Bremen Area Chamber of Commerce
Minutes of the meeting of June 25, 2026
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, Samantha Betts, Marilyn Boyd, Toni Harper, Sue Henwood, Jackie Howard, Laura Kennedy, Rich Lines, Jessica Martinez, Ray Meese, Dee Mowry, Billy Robinette, Sue Schmitz, Ken Shofter, Steve Thompson.
Program
President Rich Lines opened the meeting at the Bremen Bethel Presbyterian church by leading the group in the pledge of allegiance, followed by an invocation by Dee Mowry. The ladies of the church served lunch. Rich then introduced Steve Thompson of Inline Underground as the day’s speaker. Steve moved from general construction to Glory Gutters for 13 years. Seeing problems coming in former fields of endeavor and opportunities in underground horizontal drilling to preserve surface areas, he bought some equipment and learned how to use it. He went from one drill to two and now has four; each requires three trucks at the work site. It took five years of good work reviews from employers to bring financial rewards. Now, word of mouth brings customers, most in Ohio but some as far away as North Dakota. Inline Underground has nine employees; they train on the job and dig at a depth of 3 to 5 feet although they’ve gone down 45 feet under a river. Employees need basic skills and a work ethic, but they have been hard to find since Covid. Inline is able to offer them health care coverage through its Chamber membership. The business has other obstacles: incorrect locating of existing gas and utility lines by USCI (they should be accurate to within 18 inches), over-due payments by clients, law suits claiming damages; Steve’s motto is “Give me a blueprint and a check, then I’ll take over.” Jobs used to be primarily for utilities but now are often for fiber optic and electric lines.
Business meeting
In the business meeting, the minutes of the May meeting were accepted as printed on a motion by Sue Schmitz, seconded by Dee Mowry. The treasurer reported the following account balances:
| checking: | $ 3 604.70 |
|---|---|
| Money market: | 7 017.43 |
| CD: | 13 685.78 |
| CD: | 15 145.29 |
| CD | 5 575.50 |
Marilyn Boyd moved to receive the report, seconded by Dee Mowry and carried. AHA children’s museum sent a request for donations to their fund-raiser; the library has 14 passes that rotate for one time family use because of its membership in AHA. Dee Mowry moved a donation of $100 to AHA; it was seconded by Ray Meese and carried. In the officers’ report, Dave Foltz had emergency eye surgery and will not be able to represent the chamber in the July 5th parade in Bremen. Dee Mowry volunteered his truck; thank you, Dee!
New business
New business: Toni Harper reported that while the Trail of Scarecrows has had good business participation, residential/individual participation is poor. She was looking for local help in organizing and publicizing it, especially using computer options. Jessica Martinez and Krista Ankrom offered their help. While Fairfield County has prizes for people’s choice displays throughout the county, Toni moved that the chamber again donate $200 towards local prizes; the motion was seconded by Krista and carried.
Announcements
- The July 5th 250th Independence Day Parade will feature floats, horses, bikes and a variety of vehicles; parade starts at noon, line up at Bremen Elementary begins at 11:00 a.m.
- Rushcreek Feed and Supply is offering safety footwear.
- Fairhope Hospice and Palliative Care will host the 18th annual Ice cream social in honor of Virginian Pickering August 4th from 11 to 1:00.
Adjournment
A motion to adjourn was offered by Dee Mowry, seconded by Laura Kennedy. The next meeting will be July 23.
Respectfully submitted,
Sue Schmitz, secretary