Campbell announces retirement

Clarendon Chamber of Commerce Manager Bonnie Campbell announced her intention to retire during a meeting of the Chamber board last Thursday, January 5.

Campbell says she has loved working with the Chamber and that she and her husband, Gary, have plans to travel.

“I have thoroughly enjoyed my time with the Chamber, but we want to be able to go see our kids and grandkids in Tennessee more often,” Campbell said. “I will not leave until we can get someone who I can show where everything is. I came on when we just had an answering machine, and we don’t want to go back to that.”

Chamber President Roger Estlack said the organization owes a debt of gratitude to Campbell.

“The board and I deeply appreciate all that Bonnie has done for the Chamber,” president Roger Estlack said. “I think it’s safe to say that there might very well not be a Chamber today if not for her efforts starting five years ago.”

Campbell has led the Chamber since January 2012 when she joined the board and was named president. After spending two and a half years on a volunteer basis, she resigned her board position to become the paid chamber manager in September 2014.

Campbell helped lead the Chamber through a difficult time, reviving an organization that was once in disarray, growing its membership, and getting it on sound financial footings. She says she is pleased with the growth the Chamber has seen and the respect and trust the organization has earned in the community.

“I’ve loved working with the people – both the visitors and the community – and working with the board,” Campbell said. “I’m proud of the number of people that we now have visit the office and proud of the growth of membership. We were down to less than 20, and now we have close to 100.”

A committee of the board will now begin the task of finding Campbell’s successor. Applications for the job are available at the Clarendon Visitor Center, which is open weekdays from 10:00 to noon and 1:00 to 3:00 p.m.

Campbell will be honored during the Chamber’s annual banquet on February 9.