The Times - Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley

WAITSBURG-The Waitsburg Commercial Club has been under Joy Smith's leadership for nearly eight years. Last Thursday, Smith handed the reins off to Jamie McMillen-Smit, the owner of the Waitsburg Grocery.

Smith joined the Commercial Club in 2010, and she recalled that she accepted a spot with the board of directors within the first nine months of membership. In 2012, Smith was elected as the president, where she has served ever since. She has dedicated the past eight years to promoting the Commercial Club and the community of Waitsburg, building business relationships, and connecting businesses and the community.

"I am not walking away from the club. I am here for whatever resources they want to utilize, but I want them to put their own touch on it," Smith said, encouraging the new board to make their own mark.

While she would undoubtedly do it all over again, Smith said she is looking forward to spending more time with her grandchildren and her mother, who lives in the Tri-Cities.

"I get to travel to Boston this year," Smith said cheerfully. "That is something I haven't done in a while." One of Smith's sons lives in Boston, along with two of her grandchildren.

The Commercial Club, which was founded in 1912, serves Waitsburg as an economic development partner, a community event host and sponsor, and acts as a liaison between member businesses and our communities.

The new Commercial Club president, Jamie McMillen-Smit, has hit the ground running and is already making preparations for the club's upcoming annual Club Awards Banquet on April 17 at Town Hall in Waitsburg.

McMillen-Smit, who previously served as the second Vice President of the club, is looking forward to working with her new board and wants to focus on reviving Waitsburg's Main Street and the community's involvement.

"We want to boost local events," said McMillen-Smit. "We just want to make Waitsburg bigger and better. We also would love to make our awards banquet huge. We want to fill the Town Hall this year." McMillen-Smit plans to work with members and business to revamp some annual events to reflect their interpretation of what 'One of a Kind Waitsburg' means to them.

McMillen-Smit will serve alongside First Vice President Brooke Mikesell, owner of Blush Salon & Spa, Second Vice President Bev Rising, Treasurer Becky Lynch, and Secretary Lynne Carpenter.

Together, the new officers bring years of community involvement and a variety of industry experience in areas including housing, banking, emergency response, and school involvement.

The Commercial Club is currently accepting nominations for their board of directors. McMillen-Smit hopes to have the directors selected and approved at their next meeting on March 26. The new officers have discussed moving the time and place of the meetings in order to better accommodate work schedules for members.

Attending club members offered a few suggestions for the future, including extending board members' terms and staggering elections, to provide greater continuity. McMillen-Smit later acknowledged the intrigue of longer terms, when she expressed that she feared she wouldn't be able to make the impact she hoped for in a single year.

The Commercial Club's next meeting is set for March 26, at the Karl Law Office, located at 145 Main Street, Waitsburg. Time TBD.