Fest makes $6,000

The Odessa Chamber of Commerce met November 14 at noon at Any Occasion Banquet Hall with only a small band of members present. A final report on the proceeds from September’s Deutschesfest was provided by treasurer Larissa Zeiler. Once all the bills were paid and all the revenue streams were counted, the official profits from the festival came to just about $6,000. Last April’s Desert 100 weekend sponsored mainly by the Stumpjumpers Motorcycle Club made $4,900 by comparison. The treasury currently stands at $58,485 and the Chamber has a net operating loss for the year thus far of about $65.

Budget discussions for the next year will begin soon, and Chamber president Zach Schafer said he would appreciate input from the membership about ways to cut expenses and operate more efficiently in order to improve the organization’s financial situation.

Schafer also reported that he has been informed by next year’s Biergarten chair person Lindsy Starkel that she will be assisted by Trevor Smith, who will then take over the chair for the year after that.

Kelly Korpinen and Laura Estes, the Kitchen Kops, as they refer to themselves, have been busy working to streamline operations having to do with Odessa’s commercial kitchen in the community center. They have created simpler checklists and are putting up instructional signs throughout the kitchen, providing directions on how to leave things clean and ready for the next group to use the facility. They reported that for the first time they had withheld the cleaning deposit from a group that recently used the kitchen because of the mess that had been left. They have also been working with the clerk’s office to ensure that information provided to potential users of the facility is up to date and correct.

Estes was asked whether she still planned to offer a canning and preserving workshop in the community kitchen in the near future. She responded that such an event was possible in the new year, and she would make inquiries as to the potential level of interest in the community.

Schafer has been in touch with the chairman of the Desert 100 race weekend (April 7-8, 2018), who has requested that the Biergarten at that event be closed at midnight on Friday and Saturday nights. Schafer said he assured them that it could be done, especially since the hours after midnight tended to be sparsely attended. It would also help the Chamber by eliminating the need to find volunteers to work those hours in the beer tent.

The Chamber’s activities on the weekend of the Desert 100 are also still in need of a chair person or chair persons. Both Zach Schafer of Rocky Coulee Brewing Co. and Marlon Schafer of Odessa Office Equipment (local Internet provider) have handled this oversight function in the past, usually to the detriment of their own businesses. They are requesting someone to step up and be the “go-to” person at the race site who can answer questions, direct people where they need to go and act as a liaison with Stumpjumpers Club leadership regarding any issues that might arise at the site.

Nomination of officers for the coming year was postponed until the December meeting when the nominations will be opened prior to the election itself. Except for the positions of secretary and at-large board member, the officers currently in place have agreed to continue in their posts for one more year (unless someone chooses to volunteer to replace them).

The Chamber board has decided that a New Year’s Eve party this year will fall on a weekend once again and will also take place too close to the Lions Club crab feed (expected to be in late January, early February). Therefore, plans will be made to hold the annual meeting and banquet during the second or third week of March 2018. Joy Walter Praetorius is in charge of organizing the banquet.