Lake Tahoe South Shore Chamber celebrated 60th with the community

It was a trip down 60 years of memory lane as the Tahoe Chamber celebrated their birthday on Wednesday night.

Over 150 people attended the mixer at Tep's Villa Roma, many who have been in South Lake Tahoe almost as long as the chamber.

Long time locals Bill Kingman, Tom Davis, Paul Middlebrook and Deb Howard shared the Trivia game hosting duties, trying to stump the crowd with questions from the community's past 60 years (and beyond).

“Bill was here when they filled the lake,” former South Lake Tahoe Chamber of Commerce ambassador Curtis Fong said when Kingman was introduced. Kingman kicked off the first round of trivia with questions about the first airline to fly into Tahoe among others.

Middlebrook led the group through a series of pictures of community members going back decades while Councilman Tom Davis and Deb Howard tried to stump the crowd with several local trivia questions.

Current Tahoe Chamber CEO Betty “B” Gorman spoke about the storied history of the chamber, including the merger between the South Lake Tahoe Chamber of Commerce and the Tahoe Douglas Chamber of Commerce in 2006, which resulted in Tahoe Chamber. Gorman also highlighted the accomplishments of the chamber in the past year and its plans for the future.

The celebration also included recognition of past board members, employees and Tahoe celebrities including Roberta Mason and former South Lake Tahoe Chamber of Commerce president and manager Sherm McKissock. Mason spoke fondly of past chamber manager John Wynn, describing him as “a very kind man” who was sorely missed. Middlebrook added that “if someone didn’t like John Wynn, you wondered what was wrong with them.”

Festivities continued with the presentation of an official proclamation from Bryant Milesi, a representative from Congressman Tom McClintock’s office. Milesi presented Tahoe Chamber with a Certificate of Special Congressional Recognition for the chamber’s 60th anniversary actively serving local businesses. The rest of the evening was filled with networking, dancing and fond memories of years past.

Tahoe Chamber thanks Tep’s Villa Roma, Tahoe Cakes by Grave, Ike & Martin, the special guest speakers and all of the attendees for making the chamber’s 60th birthday a true celebration.