Celebrating Samantha — fishermen's finest

As Kirkland Chamber of Commerce CEO Samantha St. John exits the organization, we at Fishermen’s Finest would like to celebrate [some of] her past accomplishments and congratulate her on the next chapter of her career at the Port of Seattle.

Pandemic

Kirkland was the original epicenter for the Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak in the United States. Our businesses felt the effect of the crisis very early on in the pandemic. Under St. John’s leadership, the Greater Kirkland Chamber of Commerce and Kirkland Chamber Foundation quickly formed a small business relief fund to help struggling businesses that were seeing a drastic reduction in their revenue due to the media coverage surrounding Kirkland. At that point, we had no idea how long this would last, or how widespread the pandemic would be.

We were able to create and fund our small business relief fund in March 2020, before any other funds, government assistance, or relief grants were even discussed. This first round of funding was $250,000 to be given out to small businesses in Kirkland that had experienced revenue reduction as a result of the virus in the form of unrestricted grants. A second round of an additional near $250,000 was crowd sourced by several businesses and individuals and given out to small businesses in the same way. A great deal of care was taken to make the process of receiving grants easy and fair, prioritizing the smallest businesses and nonprofits that were showing the greatest amount of acute revenue reduction.

Our businesses partners that could afford to help their fellow business owners were instrumental in saving many small businesses. Each of these represents a family that was scared for the future of their livelihood. Everyone came together to support one another through this very difficult time, which showed widespread effects on health and economic stability for us all. We are so grateful for everyone who stepped up to help.

Kirkland Recognition

425 Business Magazine July 12, 2022: When Samantha St. John walks into the room, business leaders in her community know that she has their back. As CEO of the Greater Kirkland Chamber of Commerce, and in previous roles, too, St. John has been a pivotal leader for the Kirkland business community.

St. John has been a staunch advocate of several public policy issues for the state, in particular ones that uplift the business community.

During her tenure, she also developed the Chamber Foundation, a nonprofit focused on youth education, disaster relief, and community funding. St. John hopes to expand opportunities for youth education at the foundation to help the youth become the next generation of leaders. She also aims to establish more affordable housing in the region and in her community.

From serving as the board president at Attain Housing to helping establish support for small businesses and all others in her jurisdiction, St. John continues her dedication to building the next generation of leaders while uplifting the members of her community. — CSF

All that glitters is Gold

On Saturday, March 18, the Kirkland Chamber held its annual gala dinner auction - fundraiser. The largest fundraiser of the year for the Chamber, it was a beautiful send-off for exiting CEO Samantha St. John.

Samantha addressed the crowd, “Good evening, distinguished guests, members, and friends. It feels wonderful to be here with you all in person, enjoying each other's company and celebrating the spirit of our community. As we gather here tonight, we recognize that there are countless worthy causes to support, and we appreciate that you have chosen to lend your support to our Chamber of Commerce.

Last year, I spoke about how supporting a Chamber of Commerce is crucial to building a vibrant community, and that message still rings true today. Our businesses are the backbone of Kirkland, and they play a vital role in creating jobs, supporting families, and generating the tax base that allows our schools and arts organizations to thrive.

The Chamber of Commerce is here to support and promote all of our businesses that help Kirkland to thrive and make for a more vibrant community. We encourage aspiring youth and young entrepreneurs as they make their way to developing a way to contribute to the community. We help connect startups with investors as they seek to establish themselves in Kirkland.

Tonight, as we come together to support the Chamber of Commerce, we are not only investing in local businesses but also in the health and success of our community and region as a whole. We are grateful for your generosity and support, and we look forward to working together to build a better, stronger, smarter, and healthier community for all. Thank you for being a part of this incredible evening, and we hope you have a wonderful time.

Our largest employer in Kirkland is EvergreenHealth. We are proud to call them both our title sponsor and the presenting sponsor of our annual gala. EvergreenHealth cares for our community, and they walk their talk - both in how they support the larger community, and how they care for each patient that walks through their doors. Here to say a few words about EvergreenHealth is CEO Dr. Jeff Tomlin.

Before I hand it off to Troy McVicker/Emcee, I just want to give a big thank you first to our sponsors – We couldn’t do this without you. Thank you to the elected officials that joined us tonight – Rep. Larry Springer, Rep. Amy Walen, Port of Seattle Commissioner Fred Felleman, King County Councilmember Claudia Balducci, Mayor Penny Sweet, and Councilmembers Jon Pascal, Amy Falcone, Kelli Curtis, and Toby Nixon. Also to the staff. Putting together an event like this is no small task. Thank you to Beth Gale, Maureen Goldsmith, David Stansel-Garner, and Jovana Rodriguez, as well as our auction chairs, Alicia Quaco and Cherese Bourgoin – and of course – all of the volunteers working here tonight.

And finally, I’d like to say a big thank you to all of you for being here tonight, which will be my final event as CEO of the Kirkland Chamber, as I transition to a new position with the Port of Seattle after this month. We’ve been through so much together and this organization has a big piece of my heart. It has truly been an honor to serve all of you in this role over the past decade and I will look forward to continuing our time together in my new position.