Bremen Area Chamber of Commerce

Minutes of the October 22, 2026 meeting

Accessible text version of the official minutes. The text is reproduced verbatim from the signed record; only page footers and layout artifacts have been removed. The original PDF is also available.

Attendance

Those present: Krista Ankrom, Julie Bell, Marilyn Boyd, Adale Grimes, Sue Henwood, Jackie Howard, Laura Kennedy, Rich Lines, Lynn McCandlish, Rick McCandlish, Ray Meese, Dee Mowry, Billy Robinette, Sue Schmitz, Linda Ward, Heather Yontz, and new members Vanessa Nakanishi with Ohio Roofing Solutions and Joe Bateman of the Bremen Café and guests (his daughter Gracie and grandson Oliver).

Program

The chamber gathered at the BAHS at noon. Following the pledge of allegiance and invocation by Pastor Linda Ward, President Rich Lines introduced the new members and guests. Lunch was served by the Bremen Area Historical Society. The speaker, Julie Bell, of JB Lawncare, gave a history of the business begun by her 14 year old twins in the wake of the Covid 19 lock-down. Beginning with mowing their church lawn, they picked up additional customers by word-of-mouth and hand-me-down equipment, with grandpa as repairman; in two years, they had 28 properties in two counties. By their senior year, they became an LLC, with a growing customer base and plans to build their dream. They now have nine employees, including Mom, have built their own “mulch mate” (at a savings of $2000), and do a mix of around 100 residential, condo and commercial properties weekly. Joe and Josh have pride in their work (and make sure their employees do, too), reinvest in the business, cooperate with other lawncare companies, and credit experiences with 4-H and FFA, as well as local banks, with their success. Major challenge is workers; as they are mostly high school students, they are short term. Future plans include improving scheduling, adding aeration services and expanding snow plow work, and doing more landscaping and hardscaping. They are self-taught on the latter, following U-tube and admired professionals.

Business meeting

In the business meeting, the minutes of the September meeting were approved as emailed on a motion by Dee Mowry, seconded by Marilyn Boyd, and carried. The treasurer reported the following account balances:

Treasurer’s report — account balances
Checking:$ 2 692.70
Money market:2 813.08
CD:13 853.72
CD:15 331.15
CD:5 622.49

The chamber had a winning bid of $650 for a Schultz duck at the Junior Fair Auction. Dee Mowry moved to receive the report, seconded by Heather Yontz and carried. There was no further old business.

New business

In new business, Ray Meese moved to donate $100 to American Legion Post 20 in honor of Veterans Day; motion seconded by Dee Mowry and carried. The following fees for chamber membership beginning in 2027 were proposed:

Proposed chamber membership fees beginning in 2027
Business, government, corporation:$100
Civic groups, churches, non-profits:75
Individuals:50

Marilyn Boyd moved to approve, seconded by Ray Meese and carried.

The executive board is working to get all members on the chamber Facebook page by inviting members, then invitees can invite others.

Meeting sites for 2027 will be half at the BAHS, the rest at churches. Ray Meese moved to set luncheon prices at $15, seconded by Laura Kennedy and carried. It was noted that, beginning in January, lunch would be optional to attend the meeting. Krista Pontious suggested a speaker on safety footwear in the new year.

A reminder that November will be an evening dinner meeting on November 19 at the Bremen Community Methodist church. This is open to the public. Tickets are $15 and are available at the Bremen Bank; deadline for reservations is November 13. Following dinner at 6:30, speakers will report on the state of the village, township and school district. Members will also vote on chamber officers for the 2027-2028 term.

Announcements

Adjournment

Motion to adjourn was made by Dee Mowry and carried.

Respectfully submitted,
Sue Schmitz, secretary