Why I Choose the Chamber

Thursday, October 15, 2020

Jessica Hill, executive director of the Safe House for Women in Cape Girardeau

When I joined the staff of the Safe House for Women in 2014, I was fairly new to the area and brand new to the business community. It was quickly recommended to me to become active in the Cape Chamber. One of the first activities I attended was Chamber First Friday Coffee. I was amazed by the attendance and the quality of the programming. Since then, I’ve often said I could do a whole day’s work at First Friday Coffee! There is simply no other opportunity like it for networking and learning more about the latest developments in the region.

In 2016, I had the opportunity to participate in Leadership Cape through the Chamber. As a result of that rewarding and informative experience, two of my highly-qualified classmates joined the Safe House Board of Directors and now serve as our board secretary and personnel committee chair. I have also been able to participate in the Chamber Women’s Network and various Chamber training opportunities. I’ve also had the opportunity to speak at a Young Professionals Conference in 2018 and to present a program on the impact of the non-profit sector at a First Friday Coffee, representing the Southeast Council on Philanthropy in 2019.

While the benefits of Chamber membership might be most obvious for businesspeople, I strongly recommend membership to non-profit leaders, as well. Through the Chamber, I’ve been able to make contact with service-oriented businesses to partner with for my agency’s banking, insurance, IT services and more. Engagement with the Chamber has also provided additional opportunities to make positive contact with donors, event sponsors and supporters of our agency.

In the past few months, we’ve received support from the Chamber through their COVID-19 resource information sharing, and we’ve taken advantage of their free face mask program for members. I firmly believe my participation with Chamber activities has advanced our agency’s mission and raised awareness of the issue of domestic violence in our community. Cape Girardeau has a chamber of commerce to be proud of, and I’m proud to count myself among their members.