MORROW COUNTY- Kristen Thompson is looking to build relationships with the community and help small businesses as she takes on her new role as the Executive Director of the Morrow County Chamber of Commerce.

Thompson is the product of being born and raised in Mount Gilead. She graduated from Mount Gilead High School and then continued her education with her associate’s degree at Marion Tech and then obtained her bachelor’s degree from Mt. Vernon Nazarene University. Currently, Thompson lives outside of Cardington with her husband, five children and two dogs.

Looking at becoming the director of the chamber, Thompson explained what drew her to the role.

“I am passionate about the community I live in. There is so much growth that is coming to Morrow County. I love to see relationships build between people and make sure they are getting the help and the resources they need. Connecting people is one of the things I really enjoy the most,” Thompson said.

When it came to hiring Thompson for the position, former interim director of the chamber Erin Kelty explained the decision was unanimous.

“There were board members and we sat down with her. She wrote the nicest letter about why she felt this was a calling for her that she wanted to come and be a part of it. We interviewed her and everyone was like ‘yes please’. It was very important to the board to have someone from here fill the position because you really don’t understand the content of the character of this community without being from here. You can if you have been here for a long time and you’ve been involved, but there is something that people in this community appreciate about someone that is from here,” Kelty said.

Thompson shared some of her goals she hopes to achieve with her new position in the community.

“We want to see memberships grow and we want people to see the value in the membership. I really want to get out and meet people and go to new businesses. I want to build relationships with the community and I want to provide benefits to them. We are a great resource for each other,” Thompson said.

The Morrow County Chamber of Commerce has some upcoming events including the 2nd Annual Reverse Raffle that will be held on Saturday, March 18th at the Cardington American Legion Hall. Doors will open at 5:00 p.m., dinner at 6:00 p.m., and the raffle begins at 7:00p.m. Tickets are $100 and include two meals and four drink tickets. There is a grand prize of $2,500. Every 10th ticket wins a cash prize. The chamber is only selling 100 tickets for this so get them while they last. Proceeds go to Morrow County high school seniors.

Also, the chamber will be hosting Bowling for Business at the end of April in Cardington. More details will be released in the coming month.

“The more we can do for our members to show the value and then the word spreads where people want to be a part of it,” Thompson said.

“We want to help each other and it does take a village. Truly, that is why we are put on this earth is to help each other and to be a good resource for each other. It starts with reaching out. Small businesses are the backbone of this country. These people work so hard,” Kelty added.

For more information on the Morrow County Chamber of Commerce visit www.morrowchamber.com, email Thompson at [email protected], visit their Facebook page, or call 419-946-2821.