Shoge to Step Down from Kent County Chamber of Commerce, New Executive Director Search Underway
Published in Chestertown Spy | March 4, 2022
Samuel Shoge, Executive Director of the Kent County Chamber of Commerce, announced his departure from the organization to the Kent Chamber‘s Board of Directors, effective April 29, 2022. A search for the next Executive Director is underway.
Barbara Foster, President of the Chamber of Commerce, remarked, “On behalf of the Board of Directors, I want to express sincere appreciation to Sam for his outstanding leadership over the past two years. His creativity, energy, management abilities, and marketing skills have found fertile ground at the Chamber. While we regret that his tenure as Executive Director will soon come to an end, we are pleased that he will continue his association with us as a new member of our business community.”
“I am extremely proud of the work we have accomplished at the Kent Chamber, and I am grateful to the Board for giving me the opportunity to lead this organization,” said Sam Shoge. “I saw firsthand how resilient and creative our businesses are, and just how passionate each member of the Kent Chamber is about our community. The Chamber has a bright future ahead and it has been an honor to represent our businesses.”
Sam assumed the role of Executive Director of the Kent Chamber of Commerce in April 2020 and immediately went to work guiding the organization and the Kent County’s business community through the pandemic. One of the first actions Sam took was to organize a weekly conference call with our Kent County Health Officer and representatives from Kent County Departments of County Commissioners, Emergency Services, and Economic Development to provide critical, up-to-date information about this crisis to business leaders.
As the businesses settled into a “new normal” brought on by the ongoing pandemic, Sam went to work enhancing the image of the Kent Chamber and its benefits to members.
“As a business owner myself, I’ve directly benefited from being a member of and an active participant in chambers of commerce. When I was given the chance to lead the Kent Chamber, I wanted to highlight those unique benefits and share them with as many of our businesses and organizations as I could.” Sam said.
Sam re-imagined longstanding Chamber publications to better reinforce the mission of the Kent County Chamber of Commerce: “to be the leading champion for business in Kent County, Maryland.”
With a clear narrative in place and new and improved assets to broadcast this message, the Kent Chamber realized a surge in membership and community engagement that has resulted in increased revenues. This increased support has helped drive significant investments into dramatically overhauling the systems and processes used to manage the organization.
“Thanks to Sam and our Board of Directors, The Kent County Chamber of Commerce has a solid foundation. Our next Executive Director will have the opportunity to hit the ground running to develop the value of the Chamber to our members and to the community,” concluded Barbara Foster.
