Monticello Chamber to celebrate 100th anniversary

     This year, the Monticello Area Chamber of Commerce (MACC) is celebrating its 100^th year in operation. To commemorate the milestone, MACC invites the public and Monticello community to join them on Saturday, Oct. 21, for a celebration of all things 100.

   Not only will MACC share a bit about its own history, but 26 businesses and organizations will be recognized for their 100 years or more of operation.

   Bobby Krum, MACC executive director, has been active in his leadership role with the chamber for over a year now. Shortly after he was hired, the MACC Board of Directors informed him of a very big anniversary, that the chamber would hit 100 years in 2023.

   During the chamber’s annual banquet in January, MACC shared that 2023 was going to be a busy year with a 100^th anniversary celebration in the works.

   The event will take place at the Berndes Center from 7 to 10 p.m. There is no cost to attend. RSVPs are encouraged to chamber@macc-ia.us or 319-465-5626.

   Refreshments will be served. There will be a cash bar as well.

   At 8 p.m., MACC will acknowledge and honor those long-standing centennial businesses “that have played a vital role in shaping our community’s history.” Plaques will be presented to representatives from each business or organization.

   “We sent out personal invites to all those we’ll be honoring,” Krum said.

   Not all honorees are MACC members.

   “Hopefully this (recognition) will entice them to join the chamber,” offered Krum.

   Live music will be provided by ViceBox throughout the evening.

   Krum said MACC is busy year-round, but it seems like October is a slower-paced month to have an event like this before the holidays ramp up again.

   “Our goal is to continue with this timeframe with some kind of ongoing, new event every year,” Krum said of adding something in the fall to the calendar.

   The annual MACC banquet honors and recognizes business and individual achievements throughout the year. Krum said the chamber didn’t want the 100^th anniversary celebration to overshadow those achievements.

   “This is for members to get together, have some fun, and network,” he encouraged. “And we’re not asking our members to fund it.”

   Krum utilized a variety of sources to come up with the list of 26 honorees. He posted a request on the chamber’s Facebook page asking for submissions. Every year, the Monticello Express publishes a “Years in Business” spread. He also researched businesses inside the Monticello sesquicentennial book.

   Some current businesses, such as Freese Motors and Bodensteiner Implement Co., have not been in business themselves for 100 years or more. But these owners took over businesses that have, such as Ford and John Deere.

   To commemorate the chamber’s 100^th year, MACC members helped to raise money for a specialty souvenir: Monticello-Opoly. The game board features 65 “ad” spaces of local businesses and groups. You’ll also find names you recognize on the play money and cards.

   Ad spaces averaged $200.

   “I didn’t have to solicit or go after people,” Krum said of the great interest in having one’s business or name on the game itself. “Everyone was great in reaching out to be a part of it. I could have sold more (spaces) because of all the interest.

   “It filled up fast, which made it easy.”

   Krum has a version of the Monopoly game that features the City of Anamosa. He thought this would be a unique way to celebrate the chamber and turn it into a fundraiser at the same time.

   Local businesses (B.W.P., Whiffle Tree Mercantile, Off His Rocker, The Blind Pig, and Dollar Fresh) are selling the game for $29.99. The chamber sold a case (16 games) to those businesses at the wholesale price of $20. Each business makes $10 in profit from the sale of the game.

   “I wanted to help get people in their doors,” Krum said of asking chamber members to sell the souvenir item in their stores. “Someone bought a whole case as Christmas presents.”

   Only 350 can be sold, so get yours while you can!

   “In one weekend, Whiffle Tree sold 35,” Krum noted of his own local business.

   The rules of the game are the same as playing Monopoly; you buy real estate. The property cards, though, contain the name of local businesses.

   “We are very proud of this,” remarked Krum of the final product. “The MACC Board was very supportive and loved the idea. It’s a nice collector’s edition, and you can look back years from now and see who was in business in this date and time.”

   Krum said he’s been told an earlier version of Monticello-Opoly exists from the 1980s, but he’s not been able to get his hands on it.

   “I’d love to see it,” he said.