Heritage Days next on schedule

McCOOK, Ne. -- Coming off a successful Crazy Days, the McCook Chamber of Commerce is looking forward to its next big event, Heritage Days.

“Crazy Days went really, really well,” said Chamber President Dawson Brunswick. “I apparently had a weather machine stashed away somewhere because we got three really nice days of weather for summer. Everyone I’ve talked to said they had a great Crazy Days.”

Brunswick went on to say that he got a variety of answers from merchants; some had their best days on Thursday, others on Friday or Saturday. He also said that many merchants commented that they had a lot of out-of-town shoppers. “I think McCook’s trade hub really kind of showed during Crazy Days.”

Heritage Days is still in the planning process, but as of now, they are still planning to go ahead with most of the major events that will take place from September 23rd to the 27th. “We’re watching the DHM’S [directed health measures], but we just want to be prepared so that when the time comes to say yes or no, everything’s in place to have a Heritage Days.”

Brunswick said that there may be some things that look different this year. For example, the parade route may be more stretched out, allowing spectators to easily social distance on their own terms. The vendors in the park may be more spaced apart, or even divided into two locations if they get enough applications. “The community needs it [Heritage Days]. We need something to do and there are so many different organizations that rely on it as part of their fundraising efforts. It’s just so important to still have.”

Brunswick also reported that a McCook Chamber Foundation has been established as a separate entity. The officers of the Chamber Foundation board of directors are the officers of the Chamber of Commerce, but they will be looking for four additional board members to serve on the Chamber Foundation board.

“We’re really hoping for the foundation to tie into more of the educational side of the chamber, with youth entrepreneurship and educational opportunities for business owners.” Brunswick said that the chamber made an initial contribution to the foundation that will get them started. Future plans are to be part of the Big Give campaign and looking for opportunities to receive some grant dollars for educational purposes.

Brunswick also said that the board of directors reviewed the chamber’s financial reports at their recent meeting. “The financials from a year ago are much different than where they are today, thanks to a lot of different changes.” Brunswick further explained that moving the chamber office into the Keystone Business Center was a tremendous cost-savings. He also said that focusing chamber efforts on being an asset and a resource for chamber members in the community has helped the chamber become more efficient.

“We’ve looked back several times at the community feedback that the board gained about a year ago,” Brunswick said. He said that he is working on developing some ideas that will move the chamber forward to coincide with the community’s vision of the chamber.

Those ideas will be presented at future chamber board meetings.