Longtime Lawrence businessman to become Chamber of Commerce CEO; Terre Haute Chamber Selects New President; Oklahoma City tied for nation's lowest unemployment rate; Missouri and St Louis District SBA Added Locations of Free Credit Building Workshops; Coalition grows for Michigan civil rights amendment to bar sexual orientation discrimination; Famous Chamber of Commerce Quotations: (Attitude) Curly McLain

"My family's known for 30 years I've always said that if I were to do any other job in this town that I think I have the skills set for, and the passion for, to be the chamber exec," Larry McElwain said.
From owning the Warren-McElwain Mortuary, to now being named as the new Chamber of Commerce CEO, Larry McElwain's words have finally caught up with him.
"Never dreaming that that would ever occur," McElwain said.
But for the longtime Lawrencian who graduated from the University of Kansas and has worked with community members for over 40 years, he recently sold his mortuary business. However, he believes the relationships he's attained from working in his former career, has prepared him for his new role. 6NewsLawrence

Terre Haute Chamber Selects New President

Terre Haute, IN – The Terre Haute Chamber of Commerce announced today that Terre Haute native David Haynes has been selected by the Board of Directors to serve as President. He will assume the role on June 16.
“This is an exciting day for the Chamber,” stated Jeanette Winchester, Chair of the Board. “Over the course of the past three months, we have considered a number of candidates, both local and non-local. Our members asked us for someone with a commitment to the community and we’ve been fortunate to find that person. Not only is he local, but he is also a great fit for this position.” - Read more: Terre Haute Chamber

Oklahoma City tied for nation's lowest unemployment rate

Oklahoma City jobless rate of 3.8 percent in April tied with Austin, Texas, for the lowest unemployment rate among large U.S. cities, according to a monthly Bureau of Labor Statistics report released Wednesday. Read more:  NewsOK


Missouri and St Louis District SBA Added Locations of Free Credit Building Workshops

The SBA St. Louis District's Lender Relations staff will present information on how to obtain financing for your small business at free credit building workshops in Ellisville, St. Ann, Columbia, Rolla, Cape Girardeau and Hannibal, Missouri. Each session will provide information for entrepreneurs interested in starting or growing their business on how to obtain financing and on the importance of your credit scores in accessing capital.

Choose from the following locations:

Thursday, June 12
9:30 - 11:30 a.m.
St. Louis County Library - Daniel Boone Branch
300 Clarkson Rd., Blue Room
Ellisville, MO 63011-2222

Thursday, June 12
2:00 - 4:00 p.m.
St. Louis County Library - Rock Road Branch
10267 St. Charles Rock Road
St. Ann, MO 63074-1812

Thursday, June 19
1:00 - 3:00 p.m.
Small Business & Technology Development Center
Regional Economic Development, Inc. (REDI)
500 East Walnut, Suite 103
Columbia, MO 65210

Thursday, June 19
5:00 - 7:30 p.m.
Matt's Steakhouse
12200 Dillon Outer Drive
Rolla, MO 65409

Thursday, June 26
10:00 - 11:30 a.m.
Douglas C. Greene Center for
Innovation and Entrepreneurship
920 Broadway, Room 112
Cape Girardeau, MO 63701

Thursday, July 10
10:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
Hannibal Area Community College
190 Shinn Lane
Hannibal, MO 63401

Coalition grows for Mich. civil rights amendment to bar sexual orientation discrimination

Michigan's two largest chambers were to announce Thursday that they had joined the coalition working to amend state civil rights law to include sexual orientation and gender identity.
The Michigan Competitive Workforce Coalition supports amending Michigan's Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act to include barring discrimination based on those two categories.
The Detroit Regional Chamber, Grand Rapids Area Chamber of Commerce, Kellogg Co. and PfizerInc. are among those signing on to the initiative launched earlier this month. The coalition now includes major employers, ranging from AT&T and Herman Miller Inc. to Chrysler and Steelcase Inc. Read more:  Business Insurance

Famous Chamber of Commerce Quotations: (Attitude) 
"Oh, what a beautiful morning, oh, what a beautiful day, I've got a wonderful feeling everything is going my way" --- Character Curly McLain from the musical "Oklahoma"