MINT HILL, NC – On January 14, the Mint Hill Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors met at Targhee Farms for their annual board retreat. Situated in a barn and led by Targhee Farm Owner and Chamber of Commerce Executive Board President Rick Peniston, the retreat focused on “leadership lessons from a horse.”
The 2022 Executive Board is composed of President Rick Peniston (Peniston Deason Attorneys at Law), Vice President Phil Angelo (Leisure Travel Experts), Secretary Joy Greear (Novant Health Mint Hill Medical Center), Treasurer Jennifer Manchester (Suburban Properties of Charlotte, LLC), and Immediate Past President Kim Rhodarmer (A Servant’s Heart). The Executive Board is joined by leaders from a variety of businesses and organizations in Mint Hill to fill the Chamber’s Board of Directors.
The annual Chamber retreat offers a chance for the Board of Directors to come together to discuss their goals and refine their vision. As we emerge from the Omicron surge and approach the end of the current mask mandate, this year’s annual retreat also offered an opportunity to discuss the pandemic-related challenges Mint Hill’s business community still faces and how the Chamber can best help them meet those challenges. The goals the Board discussed at the retreat will fuel their work throughout the year.
“I want the Mint Hill Chamber of Commerce to be the rally point of the Town,” says President Peniston. “We advertise and promote Mint Hill every week of the year through our monthly speaker series luncheons, and our special events: Spring Tea, Golf Tournament, Cornhole Tournament and Pop Up Christmas. The connectivity generated among our business community raises the profile and prosperity for members as well as the community in general. We recognize and salute our Mayor and Commissioners at every luncheon they attend, and we offer them the forum to meet with our business people and provide updates on Town events. I believe now more than ever that prosperity rises up from the community level; prosperity binds communities and secures families.”
Another important group to recognize are the Chamber’s 2022 Ambassadors, volunteers who are passionate about their membership in the Chamber and eager to represent the Chamber at a variety of functions. Ambassadors are goodwill representatives of the Chamber who actively work promote the Chamber and its purpose, retain current members and enlist new ones.
Ambassadors represent numerous and varied businesses and organizations in Mint Hill: Anna Granger (1st Choice Properties), Annette Smith (Mint Hill Coffee & Social House), Brandon Rios (Novant Health Mint Hill Medical Center), Brittany Kearney (PACE of the Southern Piedmont), Cassie Brooks (Town of Mint Hill), Dawn Leavesley (Messer Financial), Denise Boston (Chick-fil-A Albemarle Road and Mint Hill), Erin Ferguson (Realty One Group Revolution), James Asbury (Giving Tree Realty), James Rountree (Handyman Solutions Mint Hill), Jeanette Thornton (Mint Hill Pharmacy), Jessi Healey (Jessi Healey, LLC), Kara Horn (Novant Health Mint Hill Medical Center), Kimberly Mitchell (First National Bank), Madi McKinney (SeaTrust Mortgage), Melissa Fields (First National Bank), Melissa Tamez (Bright Blessings), Mindy Parman (Thrivent Financial), Robert Smith (Mint Hill Coffee & Social House), Sheryl Smith (Town of Mint Hill), and Tonya Kerr (Business Brokers of the Carolinas, LLC). With COVID rates declining, Ambassadors will focus this year on getting members engaged with the Chamber and connected to one another.
“Our ambassadors are very engaged and want to help the local businesses grow here in our community,” says Executive Director Paige McKinney. “Our board members and our ambassadors are committed to working together in 2022 to foster that spirit of entrepreneurship for our current and future members of the Chamber.”
