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Brandon Burton 0:00
This is the Chamber Chat Podcast, the show dedicated to chamber professionals to spark ideas and to get actionable tips and strategies to better serve your members and community.
Welcome to Chamber Chat Podcast. I’m your host Brandon Burton, and it’s my goal here on the podcast to introduce you to people and ideas to better help you serve your Chamber members and your community.
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Matt Morrow 0:41
Holman Brothers provide a great training for our sales team in terms of just outstanding sales techniques. But maybe even more importantly than that, they were able to provide us with a system a process that was repeatable and in that we’re able to see very clearly from one month to the next how the how the pipeline is doing, what prospects are in it, what kind of progress we’re making and what we can do to coach people to success.
Brandon Burton 1:03
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Our guest for this episode is Chris Mead. Chris is president of magicians at Main Street, a company that works with chambers of commerce, and with companies that provide services to for chambers for just over 16 years ending in December of 2018. He served as vice president and then Senior Vice President for ACCE his previous experience includes five years ending as vice president as what, at what’s known now as the International Economic Development Council. Chris also wrote the only book length history of chambers of commerce in the United States, magicians of Main Street America and its Chambers of Commerce. The book featured on the front page of Wall Street Journal and elsewhere shows how chambers helped shape the history of the United States from the very beginning. The book is frequently quoted in chamber executive speeches for their board staff and the public. And many of you are very familiar with it. Chris is a consultant on chamber travel and also pro bono, the developer of a program involving young people in Ukraine and the United States. Chris, I’m excited to have you with me today here on chamber chat podcast. So I’d love for you to take a moment to say hello to all the chamber champions and friends that are out there and listening and share something interesting about yourself so you can get to know me a little bit better.
Chris Mead 2:36
Hello, chamber champions, and fans of Brandon Burton. I think he does a great job. And I guess Alright, this is, I mean, might as well say something embarrassing, just for fun, right? I remember saying this at ACC one time when we were sharing something about ourselves. When I was 16 years old, I decided that I wanted to learn about Transcendental Meditation. And I ended up doing that, and finally deciding to become a teacher of Transcendental Meditation. At the age of 19. I went to Spain heard Maharishi Mahesh Yogi give speeches, he was the same one who taught the Beatles and The Beach Boys and Donovan and all kinds of others. And it was really boring. We’d have 2000 people sitting in our big tent. Nothing seemed to go right. I began to suspect this was a fraud. And when I got home, and I was painting houses in Washington, DC, up on a high ladder 100 degree weather, I suddenly realized I was not in cosmic consciousness. And so I’m afraid that my useful excitement with that thing went away way back then but maybe it was good. I learned a lesson.
Brandon Burton 4:02
That’s funny. Took painting on that hot day to realize I love it. So normally at this point in a in these interviews, I’d like to have my guest on the show talk a little bit about their chamber size staff budget. Yeah, obviously you don’t have a chamber to talk about per se. But uh, I know I went through your bio, but maybe just tell us kind of the high points of how you got to where you are today through your career and work with chambers.
Chris Mead 4:35
Yes, I’ve always been fascinated by groups of people doing things, making their communities better. And but I never knew how much chambers had done. I worked with economic development organization and then with ACCE for years, and I thought maybe I’ll just do something Because I read in a book here in a book there that a chamber had something to do with getting rid of Al Capone. And in another book that it the chamber in St. Louis financed the flight of Charles Lindbergh to Paris. And I thought, let me just find five things, just five things to prove that we’ve done something. Yeah, because the funny thing is like, even in the case of Chicago, outside of the Chicagoland chamber, nobody knew that. The chamber there had something to do with getting rid of Al Capone. And it was a seer. A lot to do with getting rid of alcopop. So I started writing those five stories, Miss America Pageant, out of Atlantic City, and so on. Before I knew it, there was a six story and a seven story and a story. And I, at the end, I kind of realized, and I had to stop at 1945 or still be writing. I realized that they had they’ve shaped America, they’ve they’ve done so much. And even they don’t know it. And I didn’t know it. But they should be proud of what they are doing and what they have done. Yeah.
