On Thursday, April 23rd we hosted our 2025-2026 Annual Membership Meeting, and boy did our members show up. We are so grateful for the community that we have all built together. Our team was so excited to share all the amazing things we accomplished in 2025, and we were able to share all the great and new things implemented already thus far in 2026. Plus we shared some of our exciting new efforts, programs, and offerings that are still to come in 2026! We had over 80 key stakeholders in the room to celebrate with us. Our Annual Membership Meeting is one of our Signature Events which is a way to gather our membership to review the organization’s progress over the past year, discuss future plans, and network with fellow members! This event offers members opportunities to provide feedback, ask questions, and share ideas.
This year our team got to share all the amazing things we accomplished in 2025, and we were able to share all the great and new things implemented already thus far in 2026. Plus we shared some of our exciting new efforts, programs, and offerings that are still to come in 2026! In case you missed any of the excitement, we wanted to offer some of the insights we covered. But, unfortunately you won’t be the first to know since you missed the event…but we hope you make sure to get this great event on your calendar next year, because we want all our members there to celebrate with us! This year we hosted this event at The Bavarian Bierhaus, a staple in the North Shore Communities. The Bavarian Bierhaus formerly known as The Bavarian Inn has been serving the North Shore since 1967. They are more than a gathering place, The Bavarian Bierhaus is a restaurant, brewery, festival grounds, and events/ wedding venue. Plus they host the oldest running Oktoberfest in the Midwest, dating back to the 1920s: When the German clubs began leasing the land. Learn more about our proud Annual Gold Sponsor at www.thebavarianbierhaus.com
So let’s get into the Meeting…
Becca our President/CEO kicked off the meeting welcoming everyone and giving some insight on our organization and how we are structured, and introduced all our staff members and their roles. Then she went into some informative data from 2025, and it was electric to see all the things The North Shore Chamber has been working on for the past year, and ways they have supported local members, organizations and community initiatives.
In 2025 The North Shore Chamber:
- Hosted 24 Networking Events
- 26 Ribbon Cuttings, Grand Openings, Ground Breaking Ceremonies
- Offered 2 Marketing Co-ops (The Annual Guide that gets mailed over 20,000 homes in our communities, and The Milwaukee Magazine April Section) Which in turn 66 members of our chamber took advantage of and led to $21,700 in savings for those businesses that took advantage of our offerings.
- Hosted 13 Educational Events and Workshops.
- Welcomed 97 new members
- Shared 518 promotional content on our socials for our members
- Hosted 1 Fall Leadership Academy
- Had 15 award winners at our Annual Awards Banquets
- Had over 1,347 attendees at our events
- Welcomed 1 new staff member, Gwen our Operations and Engagement Manager in November
Plus we do some work behind the scenes…
- Sponsored 14 Non Profit MembersEvents & Fundraisers
- Supported 8 Community Events
- Used 51 NSC Businesses (For example: Banking, Printing, Media, Catering, etc.)
- Gift Card Giveaway ProgramSupporting Small Businesses during the Holidays. 18 Gift cards purchased from 7 Small local chamber member businesses
David, our Deputy Director then went on to talk about the power of bringing the community together, and showcased our amazing Annual Sponsors for 2026. This year we moved into an Annual Membership system. David explained the importance of investing in the chamber and local community initiatives. He also announced a one time 6 month opportunity for our members to get some of the perks our Annual Sponsors would normally only receive. This opportunity is only available until May 28th, so if you are interested, please reach out to david@discoverthenorthshoremke.com .
Then David went into talking about the two committees we have, and he took time to thank and recognize all of those committee members.
