Borla shifting role with chamber

Erin Borla is shifting her role with the Sisters Area Chamber of Commerce to focus on marketing for tourism in Sisters. The move, which will take place this summer, leaves the role of executive director open.

The Chamber will begin a search for a new executive director immediately. Borla will stay on in a contract role as marketing coordinator.

Borla has served as executive director for the Chamber since January 2009.

She told The Nugget that the move allows her to focus on her area of strongest interest while giving her more flexibility to spend time with her young children.

"It's just time," she said of the transition. "I feel like we've made a lot of great strides here... I've got little kids at home and I think it's important that I spend time with them when they're little... It's freedom of schedule for me."

Borla will continue as executive director through July while the hiring process is underway, then transition to the marketing role in August.

Chamber President Ann Richardson said, "Change opens the door for opportunities. I'm just thrilled that we're not losing Erin's capabilities in marketing Sisters Country."

She said the Chamber board will be looking for an executive director with event experience to build on the events the Chamber sponsors, and someone who will "focus their time on building deeper and stronger relationships in the Sisters community" while Borla focuses on marketing for tourism.

Marketing has always been Borla's strong suit, and she is excited to focus all of her energies there. As a contractor, she has also been offered work with other organizations doing similar work.

"We have a lot of opportunities to share the Sisters Country story in a lot of different ways, and I'm excited about that," she said.

She hopes to expand the media reach of Sisters Country and "keep Sisters as a top-of-mind destination...When I have family or friends in Portland say 'I hear Sisters on the radio all the time' - that's what I want," she said.

Efforts to market Sisters across the state, region and nation have paid off during Borla's tenure.

"We've had an uptick in room tax - Which shows the tourism to the region - every year, and that's in the middle of a recession," she said.

Room tax revenues have increased 24 percent since 2009.

She also points to strong relationships with other regional organizations and the cooperative effort to provide information to locals and visitors as points of satisfaction from her tenure in the job.

For more information contact the Sisters Area Chamber of Commerce at 541-549-0251.

Author Bio

Jim Cornelius, Editor in Chief

Jim Cornelius is editor in chief of The Nugget and author of “Warriors of the Wildlands: True Tales of the Frontier Partisans.” A history buff, he explores frontier history across three centuries and several continents on his podcast, The Frontier Partisans. For more information visit www.frontierpartisans.com.

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