Chamber of Commerce gets new Executive Director

COLFAX - The Colfax Chamber of Commerce has a new Executive Director.

Rachel Shad, of Rosalia, started the position on Friday, Nov. 12.

"I've been looking for a role that involves community engagement," Shad said.

Shad and her husband lived in Pullman where Shad was the owner of Sweet Mutiny, a cupcake shop formerly in Pullman, Shad has experience as a small business owner and was operating manager of the business from 2016 to 2018.

Living in Rosalia for four years, Shad's husband is a full-time paramedic firefighter for the City of Pullman and the family wanted to live between Pullman and Spokane so they could be involved in both communities, Shad said.

"Another good thing about Rosalia is they have volunteer firefighters," said Shad, noting that she is a volunteer firefighter, and volunteers play a crucial role in the areas operating smoothly and safely.

Shad said while her position at the Chamber of Commerce is paid, the board members are volunteers, and everything done is a volunteer position.

"That deserves more credit," said Shad. "They need to be appreciated for their desire to help their community and be involved."

Other aspects of the job that Shad looks forward to include relationship building and being a part of something that is challenged and frequently changing.

"I love having different events happening and the networking portion," said Shad.

"My prior experience of being a business owner helped me understand the struggles that businesses go through," said Shad. "And the impact like the Chamber of Commerce can have on helping promote businesses and make them easier to operate and thrive in a small town like Colfax."

Shad said she would love to see the Chamber membership grow, with previous years having around 100 members and it currently at approximately 40.

"My goal is to grow the membership, be more active with the social media aspect," said Shad. "Focus on getting more community members involved with our monthly mixers."

Shad said she also plans on pursuing grants to fund programs that the chamber can operate with the purpose of improving business in the City of Colfax.