Diane Strickland’s tenure as the president of the Bainbridge-Decatur County Chamber of Commerce is coming to an end in September as she prepares for retirement.

“It’s been an honor to have the opportunity to serve as the Chamber president and serve the community,” Strickland said.

Strickland has worked for the Chamber since 2006 when she joined as an administrative assistant. She then moved to the membership director position for two years before becoming president four years ago.

“I’ve had the opportunity to work with some really awesome people, build some great relationships, make new friends,” Strickland said. “I feel like the job has allowed me to grow both professionally and personally.”

During her tenure as president, Strickland helped grow several of the Chamber’s programs and fundraisers including the doubling of River Town Days this year.

Before working with the Chamber, she did various jobs from bookkeeping to advertisement to radio on top of being a mother to two sons.

“I really didn’t know what I was looking for professionally,” Strickland said, “but I had always admired the work of the Chamber and what it stood for and the visibility in the community. It just seemed like they were doing good in the community. It seemed like a good organization to work for.”

Strickland said one of her favorite parts about working with the Chamber has been working with the volunteers and seeing the impact of some of the Chamber’s programs, such as the leadership programs for Bainbridge youths.

“It’s pretty rewarding to see where some of the students come in and where they end up at and just knowing what they’ve learned and what we’ve exposed them to – see them transition from beginning to end,” Strickland said.

She is retiring, but Strickland said that she is not quitting her volunteer efforts with hopes of helping out by volunteering with future Chamber projects or projects with other organizations in Decatur County.

While she will miss the relationships and the people she gets to see on a regular basis, Strickland is looking forward to spending more time with her family and doing some traveling with her husband.

Strickland said, “I will miss it, but I’m looking forward to retirement.”