ROCHELLE — The Rochelle Chamber of Commerce held its 55th annual golf outing on Thursday at Fairways Golf Course in Rochelle. The sold-out event saw 158 golfers and 30 hole sponsorships, Chamber Executive Director Tricia Herrera said.
The event’s presenting sponsor was Burlington Junction Railway. Its premier sponsors were Holcomb Bank, Rochelle Community Hospital, Central Bank Illinois, Zekelman Industries and Prescott Brothers Ford. The City of Rochelle sponsored lunch, the golf cart sponsor was Liquor N Wine, and Central Illinois Loan and Ralfie's BBQ & Catering sponsored the pop and water.
“We appreciate the chamber and everyone that came together to make this day happen,” Kevin Mershon of Burlington Junction Railway said. “I always get excited when Tricia reaches out about sponsoring this and this day. I hope everyone has a great time. The weather is great. We really appreciate being the sponsor here and we will continue to do that for as long as the chamber will have us.”
Herrera said the golf outing is her favorite day of the year at the chamber and the event was sold out by March 1. Planning for the event begins in January. She thanked the chamber’s board of directors, volunteers, and the City of Rochelle for their help with putting the day on.
The golf outing is the chamber’s main fundraiser and makes up a majority of the organization’s budget for the year. It allows the chamber to offer programs to members and continue to expand them.
“We can't do what we do at the chamber on membership dollars alone,” Herrera said. “Programs and events like this are what expands everything. We need to do that and make things bigger and better. We're very receptive to ideas from members and how we can make our programs better and larger and how we can help our businesses.”
Herrera said she enjoys the camaraderie, networking and business that takes place on the course between members during the golf outing.
The event reaching its 55th year shows longevity and that it's a value for businesses to sponsor and participate, Herrera said.
“Other organizations haven't been able to sustain a play day like this and certainly not to this level to be sold out continually,” Herrera said. ”That shows people find value in it. Our sponsorships and patrons mean the world to us because that means those companies and people see value in those dollars. We know every company's dollars are very precious to them. We have a longstanding relationship with the Burlington Junction Railway and they've taken the presenting sponsorship of this for the foreseeable future. We're very proud of that.”
The golf outing serves as a celebration for Rochelle’s business community each year, Herrera said.
“I love to celebrate with our members and see them in person and thank them for their continued support,” Herrera said. “This type of event is definitely my favorite. Because I get to be out with the people. I love to thank people and encourage them and ask how we can help. Our board is out here helping in any way they can, because they know this is such a special day for the chamber.”
