COVID-dislocated workers as part of a regional upskilling event that reached 570 people. Held our third Second Chance Job Fair with 50 employers and 13 support agencies that attracted 410 job seekers. Second Chance helps people who are un- and under-employed find new careers with long-term potential. 13
Membership For over 125 years, the Huntsville/Madison County Chamber has been serving area businesses by creating a wealth of opportunities to gain expertise and knowledge, build meaningful relationships, engage with elected officials, and positively influence the economy. Today, we represent over 2,000 member companies in the Tennessee Valley and beyond, and we’re driven by the needs of our members – from local entrepreneurs and small businesses to middle-market companies and global corporations – to provide leadership on issues important to the business community and to create a dynamic business climate for all businesses to succeed.
Amber Greenwood
Vice President, Investor Relations
Donna McCrary
Membership Retention Manager
Richard Bigoney
Membership Account Executive
Tina Blankenship
Membership Account Executive 14
190 633 $766,570 PARTICIPATING MEMBERS
SPONSORSHIP CONTRACTS
IN SOLD RESERVED TABLES/ SPONSORSHIPS
Thank you for your continued support of our events during 2020! Your strong engagement helps us continue our mission, and we truly appreciate our members standing by us through the shift to virtual events during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Annual Sponsorship Campaign
Kristy Drake
Supported by 11 volunteers
Operation
CARE
Launched March 2020
Director, HREGI & ChamberON
MORE THAN
1,350
23 emissaries
CALLS
Initiated calls to members to check in with care and compassion:
80 ambassadors
■ Directed them to our COVID-19 Resources webpage ■ Encouraged virtual event participation ■ Informed members to marketing resources such as Member Connection, Hot Deals, and getyourgifton.org
Shifted to virtual platform – engaged volunteers through enthusiastic speakers, fun trivia and networking opportunities; Assisted with the no-contact delivery of Best Places to Work® swag. List of speakers included: ■ Chairman Dale Strong, Madison County Commission
101+
employees
■ Laura Huckabee-Jennings, CEO/Owner, Transcend, The Fearless Company
51-100
Member Companies by Size
employees
1-5
21-50
employees
employees
6-20
employees
■ Dr. Karockas Watkins, CEO/President/Executive Director, Ability Plus ■ Claire Aiello, VP, Marketing & Communications, Huntsville/ Madison County Chamber
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Small Business & Events At the start of 2020, we hit the ground running with
networking
events,
a
C-Suite
Speaker
Series session, and the 84th Annual Membership Meeting. Due to the onset of the pandemic, we reimagined our programming in April to better serve small businesses. Multiple virtual platforms were adopted as we started virtual-only programming. New series and campaigns were created, and we transformed our large events with swag bag deliveries and drive-thru celebrations. Partnerships continued with small businesses, UAH Small Business Advisors, Alabama A&M University, and the Huntsville-Madison County Public Library to offer more online professional development opportunities. Also, the Women’s Business Council continues to grow and provides opportunities for women in business with multiple events.
Pammie Jimmar, iom Vice President
Amberly Kimbrough Events Coordinator
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ADDITIONS: Ask the Experts Take Out Tuesdays Town Hall Meetings Shop Small, Save Local
4
Signature Events
39
Networking Events
38
Professional Development Events
2,065 Attendees Annual Membership Meeting Best Places to WorkÂŽ (virtual) Chamber Golf Classic Small Business Awards (virtual)
1,018 Attendees Breakfast & Biz (varied) Business & Brews Cocktail Happy Hour (virtual) C-Suite Speaker Series (varied) Women’s Business Council Events (varied) Town Hall Meetings (virtual)
1,223 Attendees
(mostly virtual events)
Ask the Experts Basic & Advanced Computer Skills Partner Events HR / Employment Law Legal Issues in a COVID World Brand Culture Creating a Business Continuity Plan Text Message Marketing Doing Business with Huntsville Organizations Engaging & Training a Remote Workforce ...and many more!
UAH SBDC continues to provide a full suite of business services, and particularly provided essential updates from the Small Business Administration that we shared with our small business community.
