The six values that define the Bellingham Regional Chamber

You can learn a lot about an organization by what it is committed to and how it conducts its business.

For the Bellingham Regional Chamber of Commerce, the first is simple. We are committed to you, the members of the Whatcom County community. The chamber has contributed to the success of the local business community for over 110 years. As a not-for-profit membership organization, the chamber advocates for its members by convening leaders and influencers, serving as a catalyst for business growth and advocating for policies that bring about positive change.

How do we go about that? The Bellingham Regional Chamber has six organizational values that we hope permeate everything we do.

  1. Truth Telling: We are committed to leading with truth — facts based on verifiable data — and not sharing or engaging in falsehoods or rumors.
  2. Respectful Integrity: Here at the chamber, we strive to treat everyone with respect, even when no one is looking.
  3. Positive, Kind, Fun: People thrive in supportive environments. We want to help create a space that feels genuine and safe, with some joy mixed in.
  4. “Us over I”: We can accomplish together what we cannot apart. Thus, we celebrate a collaborative space above an individualist one, building community with compassionate individualism. There is unity in this community. As chamber CEO Guy Occhiogrosso put it recently, “We want a world, country and community in which people can thrive as individuals but also, collectively, together.”
  5. Community Engagement: The Bellingham Regional Chamber encourages mutual support, working with local organizations to promote volunteering on behalf of the civic good — and building enduring resilience in the process.
  6. Belonging: We all want and need to belong. An important role for the chamber is the simple task of setting a table for and with all others in the community.

We work hard to live by these values in our daily efforts in the Whatcom County community, attempting not only to do the right things but to do them in the right ways, too. Thank you for your support in this!