Brewster Chamber selects Best of the Best, 2025 board nominees

BREWSTER – Old business – Dia de los Muertos – and new business – Best of the Best and board officer nominations - were topics on the agenda of the monthly meeting of the Chamber of Commerce last Wednesday, Nov. 13.

Board members conducted a post-mortem on their Day of the Dead tamale cooking competition held at the American Legion on Saturday, Nov. 2, with plans to make the popular attraction an annual event.

“We made $500 on ticket sales and $60 off the face painting, and face painting was by donation,” reported member Elizabeth Shepard.

The board agreed that a few tweaks in next year’s repeat of the tamale cookoff might be in order, but for a first-time event, it was well-received,

The board also discussed potential advertising revenue from the Lodging Tax Advisory Committee (LTAC), popularly known as the “Heads-in-Beds” tax. Shepard said the Chamber must partner with an overnight event like the annual King Salmon Derby or the AAU basketball tournament to become LTAC eligible.

Best of the Best

Nominees for Best of the Best in categories of Small Business (under 10 employees, Large Business (more than 10 employees), and Person of the Year were voted on. The winners:

Small Business

GARE Panadería

Large Business

Mi Pueblo

Person of the Year 

Dave Burdick, Brewster Food Bank

The awards will be presented at 5 p.m., Nov. 30, at the Christmas Tree lighting ceremony.

Nominations of 2025 officers will be put to a vote at the general board meeting at 10 a.m., Dec. 11, in Mi Pueblo.

Adopt A Sock

“We are running Adopt a Sock,” said Shepard, director of the Brewster Boys and Girls Club. “I currently have 127 kids enrolled, with about 80 more coming.”

Anyone can stop by the BBGC and pick up a Christmas stocking. Each stocking has a green tag with a child’s name, age, and three things they like. 

Kids Christmas Shop

This year, the shop, now in its third year, was held on Dec. 14. It used to be a chamber event held in conjunction with the police and fire departments.

“I am seeking donations of small gifts less than $10 or $15 so kids can shop free for their parents,” said Shepard. “It’s our way of teaching kids the joys of giving.”

Mike Maltais: 360-333-8483 or michael@ward.media