The Wiscasset Chamber of Commerce was formed in February 2011 and for the past two years the group has been very busy.

After becoming a chamber of commerce, they were able to open and staff a Welcome/Information Center; co-host “Alive on the River,” a Thursday night free concert series; establish a scholarship fund; and hold its first annual meeting and awards banquet with well-known attorney F. Lee Bailey as guest speaker.

The chamber is currently planning its second annual meeting and awards banquet for Thursday, Feb. 7, with keynote speaker Edward Polewarczyk.

During the past year, chamber members have sponsored several events, which include Business After Hours, Fourth of July activities, a Harvest Fest, holiday decorating contest, the town’s Christmas celebration, and the “Think Outside the Box” campaign that encouraged people to shop locally.

The “Think Outside the Box” campaign was a huge success.People were able to pick-up a passport from a local shop from Saturday, Nov. 24 until Thursday, Dec. 20. For every $20 spent at a participating location, a stamp was put on the passport.

After five stamps were put on the passport, they were entered into the drawing to win some amazing prizes.

There were 286 completed passports entered into the drawing. That means $28,600 was spent locally in the Wiscasset area this holiday season, according to the chamber’s website. That is $28,600 that stayed in our community, in local businesses, and with local people.

Many local businesses donated prizes, and many local business owners donated their time to help make this campaign a success.

There were many prizes to given away for the drawing. Here is a list of winners: Terry Garron, Chris Wolfe, Lisa Garman, Trisha O'Reilly, Chriscinda Park, Julie O'Brien, Pam Lear, M. Lee Albright, Belinda Haggett, Sue Varney, Peter Hannah, Susan Jones, Diane Dyer, Paul Freeman, Jon Wright, Mary Kate Reny and Anne McClellan

The chamber’s goals for the coming year are to continue upgrading its efforts to promote the Wiscasset area. According to the Chamber’s Executive Director David Stapp, the plans for next year include many of the same events as in the past two years, along with much more. The chamber is planning an “Art Walk” in Wiscasset and a special event later this year with the Texas Flying Legends.

According to Stapp, the Legends are planning to put on a USO show this year with the big bands and music of the 1940s through the 1980s.

“We will be have a strategic planning session in February to lay out some plans for the next few years for our organization and for the involvement in the community,” Stapp said.

The Wiscasset Area Chamber of Commerce includes businesses, nonprofits and individuals in Wiscasset, Alna, Dresden, Edgecomb, Westport and Woolwich.

Charlotte Boynton can be reached at 207-844-4632 or cboynton@wiscassetnewspaper.com.