The Lavaca Area Chamber of Commerce met on Monday, August 5 at 6:00 PM in the Lavaca Municipal Building. President Jack James called the meeting to order and welcomed the members and guest. Drake Smith led the group in prayer.
The first item on the agenda was the reading of the July meeting minutes as recorded by chamber reporter, Angela Gillooley. They were passed unanimously. (Drake/Ken)
July Financials were reported by our treasurer, Holly Creel. Our funds are down since we have done so many activities this past year but the fall events should bring the accounts back to where we are comfortable. Financials passed unanimously. (Lorie/Ken)
Angela Gillooley reported that the Back-to-School=Bash was a success! There was a good attendance and it looked as if everyone had fun. We have many area businesses to thank for helping make it a good day. Movies have been chosen for the rest of the year and a complete calendar will be posted in an upcoming issue of The Sentry. Flyers will be made and placed in traffic area about town and in schools.
Jack James reported that the concert featuring the local group Wild Card went over very well. The Lavaca Senior Center was the location due to its large space for the band and the patrons to enjoy. The small concession stand and donations made enough to pay for the expenses and some left over to pay the band $50. Some of the people there remarked at how great a time they had and even asked us to do this weekly or monthly. We’ll see!
The Lavaca Centennial is coming up on October 5 and plans are in full swing to make it a memorable day! The City and Chamber are working on plans for most of the day across downtown. Music, hot dogs, drinks, time capsule, parade, cattle drive, displays, Woman-less Beauty Pageant and the largest cake ever in Lavaca are just some of the day’s activities. Mayor Hardgrave and the city representative weren’t at the meeting but we visited briefly about plans from the City and the Chamber anyway.
Lorie Robertson, Chairperson over the Sebastian County Barn Quilt Project, reported that she had secured the plywood for our area planned quilt squares. Paint will hopefully be donated or purchased soon so we can get started and let many of you see an example. It’s going to bring people to our town and the area’s businesses.
October 12 is our 2019 Cruise Night! Some things have been change slightly but it won’t stop cool and classic cars, trucks, or motorcycles from cruising Main Street. T-shirts have been designed and will be on sale in the near future. Lance Hobbs is having a car show as well, beginning earlier than the cruise begins. More information is coming so please, look for updates.
The Lavaca Berry Festival is going to be on November 2 this year. That is a long way from berry picking time but with rain and/or heat concerns and other scheduled activities in the way, it was decided to have it in November. It will be the perfect time to start shopping for Christmas presents also. Vendors are already applying to attend. Food trucks are asking to get involved as well. If you’d like to buy a booth space as a vendor, please email us at [email protected].
The chamber discussed our website and purchased our domain name for two additional years. Lorie Robertson and Drake Smith will be working to keep that project going as it brings us a good Internet presence. Members are urged to give them anything that they can post on our pages.
Jack James announced that the Culpepper Circus had expressed interest in coming back to Lavaca for a performance. After some great discussion, it was decided to decline their offer to come here. The last time we had them we had a lot of work to do but made very little off of the circus and it brought little or no interest to local businesses. The vote passed with only one voting no.
A program titled “Once Upon a Crime” had also called but we had little information on it. We will discuss it further soon.
Our next meeting will be on September 9. The date conflicts with the scheduled City Council meeting so we will meet at the Mi Casita Restaurant at 6 PM on the same date and time. With no further business to discuss, the motion to adjourn was unanimous. (Holly/Ken)
