CHAMBER PLANS MEMBERSHIP BLITZ MAY 11

"The Future is Now" is the theme, and 60 new members is the goal of the Cape Girardeau Chamber of Commerce's annual one-day membership blitz, which will be conducted next week.

"Sixty new members will put us over the 1,100 mark again," said Robert B. Hendrix, president and chief executive officer of the Cape Chamber. "Our present membership is about 1,050."

Hendrix, who has announced his retirement at the chamber, effective in December, will be keynote speaker during the membership kickoff buffet breakfast, to be held at the Drury Lodge at 7:30 a.m. May 11.

Co-chairpersons of the membership drive this year are Kathy Bertrand, Boatmen's Bank, and Don Hill, Capetown RV Sales.

Membership teams will call on Cape Girardeau businesses and professionals who are not already members of the Cape Girardeau Chamber of Commerce.

A year ago, the one-day blitz netted 68 new members.

"We expect that many or more this year," said Hill. "We want to keep the chamber over the 1,100 mark in membership." The membership fluctuates throughout the year between 1,050 and 1,100.

The drive will start with the 7:30 a.m. kickoff breakfast at Drury Lodge, Route K and Interstate 55, and continue until 4:30 p.m. Businesses and professionals can expect visits from the volunteers from 8:30 a.m. on, said Hill.

"We work in pairs. It's a fun day," said Hill, who said that about 75 volunteers will participate. The Membership committee is recruiting teams now.

Hill said many people, including current chamber members, often ask what the chamber does for them.

"My basic answer to them is, `Unless you're involved with the chamber and the community, it doesn't do anything for you.'"

Hendrix added that "membership in the Cape Girardeau Chamber of Commerce means that you will become better informed about what is happening and what will happen in Cape Girardeau that affects your vital business interests."

Eighteen chamber committees exist, Hill said. "That's a wide variety. There's a committee for anybody to be involved in," Hill said.

The Cape Girardeau Chamber of Commerce is the fourth largest chamber in the state of Missouri, and that includes the Kansas City and St. Louis area.

"We top the list in our population bracket," said Hill.