Betsy Baer is hanging up her cape: Glenview chamber director set to retire
In her prior work as executive director for an international commercial real estate firm, Betsy Baer established friendships all over the world.
In November 2011, she began making friends in and around Glenview as executive director of the Glenview Chamber of Commerce.
The time has come for Baer to revisit those international friendships "as soon as COVID gets out of the way," she said.
On April 1 she'll be retiring from the chamber after a successful, nearly 10-year run, during which membership about doubled.
If a key to being an effective leader is making people feel valued, Baer is all over that in praise of the woman who will succeed her as director, Meghan Kearney, the current membership director.
"I'm so excited about Meghan taking over the role and running with it," Baer said.
"I think she is an amazing asset, both for the chamber and for Glenview at large. She's a Glenview resident, she's an active mom in the community, she shops local and is everything that the chamber is all about. She has a great understanding of the community and the membership, and the directions that we need to go in the future."
Baer is proud to have been a part of events such as the Holiday in the Park, Summer Fest and Octoberfest, and the Leadership Glenview program, which have increased opportunities and exposure for chamber members.
"We had lots of opportunities for growth, which we've taken tremendous advantage of. We are working so hard to keep our businesses functioning at the highest possible level so that they can succeed," Baer said.
"But we had a lot of success prior to COVID because we expanded our programs and expanded our services so that the value of a chamber membership was more far-reaching. When people looked at the community and looked at what the chamber had to offer they saw that there was great value, and that's why the membership grew over the last 10 years," she said.
Because it's so close, and because it's been so tumultuous, the repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic on local business are near the top of her mind. The chamber was unable to provide some of its usual networking offerings, but it added some 25 "Ask the Experts" remote sessions that provided help on facets such as how to obtain funding, enhanced marketing, expanding effective social media use and other topics people might be able to use to keep the doors open, even how to stay healthy.
Recalling her time with the chamber, she values the relationships she forged with business owners and with fellow chamber board members who "feel so confident that they were on target" helping provide leadership and ideas.
Baer also feels privileged to have established or solidified ties with the Village of Glenview, the Glenview Park District, the Glenview Public Library. She enjoyed the "collegial sharing" with Northbrook and with Northfield Township.
"It's been a joy to have friends and partners throughout the community. Those are the things I'm going to miss," she said.
The plus side of retiring from the Glenview Chamber and not having to maintain her prime standing on the ribbon-cutting circuit is she might get to spend more time with her grown son, D.J., also part of an interesting venture. The 28-year-old is the youth services coordinator at Blackstone Bicycle Works, teaching underprivileged children on Chicago's South Side how to fix and maintain bicycles.
"At the end of the day, that's what I'm most proud of," Baer said.
"I am so thankful that I've had these 10 years," she said, "because I've learned how important it is to support your local community."