Turn to the Rock Falls Chamber
NOW More Than Ever Before.
Together, We’ll Build a Stronger Future.

-Bethany Bland, Chamber President/CEO

Sometimes, things are not what they appear to be.
Yes, there has been a multi-billion dollar bailout of the national banking industry.
Yes, there has been billions of dollars spent on the auto industry bailout.
Yes, the unemployment rate continues to climb and yes, there are dozens of foreclosures weekly in the local newspapers.
But, are things really as bad as they appear to be?
This past January I talked with over a dozen retailers and commercial business owners, asking, “What kind of a December did you have?”
They all said it was as good as last year, but, four businesses, what I would call major players, said it was the best December they have ever had.
When asked if they had any plans to downsize staff, 50% said no. A third said they didn’t know and the remainder said they are considering adding staff. Two manufactures said they did have some layoffs already, but added these layoffs were seasonal due to historical trends. One said it was a direct result of the national or global economy.
Banking and mortgage company representatives have said they are very busy refinancing home loans due directly to the low, near historic interest rates. When home owners refinance and lower their payments, it means they have more disposable income to spend and that gets the economy running again.
While we know the Rock River Valley is not bullet-proof to national trends, we do believe our mostly conservative values will be an asset, and that’s evident in our 2009 budget.
With a close watch on the national economy and what implications that may have on our local economy, we believe, as a Chamber of Commerce, and a leading representative of business, that the correct attitude must be positive and that is reflected to some extent in our 2009 budget.
We remain cautious on the revenue side and so we have added three new projects for 2009, the most significant of which is the street banner project. The other two events include a December holiday event at the Community Building and a fall harvest event with the farmer’s market as a centerpiece to be located somewhere near the Community State Bank and Culver’s area.
While we try to balance our profit and loss statements much as our members do, our 2009 budget is the largest in history.
There have been significant events in Rock Falls during the past few years, events that often happen out of the public eye. But we believe 2009 has strong possibilities of being a benchmark year for the city resulting in a stronger Chamber of Commerce.
We have quality people to serve you on our Board of Directors and our Ambassador Club is the largest it has been in recent year.
We thank the membership for their continuing support and are eager to meet the challenges ahead.

Bethany Bland
President/CEO
Rock Falls Chamber of Commerce

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