e pode ser encontrado aqui<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\nIt\u2019s been five years since the Camarillo Chamber of Commerce was faced with a lawsuit by one of its department heads and the abrupt resignation of its president. It was a low point for the organization, which has long served local businesses as a voice in Sacramento, a place to get information about the economy and a way to network with others.<\/p>\n
In the ensuing years, the Chamber has boosted its membership and gotten back on solid financial ground.<\/p>\n
That was the message Chamber officials shared with the community during a June 20 State of the Chamber luncheon at Spanish Hills Country Club.<\/p>\n
Laura Mullen, the Chamber\u2019s outgoing chair, said membership has grown by 20%, to 580 members and counting, since 2014.<\/p>\n
Mullen also said there\u2019s been an increase in the number of ribbon-cuttings and networking events, two indicators that there\u2019s been growth in the city\u2019s economy. She noted, too, that attendance at events has risen.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur growth is powered by people,\u201d Mullen said. \u201cWe are so grateful for the businesses that are choosing to do business here in Camarillo and we want to continue to encourage that.\u201d<\/p>\n
She said the Chamber is more financially stable with money in reserve, thanks to CEO and Chamber President Gary Cushing.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are operating the way you operate your businesses, and that\u2019s what we want to be able to say to you as a Chamber every year,\u201d Mullen said during her afternoon presentation.<\/p>\n
Teri Kotantoulas, a licensed esthetician at Face to Face Esthetics in Camarillo, said being a member of the Chamber benefits her business in a variety of ways.<\/p>\n
\u201cI am able to meet other businesses in the area and support each other, make friends on a personal level and be more connected to the community,\u201d Kotantoulas said.<\/p>\n
The Chamber also strives to give nonprofits exposure and opportunities to connect with businesses, according to its website.<\/p>\n
Kotantoulas said she organizes food drives at Face to Face to help some of the nonprofits she\u2019s discovered as a Chamber member.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere are a lot of opportunities to learn about nonprofits in the area and see what their needs are,\u201d Kotantoulas said. \u201cFor me personally, and my business, we can help give back.\u201d<\/p>\n
Before the luncheon ended, Pleasant Valley School District Superintendent Angelica Ramsey was named the Chamber\u2019s new chairperson.<\/p>\n
Ramsey said she wants to bring schools and businesses together.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere is a very important reason why we all work together,\u201d Ramsey said. \u201cWe understand good schools make a good community. Good business makes sure that the community continues to thrive.\u201d<\/p>\n
During the rest of 2019, Cushing wants the board to focus on strategic planning, Ramsey said. In 2020, the Chamber is slated to move into the Ventura County Community Foundation building on Mission Oaks Boulevard.<\/p>\n
For Chamber information, visit\u00a0camarillochamber.org<\/a>.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":9139,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"give_campaign_id":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9313","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-latest-coverage"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/vccf.org\/pt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9313","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/vccf.org\/pt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/vccf.org\/pt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vccf.org\/pt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/13"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vccf.org\/pt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9313"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/vccf.org\/pt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9313\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vccf.org\/pt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9139"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/vccf.org\/pt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9313"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vccf.org\/pt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9313"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vccf.org\/pt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9313"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}