Brand Ambassador Committee (2025 – 2026)
- Julie Gross – Lisbon Creek Systems
- Jonathan Weeks – Wisconsin Jewish Chronicle
- Jobea Murray – Jobea Bakes
- Aaron Grady – Bank Five Nine
- Brad Skinkis – Confluence Graphics
- Chris Johnson – Camo Crew Responsible Removal
Special Events Committee (2025 – 2026)
- Steve Thomas – Bank Five Nine
- Cornelius Holt – SFCC
- Bridget Carlson – Schlitz Audubon Nature Center
- Shawn Storey – SFCC
- Jobea Murray – Jobea Bakes
- Jeannine Oakes Daugherty – North Shore Presbyterian
- Courtney Skinkis – Confluence Graphics
- Lisa Donegan – For the People Entertainment
- Chrishella Roche – Vibez Creative Arts Space
- Jedrek Preciado – EXP Realty
- Brandon Van Vors – Ciel Senior Living
David also went over the new process for members to join those committees, and announced that we are now accepting applications to join either the Brand Ambassador Committee or the Special Events Committee for the next year. Then David went into some data for the first 4 months of 2026. Thus far we have;
- Hosted 11 Networking Events
- Hosted 3 Educational Events & Workshops
- 3 Ribbon Cuttings, Grand Openings & Ground Breaking Ceremonies
- Already offered two Marketing co-ops , and we have 3 yet still planned
- Welcomed 39 new chamber members
- Have had 611 event attendees (not including the Annual Meeting).
Plus we do some work behind the scenes…
- Sponsored 10 Non Profit MembersEvents & Fundraisers
- Used 28 NSC Businesses
- Supported 4 Community Events
- We have 3 More Signature Events planned\
- We have 17 More Networking Events planned
- We have 6 Educational Events & Workshops planned
Then, we touched base on our Fall Leadership Academy, to help leaders lead and learn about all the ways to be better communicators, boost staff morale, and so much more. This will be our 3rd year of hosting this program “North Shore Leaders”. Plus members get a steal of a deal for this course. You can learn more here.
Furthermore David talked about our new North Shore Works program that connects employers with the future workforce. In 2026 we already have 55 NSC businesses signed up. This year’s slate is full, but we look forward to continuing to bring this opportunity in the future to more business partners to strengthen and elevate the next generation of workers. This program is all about connecting employers to their future employees in 3 easy steps. You can learn more here.
Then Gwen, our Operations and Engagement Manager got to speak on a few new programs she has brought to our organization, and fun new offerings we had in store for 2026. First off our NSC 101 (Maximize your Membership), a monthly webinar on the first Wednesday of every month at 11am. This is free to our members to join and learn all the ways to get the most out of your membership. This way you stay up to date on all our offerings, campaigns, and get the best ROI. Which begs the question, Have you logged into your Growthzone Partnership Portal? Because if you have not… you are missing out… Still need help logging in? Reach out to Gwen@discoverthenorthshoremke.com.
Gwen then shared about all our Marketing Co-ops that we have in 2026. Two opportunities already closed (The 2026 Annual Business Guide, and our Milwaukee Magazine Campaign), but we have 3 NEW campaigns this year you can still tap into.
- InspireMax Marketing Co-op (Commercial Production & Professional Photography)
- Milwaukee Lifestyle Magazine (Offering 50% print media to all our members)
- MKE with Kids (September 2026)
Do not wait to take advantage of these opportunities, we have limited space for some of these, so reach out to Gwen to get locked in, or learn more here.
Also, we announced that this year’s Annual Awards Banquet will be held on September 24th from 5pm-8pm, and tickets are now available here, and nominations are officially open. Businesses and organizations are encouraged to nominate themselves or other businesses for the different awards, nominations will only be open for a limited amount of time so make sure you fill out the nomination form today (here).
Also, our Annual Brew-ing Connections (Brewers Game & Networking Event), is officially on a waitlist, so if you have been waiting to grab your tickets, do so now before we sell out. We only have a limited number of waitlist spots available. Grab your spot on the waitlist here.
Then Becca came back to close out our Annual Meeting, with updates on the Board of Directors. Steve Thomas is moving into the past Chair position after serving as Chair for the last 2 years (we thank him for all he has done to get us to where we are today). Courtney Skinkis is moving into the Vice Chair position, and Lee Carey (formerly our Vice Chair position for the last 2 years), will be our new Board Chair. After the meeting, our members got to connect with one another, network, and enjoy some cocktails and appetizers. As our staff members were available for questions, concerns, inquiries, and ideas from our membership.
Thank you to everyone who attended, we can’t wait to see you soon!
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