Sisters Chamber marks 30 years

In 1976, a group of Sisters businessmen and women agreed that Sisters needed a chamber of commerce. The city was growing fast, spurred by its 1880s Western building theme. Sisters needed an organization to attract tourists to the area.

Mike Reed of Coldwell Banker Reed Bros. Realty was elected the first chamber president.

“It was just sort of a coffee klatch,” Reed said. “We met in the back room of The Gallery and we were mainly interested in developing advertising for Sisters.”

About 30 members were recruited for the new organization.

Thirty years later, the Sisters Area Chamber of Commerce will celebrate its 30th anniversary at its annual installation dinner on Thursday, February 9, at Eagle Crest Resort.

Bob Grooney of The Gallimaufry attended his first chamber meeting in 1979 and left as a member of the board, a position he held for over 26 years. Two years later, he was chamber president.

“We had about 70 members by that time,” Grooney recently recalled. “We started fund-raising events, sold flags, had social events, and held our first auction.”

An outdoor sale was the start of chamber-sponsored Saturday markets and the Sisters Harvest Faire that celebrates its 25th anniversary this year.

“In those early years, chamber membership rose and fell based on the popularity or unpopularity of the president,” Grooney said. “Whoever was president had the chamber phone in his residence or business, received custody of a filing cabinet and for all purposes was the chamber.”

Gradually, membership grew and new activities were added, including an annual dinner, a Citizen of the Year award, the community Christmas tree and parade, a visitor brochure and map and Mix and Mingle visits to local businesses.

The chamber is an “area” chamber with members from western Deschutes County and southwestern Jefferson County, as well as Bend and Redmond businesses that serve Sisters.

In 1989, a visitor center was opened at 121 E. Cascade Ave. Part-time coordinator Cathy Williams supervised the center, which was staffed by six volunteers.

“We greeted visitors and sold rodeo tickets because our volunteers were also rodeo volunteers,” Williams said.

In 1990, David Banks was hired as part-time executive director. That year, the chamber coordinated hosting of Cycle Oregon as a start of funding for a public restroom. An advertising campaign called Sisters “the town of tiny lights” for the Christmas season.

In 1991, this reporter, Jim Fisher, was hired as executive director. He set up the chamber’s first business office in the old Sisters Library at 151 N. Larch St., complete with computer, furniture and files. Over the next five years, a part-time events coordinator was hired, chamber membership increased to over 180 and public forums were held on such topics as a highway couplet through Sisters.

The business office and visitor center merged in 1995 at a new, larger location at 352 East Hood Ave., Suite D.

“At that time, we had a succession of effective presidents who were hard-working businessmen, including Stewart Weitzman and Phil Arends,” Grooney said. “One major goal at that time was to establish public restrooms in the city. When major fund-raising from assisting Cycle Oregon still did not provide enough funds, we encouraged portable toilets. That lasted until three years ago when permanent restrooms were established in Barclay Park, financed by the chamber and the city.”

Improved communications with the City of Sisters and other local event sponsors and the start of a new chamber-sponsored event, Sisters in Sisters, were other accomplishments.

“In the 1990s, the chamber went through a series of executive directors for about 10 years that were less than professional and that hurt us,” Grooney said. “We finally pulled out of that. Today we have an extremely professional executive director and staff.”

In the late 1990s, the chamber moved to 222 W. Hood Ave. where it shared space with a local museum. When that didn’t work out, they relocated to the present location at 164 N. Elm. St. with a lease until 2008.

Cheryl Mills has served as chamber executive director since October 2004. She has two full-time staff, events coordinator Jeri Buckmann and office manager Jean Nolander. A dozen volunteers staff the information desk. With a growing membership of over 330 members and support from the City of Sisters, the chamber is now financially stable.

“Until the end of 2005, the chamber was receiving 25 percent of the city room tax with an additional eight percent discretionary based on our making a specific funding request,” Mills said. “However, starting in 2006, we are receiving the full 33 percent of room tax revenues without restrictions.

“Enhancing the economic vitality of its members and the Sisters community is the mission of the chamber 2006,” Mills recently stated.

“Business recruitment and development will be a major focus. Managing that in a way that preserves the character and uniqueness of Sisters is a real trick and one that all of us working together can manage. We hope to address the issue of growth as a team with many agencies and organizations.”