Sarasota Chamber celebrates 101st annual meeting

Members of the Sarasota Chamber of Commerce took the afternoon to celebrate the successes of the past year at the Sarasota Chamber's 101st Annual Meeting on Sept. 17. 

About 400 members flocked to the Hyatt Regency in Sarasota for lunch and the opportunity to catch up with fellow businesspeople and public officials in the organization's 100th year. The chamber also took the occasion to usher in the new leadership of Chair Dennis Murphy. Larry Thompson held the position of chair during 2020-2021. He thanked and praised Sarasota's business community on their tenacity throughout the pandemic. 

"Like all of you, the chamber has been stressed, it has been strained in many ways ... but the chamber has not only survived, but thrived," Thompson said. "A chamber is nothing without you, the people, its members. Without the support of our over 1,200 members, frankly this would not exist." 

The chamber introduced new programs during 2020-2021, including the Women at Work and C3 events and is planning its Centennial Celebration for Oct. 22. During its centennial year, 195 new members joined the chamber. Murphy expressed his excitement for serving this year and said that he plans to work towards getting the chamber accredited. 

During the meeting, the chamber also presented the Chair's Cup Award; this year, it went to Teri Hansen, the president and CEO of the Charles and Margery Barancik Foundation. 

The meeting wrapped up with a presentation from Mark Wilson, the president and CEO of the Florida Chamber of Commerce, who emphasized the importance of getting the whole community on the same page working towards the future of Sarasota, a fast-growing area.