Brandon Burton 6:13
Now that is that is fascinating. And for anyone who hasn’t read the book yet magicians in the industry, it’d be a great idea to jump into that and read about these stories about how Chambers of Commerce have shaped America. Thank you for for sharing that. And for writing that book, the history of chambers. I appreciate that. So for our topic for our conversation today, it’s very unique from anything else that we’ve talked about before on the podcast. And as I reached out to Chris to have him on the show. He said, You know, I’m working on a really interesting project that’s very timely, that I think your listeners could could benefit from hearing about. So we have done a phone call and he told me about this. But what Chris is involved with right now is he’s helping the Chamber’s to convene on behalf of the children of Ukraine. And he’s got a unique approach that he’s doing this. So we’ll dive into this conversation and learn what Chris is involved with at the moment as soon as we get back from this quick break.
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Brandon Burton 10:15
All right, Chris, we’re back. So I’ve been impressed as, as you and I spoke offline about the work that you’re doing to convene chambers for the children of Ukraine. Tell us what is it that you’re doing on behalf of the children in Ukraine? And why are you doing it?
Chris Mead 10:34
Well, Brandon, it started when the Russians invaded Ukraine, which happens to be exactly one year ago, from the time that we’re recording this broadcast this podcast. And by the way, happy birthday.
Brandon Burton 10:53
Thank you, February 24. For those who send me a birthday card, or just remember when when Russia invaded Ukraine.
Chris Mead 11:05
And it was the brutality, the meanness, the cruelty of it. It just ticked me off. And I guess it may have been around March, I can’t remember exactly when, on the process of doing some other work. I had the chance to meet someone I already met on the phone, but and was a good friend in that way. Renee URLs from the Odessa, Texas Chamber of Commerce. And somehow this idea had come into my head and I said, Renee, what if there were a pen pal program to make the kids in Ukraine feel better? A pen pal program between young people in Odessa, Texas, and Odessa is a Odessa, Ukraine? Well, she it seems like she kind of liked the idea. I mean, it’s it’s natural, because it didn’t, it gives the Odessa Texas chamber some recognition. And it’s good, it plays off the name. So it would seem like a good thing to do. But, you know, she’s busy, I’m busy. So we go off and do our own thing. But I kept thinking, all right. Let me see if I can find some people who can help on the Ukraine side and get things going. And so I did I worked with someone who used to work with me at ACCE she was of Ukrainian background, this that the other found a gentleman and at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro he had helped me out and is still helped me out ended up finding some teachers in Odessa, Ukraine, and they’re all English teachers. That’s all I work with them. And now, because the Ukrainians are dying to learn English, because it’s their ticket out of kind of, you might say Russian domination, you know, they get to look in the instead of looking, I guess that’s east for them, they get to look west, they get to look to the west. So we started so I went back to Rene and I said, Renee, you know what, I think I got I think we can do this. I know how to do this. I’ve got students from Odessa, Texas. I mean, Odessa, Ukraine who ready to work with your students. So then she’s, this is the great thing about chamber executives. She knew the people, you know, the powers that be she didn’t know, you know, a junior teacher at one of the schools. She knew all the leaders of the schools in Odessa, Texas. And so she found them it’s the ector county Independent School District PC ISD. And she got me with a lady who handles social studies for 2500 students. And that that lady, Becky Ramirez, was a Help me on on getting it all started. And we have one classroom that did it for us. The cow Crowder, the teacher, and he got brought in 120 students ended up with about 105 because of email issues and does that and the other but we got pen pals for all of them. And that was the beginning of the week. Back then we call it the Odessa to Odessa pen pal program. Okay, yeah. And of course other other communities learned about it in in Ukraine and we now have work with about 25 schools over there.
Brandon Burton 14:54
Wow. So 25 schools in in Ukraine. Correct. The English teachers Sydor are working to get their students to write these letters. So, tell us what are these pen pal letters? Like between the students? Do you have any insight as to what they’re talking about?
Chris Mead 15:13
Fortunately, or unfortunately, I don’t, I can’t, I don’t, I can’t read them. You know, it’s, I can’t, I can’t hack into them. Some of them may be able to hack into my emails. I’d say, you know, every fourth kid wants to be a programmer when they when they grow up. But anyway, so they they’re
Brandon Burton 15:32
there, there’s some guidelines that they’re given as far as what to like for a student here in the United States to ask or to start a conversation.
