Lynbrook, East Rockaway chambers prepare for new year

In 2015, residents of Lynbrook and East Rockaway can expect their chambers of commerce to push the issue of local shopping with new events and new leadership, according to the heads of both chambers.

“Our biggest plans for 2015, just like it has been in years past, has been to try and get the word out around Lynbrook to keep your dollar local and understand the impact that those dollars can have on local businesses,” said outgoing Lynbrook Chamber of Commerce President Denise Rogers. “We want to keep doing what we can to make sure people understand just how important local commerce is.”

Rogers said the Lynbrook chamber plans to get that message out with its usual schedule of events and community outreach, while working to get even more events up and running.

“We’re going to keep doing the events that residents have kind of come to know us by, things like the car show, taste of Lynbrook and Small Business Saturday at the back part of the calendar year,” Rogers said. “But we also are trying to find out what other events or service the people of Lynbrook want from us. If there are things that they want us to do or events they want to see, we want to try and help make that happen.”

Rogers said that she would not be the one to make those things happen in 2015, however. That honor will belong to Linda Stephenson, a branch manager at Bethpage Federal Credit Union, the chamber’s 2014 “Small Businessperson of the Year” and the chamber’s incoming president.

“Linda has been my ‘right-hand man’, so to speak, for years now,” she explained. “She’s played a large role in the chamber as the VP and she knows the ins-and-outs of a lot of Lynbrook. She’s going to do a great job.”

Stephenson said she plans to spend her first few weeks as President spending time meeting and getting to know the business owners in Lynbrook.

“I want to just get out on Main Street, talk to every member I can and find out what they need,” she explained. “Some of our members can’t attend meetings regularly due to time constraints and I want to make sure their needs are recognized, to make sure we’re doing all we can to support all our businesses.”