Jobs Created: 130 New Business Starts: 34 Jobs Support: 1,900 Capital Access: $11,569,948 Advising Hours: 803 Clients: 356 17
Marketing & Communications Put simply, we want to share Huntsville’s story with the world. The Chamber fosters new growth and supports businesses who have been in our community
Claire Aiello
Vice President
Hiroko Sedensky
Web Designer
for decades, and you are part of our success. Please keep us posted throughout the year on what you’re doing. We share information through
Kristi Sherrard
Graphic Designer
several channels, including traditional media, print, digital, and social media.
Having accurate, timely information is critical to making informed decisions. The pandemic brought many challenges, and we increased communications in several ways during 2020 to help our member businesses...
MORE THAN
60
Zoom meetings with health and community leaders
COVID-19 section on
hsvchamber.org to house all information
Imagery and messaging to encourage the community to stay safe before the statewide mandate was put in place, and then through the Safer at Home order
Established website to encourage gift card purchases with our small, local businesses
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Additional emails, social media posts due to need for rapid updates
Publications & Email Communications
10,000 22,835 296
Approximate number of readers of INITIATIVES bi-monthly magazine
Huntsville No. 3 in top-tier jobs for veterans November 2020
Total reads of Chamber digital publications: More than 98,000 impressions Average read time = 5:14
Total emails sent:
Huntsville on list of 10 Best Cities to Live and Work In October 2020
Reach per month: 117,169 Average open rate: 25.51% (Nonprofit industry average is 25.17%)
Huntsville No. 2 for career opportunities post-COVID 19
Digital & Social Media
August 2020
hsvchamber.org
275,766 USERS (+19%) 588,849 PAGE VIEWS
Huntsville among Top Mid-Size Cities for New Location or Expansion Projects July 2020
10,532 FANS 9,405 FOLLOWERS 9,383 FOLLOWERS 2,546 FOLLOWERS
Huntsville ranks #7 for high-tech employment concentration February 2020
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HUNTSVILLE/MADISON COUNTY CHAMBER
2020 EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
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Kevin Byrnes
Jeff Gronberg
Kim Lewis
Ron Poteat
VP, Strategic Consulting Services, Navigator International LLC
President, deciBel Research, Inc.
CEO, PROJECTXYZ, Inc.
Head of Customer Experience, Regions Bank
BOARD CHAIR
CHAIR-ELECT
IMMEDIATE PAST CHAIR
CHAMBER FOUNDATION PRESIDENT
SECRETARY/TREASURER
Greg Brown
Craig Naudain
Jim Rogers
Frank Williams
Lynn Troy
CFO/Co-CEO, Brown Precision, Inc.
Vice President, Lockheed Martin Corporation
Owner Operator, Landers McLarty Dodge Chrysler Jeep
CEO, Troy 7
VICE CHAIR Economic Development & Industry Relations
VP, Operations Management, SAIC
VICE CHAIR Government & Public Affairs
VICE CHAIR HREGI
VICE CHAIR Marketing & Communications
VICE CHAIR Investor Relations
Sameer Singhal
Joe Ritch
Dr. Karockas Watkins
Dr. Joe Green
Alicia Ryan
President & CEO, CFD Research Corporation
Attorney, Sirote & Permutt, PC
CEO/President/Executive Director, Ability Plus, Inc.
Consultant, Whitespace Innovations, Inc.
CEO, LSINC Corporation
VICE CHAIR Small Business & Events
VICE CHAIR Tennessee Valley BRAC
VICE CHAIR Workforce
CHAIR-APPOINTED
CHAIR-APPOINTED
Laura Huckabee-Jennings CEO, Transcend LLC
Mike Watkins
Tommy Battle
Paul Finley
Dale Strong
Chip Cherry, CCE
District Sales Manager, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Alabama
Mayor, City of Huntsville
Mayor, City of Madison
Chairman, Madison County Commission
CHAIR-APPOINTED
EX-OFFICIO MEMBER
EX-OFFICIO MEMBER
EX-OFFICIO MEMBER
President & CEO, Huntsville/Madison County Chamber
HUNTSVILLE/MADISON COUNTY CHAMBER
2020 BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Blake Bentley
David Bier
Penny Billings
Thomas Busby
Melissa Davis
Mike Dewitz
John Eagan
SportsMED Orthopaedic Surgery and Spine Center
Anglin Reichmann Armstrong, P.C.