Chris Mead 15:42
And this surprised me, although once I thought about it, it didn’t surprise me. A lot of Ukrainian students were at or a number were asking, Hey, can you help get my family over to the United States? And that didn’t go over too well with the American students or with their teachers, because the American students had no idea how to do that. You know, it’s, it’s pretty complicated from, you know, a paperwork standpoint. Not many people know how to do that. So we said, you know, you know, that’s kind of marrying, we’re right now we’re just talking about dating, let’s just, let’s just have a pen pal relationship. And so that was one of the conditions I put in my opening letter to the teachers, please, please don’t ask them that. Or tell your students not to ask him that. Yeah, that was the main thing. I haven’t heard of anything terrible happening. We did finally start mixing boys and girls. Because, as I put it to the teachers, there’s probably not going to be any wild parties breaking out because they’re 6000 miles apart.
Brandon Burton 16:58
They’ve got some space.
Chris Mead 17:01
And but, you know, because I had all, I had a whole bunch of 14 year old girls from Ukraine, and a whole bunch of 13 year old boys from United States, and I couldn’t. You know, and in order to, I couldn’t find matches for him except each other. So I did. And that worked out. Okay, at least so far.
Brandon Burton 17:24
So, yeah, what was your what is your hope or intent with the children of Ukraine in participating with this pen pal program? What would you hope for their outcome or experience to be like through the throughout this program?
Chris Mead 17:40
I can tell from the teachers that it’s very important to a lot of these Ukrainian students. They set for example, a lot of them say, My friend has a as a part pen pal partner, but I don’t yet. And so they, it seems to be something they really want. And a lot of it is kind of the comfort of knowing there’s somebody who cares about them or likes them, and is not in the middle of the battle that they’re experiencing every day of their lives. The bombs falling. That doesn’t happen in every community in Ukraine, but in most of the big cities, yes. A lot of other places. Yeah. So I think it’s a lot of it is comfort, and for the teachers, too. And I have had a note from one of the English teachers who said, Sorry, I haven’t responded to your email. I just got it even though you wrote it three weeks ago. It’s the internet has been totally disrupted around here. And I only have two hours of power last night. Because of they’ve destroyed the generators downtown. I mean, they have to go through things we don’t really understand their, their standard of living wasn’t great before the war. And it’s gotten worse since then, of course. But they’re the kids that, you know, when they write what they want to do, is pretty neat. They will or what they do after school, it’s just as very similar to ours. Except I know their girls, they, they like to dance. And you don’t hear that too much from our girls, or young women. Whatever the you don’t hear him say I like to dance in my free time. But a lot of Ukrainian girls say that
Brandon Burton 19:32
it’s on tick tock or something. Yeah, that’s true. Yeah,
Chris Mead 19:35
maybe that’s what they’re talking about. And drawing they like to draw, but generally like video games, they all play video games, and a lot of them are the same video games that are young people play with. So they’re, you know, they’re a lot more like us, then, unlike us. Very much so.
Brandon Burton 19:56
And what a great experience for the students to see that to see this similarities to see the differences to learn from each other, gain a better perspective of how things are another part of the world where they’re going through a difficult time. I think it’ll provide these students in the United States with some compassion and better understanding as they become leaders, you know, in the future, I think it’ll it’ll be have a big impact on them.
Chris Mead 20:22
I think it makes them feel they’re lucky to for many of them, I’m glad I don’t have to go through that. But I also have some compassion for those who do have to go through it. One, one letter that kind of hit me in the gut was a young man, we were talking about, what do you want to do after high school? And this young man, he was 14 years old said, well, actually, I’d like to leave right now and join the military. But my mother won’t let me. So I wrote him back and said, I’m sorry. But I agree with your mom, I think you should get your education first, you’ll be more effective as a future citizen of Ukraine. And as even as a soldier, you’d be more effective if you’re better educated. And he did not respond to that. But oh, I even said, I think President Zelensky would say the same thing. You know, unfortunately, but I understand he’s mad. And he’s, maybe he’s got a brother already fighting.
