Mona Kennedy will be stepping up as president of the Chemainus and District Chamber of Commerce for a fourth year.Kennedy is pleased with the strides she has seen the chamber take and looks forward to building on their progress.During the last two years, Kennedy said the chamber has been turning their attention towards providing more services for local businesses instead of focusing simply on the visitor centre.“We needed to have a proper board policy manual put into place,” said Kennedy.“We have done everything from the ground up.”Now that the framework is in place, Kennedy said the board is going to work on providing better membership services and business development, advocacy and networking.The global economy and rise of the dollar has been a hit for the tourism industry, said Kennedy, and it’s changed the way people are thinking.Businesses are now focussing on their local market.“You have to start building diverse economic communities to have strong communities.”Kennedy said she is looking forward to working with the new board.“It’s wonderful to see some new players engaging in the community process and the chamber process.“We’ll have a good opportunity to get some great work done.”The Chemainus and District Chamber of Commerce held their annual general meeting on March 15. Kennedy was elected president, Peter Matthews of Saltair Pub was elected vice-president, Jaime Meunier was elected treasurer and Anita Voisin was elected secretary.Other directors include: Kathy Gomez from Catalyst Paper; Bryan Fleming, Chemainus Gardens RV Resort; Paul Nettleton, Robson O’Connor; Lana Halme, Mural Town Auto and; Lulu Vegh, Chemainus Health Food Store.