Chamber Staffers Receive Recognition

I'm pleased to report to our Board of Directors this month that five members of our staff have been recognized over the last several months for their dedication to their professions.

Kresta Dundas (Director of Membership Development) and Jonathan Long (Director of Community Advancement) have both recently received awards from the Association of Chamber of Commerce Executives (ACCE), a national organization made up of 1,300 chambers across the United States. This year Kresta received her second Gold Lifetime Achievement Award for membership sales. Kresta has been with the Chamber since 2012 and uses her extensive knowledge about our membership base to help business leaders forge new connections and take full advantage of their membership benefits.

Jonathan was named a member of the first class of ACCE’s 40 Under 40 in recognition of his contributions to the industry. He joined the Chamber in 2018 with experience in workforce development. In addition to diversity and inclusion activities, he oversees the talent retention initiatives undertaken by W - A Community of Young Professionals.

Pat Gallagher (Military Affairs Liaison) is being honored by the Wichita Business Journal as one of the Women Who Lead in Philanthropy. She’ll be profiled in this Friday’s issue of that publication and honored at a cocktail reception in October. Gallagher has been with the Chamber for twenty-four years and is well recognized throughout the region as a passionate advocate for McConnell Air Force Base as well as military activities by other branches, including the newly-launched U.S.S. Wichita.

Angie Prather (VP of Marketing and Communications) was named the state’s Communicator of Achievement (COA) in March by the Kansas Professional Communicators (KPC). The COA is the highest honor bestowed by the organization and reflects the honoree’s community involvement as well as participation in KPC at the local, state and national level. Angie joined the Chamber in 2012.

Courtney Sendall (Director of Marketing & Communications) was recognized in June by the Wichita American Marketing Association as the Marketer of the Year in the nonprofit category. Since joining the Chamber in 2013, Courtney’s marketing and communications initiatives have also resulted in numerous awards from the Wichita Professional Communicators and the Kansas Chapter of the Public Relations Society of America.

CONGRATULATIONS to all of our award recipients!