FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT:
Edie Ousley
(850) 521-1231
eousley@flchamber.com
TALLAHASSEE, FL (April 26, 2016) – Governor Rick Scott and the Florida Cabinet today honored the Florida Chamber of Commerce with a resolution celebrating its 100th anniversary of securing Florida’s future. The Florida Chamber was officially created on April 29, 1916 in an effort to save Florida’s business community – and the agriculture industry specifically – from an invasive cattle tick that threatened the livelihood of the state’s leading economic engine.
Governor Rick Scott said, “The Florida Chamber of Commerce works diligently to support economic growth and create opportunities for all Floridians. I am proud to recognize the Florida Chamber for their commitment to making Florida first for jobs on their 100 year anniversary today.”
“One hundred years ago, the biggest threat facing Florida’s economy was a parasite — the cattle tick,” said Mark Wilson, President and CEO of the Florida Chamber of Commerce. “While the threats to Florida’s economy have changed, the Florida Chamber’s mission to secure our state’s future, create jobs and create economic opportunities remain the same. We thank the Florida Cabinet for today presenting the Florida Chamber with this resolution and we look forward to serving our state for the next 100 years.”
In the 100 years since the Florida Chamber was created:
- Florida’s population has grown from just over 900,000 in 1916 to more than 20 million,
- Over the past year, 1 in 12 jobs created in the U.S. were created in Florida, and
- If Florida was a country, it would be the 18th largest economy in the world.
Click here to watch a short video on the Florida Chamber’s history.
What Others Are Saying About the Florida Chamber’s 100th Anniversary:
Pam Bondi, Attorney General
“Congratulations to the Florida Chamber on 100 years of pro-business advocacy. Mark Wilson, Marian Johnson, David Hart and all the Chamber members not only promote the well-being and stability of our state’s economy, but they also give so much back to our community through partnering with great charities and other nonprofit organizations to help make Florida the safest place to live, work and raise a family. The Chamber is the voice for business, large and small, and its members are the job creators in our state.”
Jeff Atwater, Chief Financial Officer
“For over a century, the Florida Chamber of Commerce has combined the strengths of Florida’s business communities, leaders and lawmakers to defend the principles of free enterprise. I congratulate them on this historic milestone and wish them continued success in the next hundred years.”
Adam Putnam, Florida Agriculture Commissioner
“People come and go. Politicians come and go. Legislators come and go, businesses come and go. But it’s what we do here during our time on this earth, in this great state, to leave it better than we found it— this should be our legacy. And that’s really the legacy of the Florida Chamber. What began as a collective effort to eradicate a pest has grown into the leading voice for Florida businesses of all sizes and shapes that can come together- from main street insurance agencies, real estate offices and some of the biggest employers in the state- to find some common cause to protect the culture of problem solving that allows us to leave our state better than we found it.”
Tracy Duda Chapman, Senior Vice President/General Counsel of A. Duda & Sons, Inc., Florida Chamber Chair 2015-2016
“I am honored to be Chair of the Florida Chamber during our 100 year celebration. As a leader in the agriculture industry, knowing the Florida Chamber’s history began with an effort to protect Florida agriculture, I am excited to work toward a better, brighter and more competitive future for Florida.”
Syd Kitson, Chairman & CEO of Kitson & Partners
“The Florida Chamber has moved our state in the right direction for the past 100 years, and to this day remains a leader in our state and continues to make the difficult choices, when necessary, to secure our state’s future.”
Steve Knopik, CEO of Beall’s, Inc.
“Think of all the things that have happened over the last 100 years. I’d like to recognize the men and women who have come before us who had the foresight and the wisdom to establish the Florida Chamber of Commerce, because the men and women who over the last 10 decades that followed and those that have supported the Florida Chamber have worked hard to make it what it is today.”
Toni Jennings, former Lt. Governor, former two-term President of the Florida Senate
“What good is a good education if there is no job to go to, and what good is a job if there is not a well-educated person to fill it? That’s what should be our continuing focus on Florida and that’s a continuing focus for the Florida Chamber- making sure that they articulate that day in and day out.”
Will Weatherford, former Speaker of the Florida House, Florida Chamber 2014 Most Valuable Legislator
“We at the [Florida] Chamber of Commerce and we as people who care about the state, care about the future of our country, our hungry and people who are living amongst us in the lowest of these circumstances. Let’s give them the opportunity to have success and to embrace that free enterprise system. Nobody cares about that better than the Florida Chamber of Commerce.”
John Thrasher, Florida State University President, Florida Chamber 2010 Most Valuable Legislator
“Education has to continue to be number one, in my opinion, on our list of things that are important to us. The [Florida] Chamber has always, always, been at the forefront of making sure our education system serves our citizens and our young people.”
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The Florida Chamber of Commerce is the voice of business and the state’s largest federation of employers, chambers of commerce and associations, aggressively representing small and large businesses from every industry and every region. The Florida Chamber works within all branches of government to affect those changes set forth in the annual Florida Business Agenda, and which are seen as critical to secure Florida’s future. The Florida Chamber works closely with its Political Operations and the Florida Chamber Foundation. Visit www.FloridaChamber.com for more information.