Chamber Blog

This excerpt brazenly transposed from official Chamber letterhead into a 2021 blog post, is meant to give you a proper intro to the history of our local Chamber. 

In 1971, business leaders like John Dwyer, Bill Brown and Tom Cashin, came together to consolidate and connect the communities of Genesee County. The principle of a county-wide Chamber was something that was already being embraced in other upstate NY communities and The Batavia and Le Roy Chambers strongly endorsed this same type of initiative in our county.

Your average person may not know but back in the day Chambers of Commerce were power players in the economic and social development of our country. Ever heard of “The Boston Tea Party”? Fun Fact: organized by the Boston Chamber of Commerce. In essence, Chambers are a business network of local organizations formed by business owners to advocate on behalf of local communities. Chambers range in size from small community chambers to state wide chambers and even national chambers. All sharing the similarity of promoting and supporting the business communities they represent.

In Genesee County before 1971 there were two primary Chambers: The Batavia Chamber of Commerce and the Le Roy Chamber of Commerce. Setting competitiveness aside, the Board of Directors of these Chambers agreed that a county-wide Chamber was warranted and necessary. As seen underlined in red on the official transcripts, “we will not be LeRoy/Batavia.” Meaning that they wanted a balance of representation from Batavia, Le Roy, and the remainder of the county to create a cross section of the communities and businesses they served.  “Employment opportunities do not know town, village or city lines. The roads and highways of the county are more like streets in a larger community, than byways to one place to another.” In a way these “Chamber Forefathers” were the first movers on the consolidation that is seen commonly across the GLOW region today.

On July 10th, 1972 The Genesee County Chamber of Commerce was founded on an idea of a county wide community, meant to bring together people from all aspects of industry and business. These people would work together to promote a more vibrant local economy across the towns and villages of the county. A county-wide Chamber, would embrace and replace the present Le Roy and Batavia Chambers and would extend its representation to the remainder of Genesee County. This would be a major improvement on the current model and a more efficient use of resources for local businesses. 

Forty-nine years later… The Chamber is still holding true to those values. Working continuously to advocate on behalf of the local business environment, and improve the quality of life for both residents and local businesses in Genesee County. The idea of a harmonious county-wide support system is an idea that requires constant attention. We at The Chamber take pride in being leaders of that vision of community partnership.

The evolution of society has made The Chamber something different than it once was. However, with a team full of local and inspired individuals, we believe we are maintaining the vision our forefathers bestowed upon us. With over 500 local organizations involved, the Genesee County Chamber is still a valued community asset and will continue to grow and prosper into the future. Thank you to the local businesses and to the local business community for believing in our mission of a brighter Genesee County! Without you 49 years wouldn’t have been possible! 

Just be ready, because when that 50th anniversary hits we will be celebrating all year long!