Brandon Burton 21:36
Anyway, wants to do something to contribute. Yeah, I can appreciate that. So I understand. So for I guess, first of all, just for clarification, this pen pals, the communications going back and forth over email. So that’s why the it’s important to have power and internet for the email communication. But I understand you guys have have launched a program today is we’re recording this right? You want to tell us some more about that. And what this, I guess, contest of sorts is
Chris Mead 22:11
sure. This was an idea to give the young people of Ukraine a chance to get the word out about how they’re feeling not just to their pen pal, but to a broader audience if they should want to. And so I sent out letters physically this morning to everyone we have on our list, who’s either a pen pal from Ukraine, which is about 260. In other words, half of the total number of people of our 530 Plus and, and also another 100 230 of them who are on the waiting list, which is one of my headaches right now. We got too many Ukrainians, which we are solving, we’ve figured out a way to solve it. Anyhow. So the idea was, what can we do? To get the word out? What because I don’t really know exactly what they’re feeling. You know, the TV reporters are always interviewing adults. So we have invited them to compete. To tell stories, one of them is essays on what the past year has meant to me. That’s the name of the whole competition, what the past year has meant to me. And my original idea, maybe because I’m an English major originally was just to have it be a an essay contest. 500 words just in English. But then another gentleman that I’ve been working with Dr. Turret terrace of us, I’m sorry, vessel terrorists from Greensboro said, Let’s broaden it. And so we’ve ended up with five categories that include essay, poem, photo, illustrations, and video, three minute videos. So somebody wants to dance to do an anti Russian dance, well, that’s fine, you know, or whatever it is, or a tick tock type, wrap, whatever they want to do. And there will be prizes, we have not specified what those will be, but there will be prizes. At first. I nixed the idea before I’d even asked people because I thought, what if someone writes a beautiful essay in great English and wins first prize, and the person who wins second prize, lost a parent, maybe to Russian brutality. Let’s just imagine that. How does that feel? Is this really right for a contest? But it turns out that the teachers over there said It is right do it as a contest, we do contests all the time. That’s how we like to think. And so do it as a contest. And, and then of course, because we’ll have judges, and criteria and everything, it peep, no one’s going to come and shoot me or others who have been involved in putting on the contest, because the judges will be making the decisions based on the criteria. And everyone knows it’s been a bad year. And you know, let the chips fall where they may. But let’s say the top three essays and poems and all these other things are shown to the world. And we hope they’ll be picked up when that happens, that some people even in Russia will see it and think, gosh, is this something I’m proud of? Is this what they did to these kids? Is that while we were hunting for non existent Nazis in in Ukraine, anyway, that’s kind of my hope. But
Brandon Burton 26:06
do you have a plan at this point, once these submissions come in, to help spread the word to the world and, and hopefully to get it back to Russia?
Chris Mead 26:20
Well, we have, it’s April 17, is the date that we will actually release the results. So we have a little time to figure it out. I’ve, in the past been a Publicity Hound every now and then. So try to do some things. And so and we also have our contacts, and we have actually very good channels in Ukraine to get the word out. And a lot of it can spread to Russia from there. I mean, I’m not saying I’m gonna try to stop the war. But if I can give Putin a headache for one day, you know, that’s, that’s better than nothing. That’s That’s some good work
Brandon Burton 27:00
that helped me feel good. Yeah. Well, I guess the question listeners may have is, are you looking for other chambers to help convene to get together with school districts to try to match up you said, you’ve got a list of Ukrainian students? Or where are you at and within this program is trying to be a matchmaker. And are you looking for more participants?
Chris Mead 27:28
Yes. And in fact, we did. in record time we got through my friend, Doug Peters, in Abilene, Texas. We he he connected with a friend of his who’s on the board, or the superintendent or something or other. An Air Force guy, I guess that’s his day job. And through him, we have a high school in Abilene, Texas, that’s going to start. But again, there’s the convening working, and something similar is I hope happening in Virginia, we’re not sure yet. But definitely, it’s the it’s the quickest way in the door for me, as far as I’m concerned, you know, and, and so if there are chamber executives, who think that this would be something that would be interesting to their students, their young people, kind of broaden their experience and maybe teach a little compassion, a little bit of leadership, and, and a little bit of just understanding of the world. And it often comes through social studies teachers, or, you know, geography or civics, one of those kinds of classes. Whereas over in Ukraine, it’s mostly the English teachers, but here, it’s those kinds if and if if, as most chamber executives are, they’re pretty well connected into their education establishments, just like Renee Earl’s in in Odessa, Texas and, and Doug Peters in Abilene. They’re pretty darn well connected. So if they, if they know somebody in the school system, who they, they might run this idea across, and that person likes the idea. It’s very easy, there’s no charge to it. So I’m not becoming a millionaire off this not yet. Right? Unless maybe Putin would give me a yacht if I’d stopped doing this.