BancorpSouth - Huntsville
CenterState Bank
MTA
PARSONS
BB&T, now Truist
Kevin Fernandez
Owen Franklin
Joni Green
John Hall
Ginger Harper
Josh Herren
Fernandez Financial Group, LLC
Franklin Creative Solutions
Five Stones Research Corporation
All Points Logistics, LLC
IBERIABANK
Yulista
Lee Holland
Tharon Honeycutt
Amanda Howard
Lincoln Hudson
Hank Isenberg
McKinley James
Freedom Real Estate and Capital, LLC
MSB Analytics, Inc.
Amanda Howard | Sotheby’s International Realty
Booz Allen Hamilton, Inc.
IronMountain Solutions
Polaris Industries, Inc.
Lauren Johannesmeyer Google Fiber, Huntsville
Sean Kelly
April Mason
Todd May
Bob McCaleb
Kevin McCombs
Alana Parker
Zack Penney
Regions Bank
Toyota Motor Manufacturing Alabama, Inc.
KBR
Northrop Grumman Corporation
Teledyne Brown Engineering, Inc.
Rocket City Drywall & Supply, Inc.
Bill Penney Toyota/Mitsubishi
Jami Peyton
Chris Russell
Jeff Samz
Beth Sippel
Wayne Sisco
Tom Stanton
Sandra Stephens
Canvas, Inc.
Cadence Bank
Huntsville Hospital
Synovus
Redstone Federal Credit Union
ADTRAN, Inc.
Keel Point, LLC
Dr. Mitch Stevison
Cynthia Streams
Margetta Thomas
Ken Tucker
John Watson
Danny Windham
Raytheon Technologies
Domino’s (Valley Pizza, Inc.)
HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology
The Boeing Company
Torch Technologies
HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology
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AS OF DECEMBER 31, 2020
INVESTORS HUNTSVILLE/MADISON COUNTY CHAMBER
DEVELOPMENT PARTNER
DEVELOPMENT COUNCIL
CHAIRMAN’S COUNCIL PRESIDENT’S CIRCLE
REGIONAL PARTNERS
LEADERSHIP FORUM
EXECUTIVE COUNCIL BBVA ■ Corporate Office Properties Trust (COPT) ■ Crestwood Medical Center ■ Dynetics, Inc. General Atomics Electromagnetics ■ Lockheed Martin Corporation ■ Northrop Grumman Corporation Raytheon Technologies ■ SAIC ■ SES - Science and Engineering Services, LLC ■ Teledyne Brown Engineering, Inc. ■ Yulista
CHAMBER TRUSTEES AEgis Technologies Group ■ Akima, LLC ■ Bill Penney Toyota/Mitsubishi ■ Booz Allen Hamilton, Inc. ■ Facebook Data Center Five Stones Research Corporation ■ Intrepid ■ Intuitive Research and Technology Corporation ■ Jerry Damson Honda Acura ■ KBR Landers McLarty Dodge Chrysler Jeep ■ Lanier Ford Shaver & Payne P.C. ■ PARSONS ■ S3, Inc. ■ Sealy Management Company, Inc. SportsMED Orthopaedic Surgery & Spine Center ■ Synovus ■ Torch Technologies ■ Turner Construction Company
PROGRESS PARTNERS Ability Plus ■ Aerojet Rocketdyne ■ Anglin Reichmann Armstrong ■ ASRC Federal ■ BB&T, now Truist ■ Baron Services, Inc. ■ BASF Corporation ■ Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP Brown Precision, Inc. ■ CenterState Bank ■ Colliers International ■ Connected Logistics (LogC2) ■ Davidson ■ Huntsville Tractor & Equipment, Inc. ■ IBERIABANK Keel Point, LLC ■ L3Harris ■ Leonardo Electronics US Inc. ■ LSINC Corporation ■ Marsh & McLennan Agency, locally known as J. Smith Lanier & Co. The Orthopaedic Center (TOC) ■ Progress Bank ■ Radiance Technologies ■ Robins & Morton ■ RUAG Space USA ■ Steak-Out (Rosie’s Restaurants, Inc., & Right Way Restaurants, Inc.) Verizon ■ Wells Fargo Bank ■ Woody Anderson Ford PROGRESS INVESTORS Air Essentials, Inc. ■ Alpha Beta Technologies, Inc. ■ Amanda Howard | Sotheby’s International Realty ■ Armstrong Relocation Company Huntsville LLC ■ Averbuch Realty / Enterprises ■ Bailey-Harris Construction ■ BancorpSouth