Board of Directors

A MESSAGE FROM OUR CHAIR

Howdy!  I am honored to be chosen as the 2022-2023 Chair of the Odessa Chamber of Commerce.  To follow in the footsteps of so many great Odessans over the past 88 years is quite humbling.  These were men and women who loved their community and wanted to see Odessa grow and become a desirable place to live, worship, work, and raise a family. Having been born and raised as a third generation Odessan, my family has lived through boom and growth, bust and decline, happy times, sad times, and tragedies. Regardless of the situation, Odessans are resilient!  They come together to help each other and they will do it with a smile on their face.

During the last several years we have seen unprecedented issues affecting our economy, healthcare, education, social issues, and more. As a result, we are still dealing with some of the long term effects and have to change and adjust from the way things used to be done to the way things are done now. Odessa continues to see growth that forces us to look at our quality of life in our community and identify ways to accommodate needs for infrastructure, utilities, education, and healthcare.

The Odessa Chamber plays an integral part in creating a community that provides successful opportunities in the business sector, education, healthcare, local government and the overall quality of life of our community. The Chamber works closely with businesses, our schools, city and county leaders, and volunteers to ensure that that these needs are being met efficiently and in a timely manner.  Discover Odessa diligently looks to maintain perennial events while also attracting new ones.  This past year Discover Odessa generated nearly $19 million for our community by hosting over 125 events with over 18,500 room nights!

The Economic Development department makes contacts with companies looking to start up, relocate their business, or simply to expand existing business.  The team works diligently to be sure that Odessa is able to meet the needs and requirements for these businesses which will ultimately expand our tax base and add job opportunities for Odessans.  Recently, it was announced that a multi-billion dollar project along with several multi-million dollar projects will begin operations in Odessa.

Chamber Operations continues to host many events for Odessans to increase their knowledge about the history of our community, the services that are available, and the many volunteer opportunities for Odessans.  Volunteers and business leaders are recognized for their outstanding service to the Odessa Community.  Chamber Operations provides leadership classes and seminars, new teacher/new student receptions and networking opportunities for chamber members.

Great opportunities wait in our future and the Odessa Chamber is here to partner with business, local government, the healthcare and the educational sectors to make Odessa a better place to live and raise our families!  I am excited to be included with the Chamber Staff, the Board of Directors and the countless volunteers to continue the reputation of being a premier Chamber of Commerce.