ELLY GRIMM
• Leader & Times
The Liberal community has seen some changes in terms of businesses throughout 2024, and the Liberal Chamber of Commerce had a big hand in making that work happen.
As Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Rozelle Webb tells it, 2024 kept the staff very busy.
“2024 was a really good year for the Chamber of Commerce, and I hope 2025 ends up being just as good or better for us because our Chamber businesses need all the support possible from the community,” Webb said. “We hope to see people continue to shop Liberal first, that's been one of the big points of emphasis we've had for 2024, because we always want people to find what they want/need in Liberal before venturing out of town or going online. I know some of our local businesses have had issues finding employees, so hopefully in 2025, that will be a better situation for them. We're very happy to have hosted multiple successful events, and something we were able to bring back in 2024 was our Chamber After-Hours events. We started that in November and have hosted six of those After-Hours events so far at local business, which has been great because that means people are getting to know these places better and know their community better. Our Wrap-A-Lamp competition ended up really well this year, we had almost 60 poles decorated from the railroad tracks all the way to 8th Street by various businesses, and it helps make the town look festive and draws people in to do their Christmas shopping.”
Webb said the various Chamber-hosted events were also a success in 2024.
“We also had a very successful Chamber Bash in 2024, everyone had a great time and a lot of fun, and we had about 35 corporate tables decorated that evening, and our 2025 Bash will be March 29, which will here before everyone knows it,” Webb said. “Our annual golf tournament also had great turnout in 2024, and our Duck Race Festival was also really well attended, and there was amazing weather for both of those events, which we were VERY grateful for. We also had a big turnout to our annual New Educators Breakfast, there were 93 teachers welcomed, and our annual awards banquet saw a lot of scholarship money given out to local students, which we always love seeing. We also hosted multiple legislative events, including legislative luncheons and breakfasts, and our local representatives are always good about keeping us updated on their goings-on through those events. We also hosted a big dinner with other Southwest Kansas Chamber of Commerce branches, which was also really well attended. We also recently honored our Men and Women of Distinction, and I'm always proud of the nominees who get chosen for that, and it's great to honor people who do good throughout the community.”
Overall, Webb said, 2024 was another successful year for Liberal.
“2024 was definitely an extremely busy year for the Chamber of Commerce, and I feel like everything ended up going very, very well, and I hope 2025 is about the same or even better,” Webb said. “We were able to welcome 17 new businesses to the community in 2024, which is a lower number than 2023, but that's still a good number. Something else I'd resolved to do in 2024 was to visit all of the businesses that are a member of the Chamber of Commerce, and I was able to do that with most of them, which I was very proud of because it's important to know what those business owners are thinking and how we can help them if they need it. I spent quite a few days doing that, and I definitely learned a lot.”
The Chamber of Commerce’s Junior Ambassadors program, which has been in place for the past three years, has also been a success, Webb said.
“The Junior Ambassadors has been fantastic, and this is the third year of the program. We try to have two sophomores, two juniors and two seniors to be in those slots so everyone can move up as they go through school, meaning they could potentially serve in that role for three years,” Webb said. “They've come to events and ribbon-cuttings and help us out in so many different ways, and it's been an amazing program. This year, we also worked with the USD 480 superintendent, Stephen Linkous, on an Adopt-A-School program, and there are five businesses that have committed to being part of that.”
With all the successes of 2024, Webb said there is a lot to look forward to in 2025.
“We want to continue those After-Hours events with our local businesses, and there are several different committees I'm on that are working on encouraging people who have moved away from Liberal to come back and settle down,” Webb said. “There are several people I've talked to who have actually already done that, and we want to bring more people back because Liberal's a good place and a peaceful community. A main goal of ours is to support the local businesses already set up in town and do work that can help them with whatever they need. It's always great to meet more new people, so hopefully we continue seeing more new businesses come in, whether it's a smaller business or something more along the lines of larger industry, either would be great in terms of drawing people into town. I love how we're building more housing to anticipate for that, so hopefully we actually see more people coming into Liberal.”
Webb also offered encouragement for people to keep up with the Chamber of Commerce’s events and programs.
“Getting involved with the Chamber of Commerce, you can do that to the level you want, whether you want to come to only a couple events occasionally or head up committees and come to everything we do,” Webb said. “Being part of the Chamber of Commerce is a great way to meet other business leaders – we have 35 Chamber Ambassadors and seven Junior Ambassadors from Liberal High School. It's all about making those connections and being connected with what's going on in the community. We share a lot of information on our social media pages to keep people in the loop, and we'll continue doing that. Being part of the Chamber of Commerce is truly like joining an extra community, and there's a lot we do throughout the community. Being a Chamber member also has multiple perks for business owners, including a page on our Chamber of Commerce Web site, referrals (if there's someone needing their help), and other benefits. The Chamber of Commerce is truly a community effort.”
Webb added she is happy to see a successful 2024 in the books.
“I really appreciate all the support the Chamber of Commerce receives, and I'm so happy to be able to work with so many different entities and groups to spread the word about what they're doing,” Webb said. “2024 has seen a lot of people and businesses come together for different ventures, and I hope to see that continue in 2025.”