Bell Textron Inc. ■ BID DESIGNS, LLC ■ BRPH Architects-Engineers, Inc. ■ Bryant Bank ■ Cadence Bank ■ Canvas, Inc. ■ Century Automotive ■ CFD Research Corporation ■ CGI Federal ■ Coast Personnel Services Continental Consulting Group Corporation (CCGC) ■ DC BLOX, Inc. ■ deciBel Research ■ DESE Research, Inc. ■ Express Employment Professionals ■ FITE Building Company ■ FLS Translation & Interpreting Fountain, Parker, Harbarger & Associates, LLC ■ Freedom Real Estate & Capital, LLC ■ Garver ■ Hexagon US Federal ■ HEMSI ■ Hiley Automotive Group ■ Huntsville Botanical Garden ■ Huntsville/Madison County Convention & Visitors Bureau INTERFUZE Corporation ■ Investor’s Resource ■ IronMountain Solutions ■ Legend Realty – Jim Hoekenschneider ■ The Lioce Group, Inc. ■ MAG Aerospace ■ MSB Analytics, Inc. ■ nLogic, LLC ■ PALCO ■ PHOENIX ■ Pinnacle Solutions, Inc. PROJECTXYZ, Inc. ■ QTEC Aerospace ■ Quadrus Corporation ■ Renasant Bank ■ RJ Young Company ■ Rosenblum Realty ■ S&ME, Inc. ■ Schoel Engineering Company, Inc. ■ ServisFirst Bank ■ Sigmatech, Inc. ■ Signalink ■ Snelling Systems Products and Solutions, Inc. ■ TriVector Services, Inc. ■ Troy 7, Inc. ■ TTL, Inc. ■ ValleyMLS.com ■ Valor Communities ■ Van Valkenburgh & Wilkinson Properties Inc. ■ Venturi, Inc. ■ Volkert, Inc. ■ Warren Averett, LLC Wilmer & Lee, P.A.
Vision and strategy, coupled with effective implementation is what empowers our community ahead of our competition. The Huntsville Region has never been content to leave our future to the will of others. We have a vision of what our future will be and are working strategically to realize that vision. Many ask about the “secret to our success.” Well, one aspect of the “secret” is the resources provided to the Chamber through the Huntsville Regional Economic Growth Initiative (HREGI). HREGI funds allow us to punch well above our weight class, making us a stronger, more visible force in the national competition for economic growth. The Initiative’s overarching vision is for our community to become a primary center of technology in the South and in the nation. HREGI is designed to position the area as one of the leading economic growth centers in the Southeast and the nation. HREGI investors contribute funds in addition to their membership dues and sponsorships – they understand a rising tide lifts all boats, and the Chamber is working to raise the water level for everyone. HREGI funds strengthen us in a multitude of ways. They help the Chamber market Huntsville for continued progress – dispelling the myth that the high tech and leading edge activities that our citizens engage in every day can’t happen here. Our efforts in education, childcare, talent development, and workforce recruitment are all enhanced because of the resources provided by our HREGI Investors.
Investment Levels Development Partner Development Council Chairman’s Council President’s Circle Leadership Forum Executive Council Chamber Trustee Progress Partner Progress Investor
Join those who understand what is possible when we take control of our future and strive to become the community we all believe is possible – become a HREGI Investor.
For more information, please contact
Kristy Drake kdrake@hsvchamber.org 256-535-2036
How Investment Dollars Are Spent:
225 Church Street NW Huntsville, AL 35801 256-535-2000 phone 256-535-2015 fax info@hsvchamber.org
hsvchamber.org