Visitor Education

There are many things about being the Executive Director of the Pullman Chamber I enjoy.  The community members, business owners, and students that we work with, the visitors that reach out to us for information about Pullman and our region, and the co-workers and volunteers that make going to work so much fun.

The diversity in what we do and the day to day surprises are what keep me excited about going to work.  Every day brings new adventures and new inquiries.  With those questions, usually comes education for all of us here at the Chamber office.  I would venture to say that no visitor leaves here without a great understanding of our community, our region and our university.  If a visitor asks about something that one staff member can't answer, it's easy for one or another of us to jump in to help.  With that collaboration comes learning more about our area from each other.  Hence, the education!

We also learn from our visitors.  We learn that Pullman is, indeed, a safe and welcoming place.  Several times a week we have guests tell us how much we've helped them and how friendly we all are.  Often we have visitors who are here for a few hours while their pet is at the Veterinary Hospital or maybe even a few days to visit the campus or friends and family.  They stop in and are welcomed by a friendly and knowledgeable staff who send them out with maps, brochures, ideas, and of course, smiles.

We've been visited by a bicyclist who started in western Washington and was traveling across the country to Florida.  He camped in Pullman and shared with us his musical talents playing his accordion in our office.   Another visitor shared with us the sad story of the two dogs she was bringing to the Vet hospital.  Both were going through cancer treatments and she was renting a home to stay in for the extended stay.  She appreciated having a friendly and sympathetic ear to talk to. And yet another time we had a mens' quartet stop in to sing us a few songs before heading out to a paying job.  Oh, the variety of visitors~

Each of the staff here at the office has specific jobs that we do to keep the Pullman Chamber of Commerce working like a well-oiled machine, but together we work to make sure our visitors and tourists to Pullman enjoy their stop and want to come back soon.  I think we do a great job!

Marie~ExDir