Chambers Of Commerce Appoints New Board Members, Executive Officers

By Dean Wright, The Bristol Press

July 12, 2021

The Central Connecticut Chambers of Commerce unanimously voted to include new members of their board and appoint new executive officers, whose terms are effective immediately.

According to Chambers CEO Cindy Bombard, there are a total of 30 board positions. Right now, there are still three openings that the board is waiting to fill. Most members will serve three terms and each term is two years.

“From my standpoint, I’m proud of the board that we have and the commitment that they have not only to the chambers of commerce, their industry and the community as a whole,” said Bombard.

The chambers’ executive committee will consist of Paul Lavoie as chair of the board, Tunxis Community College’s John Lodovico as the chambers vice chair, DoubleTree by Hilton Bristol’s Christine Malay as board treasurer, Torrington Savings Bank’s Michael Sweeney will be the board secretary and CliftonLarsonAllen’s Jay Sattler will be the immediate past chair of the board.

Lodovico was previously secretary. Sweeney is new as secretary. New board members include Antonella Calabrese of Thomaston Savings Bank, Eric Clemons of the Bristol NAACP and Mark Burzynski of the Arthur G. Russell Company.

“What we do is take a look at our board to make sure we’re diverse in all areas and have a clear mix of business representation,” said Bombard. “We want to make sure we have all business sectors when we look at people to come on our board.”

Bombard said around four years ago, the chambers had started another board called Professional Young Visionaries of Tomorrow (PYVOT), and it was instrumental in preparing young business leaders to take a place on the chambers board. She noted its members were also active in the community networking with other organizations.

“That to me is a board of young professionals that we can recruit from to come up into our board and our officers and that’s where Michael Sweeney came in,” said Bombard. “He was one of those that started PYVOT. We (the chambers board) have to stay relevant in the times so it’s a mixture of all ages and experience.”