by Logan Gruber
operations@thenewsleaders.com
Becka Broste, administrative assistant to the St. Joseph Chamber of Commerce Board, said she felt a lot more on top of things for this year’s Community Showcase, which took place April 11 at Kennedy Community School’s gymnasium.
“I was hired mid-March last year . . . This year, I’m much calmer,” she said in a Newsleader interview.
The community showcase has become an annual tradition. It all started back in 2012 with the then-Chamber board spending a year working on the 2013 Community Showcase after noticing the success of similar events in Sartell and Cold Spring.
“It’s still an all-year process,” Broste said. “We do follow-up meetings right after the showcase to figure out what went well and what went poorly.”
Broste said she and the board plan the showcase together.
“We always have the past president stay on the board when a new board is elected,” she said. “They are able to pass on knowledge so we can make the showcase better every year.”
The theme for this year’s showcase was “Spring Alive!” Broste said those who participated with booths were encouraged to do something “springy.”
The Chamber brought back the much-beloved bouncy castle and slide this year.
“The inflatable bounce house was a big hit last year with the kids,” Broste said.
Last year, 32 businesses hosted booths, and in 2013 the number was 30. This year there were 28 booths, with the number of attendees reaching 311.
For more information on the community showcase and the Chamber, head to the Chamber’s website at stjosephchamber.com.
Henry Dullinger, 6, a kindergartener at All Saints Academy in St. Joseph, enjoys an inflatable slide at the St. Joseph Community Showcase April 11 at Kennedy Community School. Henry was supervised by his parents, Gina and Brad Dullinger of St. Joseph, not pictured.
Jessie Sandoval, left, sits down with her children for some pizza, courtesy of the Gary’s Pizza booth at the St. Joseph Community Showcase April 11 at Kennedy Community School. Many people remarked that the pizza, pie and other treats served at the showcase were quite large portions rather than sample sizes. Pictured with Jessie are her children – Natalia, 4, Andres, 6, and Amado, 9. Not pictured is Jessie’s husband, Jesús Sandoval, who is a seventh- and eighth- grade math teacher at Kennedy Community School. Jesús was manning the St. Joseph Catholic Church booth at the showcase.