Brandon Burton 29:32
Right. Keep going until you get that status. But Chris, I like asking everyone I have on the show since we’ve got primarily calm chamber champions, right chamber executives, chamber staff that are listening for the chamber who’s looking to try to go up to the next level, what kind of tip or action item might you have for them to try to achieve that?
Chris Mead 30:02
Well, I guess I, I think back to Rene Earl’s, who started this whole thing really by doing getting it going in Odessa, Texas. And her idea was, she grasped immediately that an Odessa to Odessa connection would do something for her chamber. So she had to think 6000 miles away. But you know, it’s not something you think of every day as you’re trying to do in your business after hours and this out the other, but she saw something there. And so she was willing to take a chance and try it. And so I guess that’s, you know, they all were they used to say, think outside the box, but that expression is, is inside the box at this point. That’s it, but think outside your city limits think outside your
Brandon Burton 31:00
county slot on your borders? Yeah,
Chris Mead 31:03
yeah. What, what is it? Maybe it’s, I don’t know what it is. But there’s, there’s something about your town, and what’s happened there, whether it’s the name, the history, whatever, that is interesting to other people. So find it and do something with it.
Brandon Burton 31:19
Yeah, I like that. It’s a good good piece of advice. And, and really to, you know, put your community on the map a little bit more, you know, see what it is. It’s interesting, think beyond your borders and, and show that that interesting thing to the world. So Chris, the other question I like asking everybody that I have on the show is, as we look to the future of chambers of commerce, how do you see the future of chambers and their purpose going forward?
Chris Mead 31:50
It’s something that I was constantly asking myself, when I wrote that book, because I was going from 1768 to 1945. But also thinking about the present day. And you know, with the internet, this the that the electronic networking, so many changes, and yet, I still need to talk to Renee URLs, I still need to talk to Doug in Abilene. I can’t just shoot an email to the town of Abilene and say, help me. You need somebody who knows somebody and is willing to do something for you. And who cares about the community? It seems to me there’s always going to be a need for something like that. Yeah, there’s always going to be need for businesses to get together to come together for the common good. I think that’s always going to be there.
Brandon Burton 32:46
Yeah, I think you’re right, I think they’re having that perspective of going through with the book writing process and seeing it, you know, such a vast period of time. But then looking at today, and realizing that a lot of the same, you know, core things, those personal connections, caring about the community convenient businesses together for a common good, I believe, I believe that that need will always be there as well. You know, some of the things like, I don’t know, rooting out Al Capone, or getting together to pave a road may not be, you know, the purpose for a chamber anymore, or today, but a lot of those core principles are still there. So I think that there’s a lot of value with that. But Chris, I wanted to give you an opportunity to share any contact information for listeners who would like to reach out and connect maybe get involved with the children and became Ukraine pen pal program or follow along with your your success and the development of the competition or, or the program in general, where would you point them? What would be the best way for them to reach out and connect?
Chris Mead 33:55
Well, thank you, Brandon. The easiest way is probably my email address, which is long, but he fairly easy to remember, Chris, that CHR is at magicians of main street.com, which is named after the book obviously, again, Chris at magicians of main street.com. And I’ll absolutely keep track of you and if you want to do something soon, then I’ll respond soon. or hours, I’ll respond one way or the other, but I’ll I’ll act on what I get. Yeah, whatever that may be.
Brandon Burton 34:34
That is great. Now I’ll get your email in our show notes for this episode, so people can pull it up there and and shoot over an email to if they want to get involved or follow along with the progress but this is a I find it to be a very intriguing program that you’re putting on or experiment even to create these pen pal relationships to put on this or host this competition. I’m I’m excited to see some of the outcomes to hear these stories that are coming out of these children in Ukraine and, and the impact that this last year has had on them and, and I can imagine that their pen pal friends here in the states will be touched as well to hear those stories. So thank you for for sharing this with us today and for spending time with us today on chamber chat podcast.
Chris Mead 35:23
Well, thank you, Brandon, you’re, you’re a good man to talk with I enjoy it.
Brandon Burton 35:27
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