S/T Chamber Works To Serve Both Communities

By Naomi Hatch
“We really want to offer our services to the Town of Taylor as much as the Town of Snowflake for promot-ing events, promoting tourism and promoting commerce,” said JoAnne Guderian, president of the Snowflake-Taylor Chamber of Commerce and owner of the Heritage Bed and Breakfast. “We want to do whatever we can do to assist you in making our communities better than they already are.” Guderian’s remarks came at the Sept. 5 Taylor Town Council meeting and the Sept. 12 Snowflake Town Council meeting.
“When guests come and ask what there is to do, we always fill them in,” she said, noting that they have a lot of information to give guests, but will also encourage them to stop by the chamber.
Guderian also attended the Sept. 4 Snowflake-Taylor Tourism Committee meeting to share a letter she had just received from Hugh R. James of Phoenix. He and his wife celebrated their 29th anniversary in the com-munity. Guderian shared some of the letter.
“We followed your advice and visited the chamber office shortly after arriving in Snowflake for the first time,” James wrote. “There we met Charlotte (Hatch, executive director of the chamber) whom we found both knowledgeable and charming.”
He said that Hatch essentially helped them plan their entire three-day stay, during which they saw the sites of the community including new and old, religious and historical, as well as the surrounding region.
They followed Hatch’s suggestion and ate at Trapper’s the first night, finding the pies some of the best they had ever had, along with a very friendly and welcoming staff.
The second night, which was their anniversary, they ate dinner at El Rancho, where the staff was also welcoming and helpful and they ate some of the best fajitas they had ever tasted.
“Unexpectedly, Charlotte with her family arrived at El Rancho for dinner while we were there. We chatted briefly. Charlotte remembered that the night was our anniversary and discretely informed the El Rancho staff, who gave us a delicious fried ice cream dessert as an anniversary gift. This thoughtful act made the entire evening wonderful,” James continued.
He said that they have visited many chamber offices around the world. The staffs generally go through the motions and forget you as soon as you leave, and often they lack regional knowledge. The James found just the opposite to be true of the Snowflake-Taylor Chamber. They said they would definitely be back to do many of the things they didn’t get done the first visit.
“They got customer service wherever they went and it meant a lot to them,” said Guderian.