Bellevue Chamber of Commerce Starts New Chapter as Diane Bruce Named President

It’s business as usual for Diane Bruce as she removes the interim label from her title today and officially begins as the next President of the Bellevue Chamber of Commerce.

Bruce accepted the position of interim president of the Chamber on March 1st and has spent the last eight months building and rebuilding relationships amid an uncertain time within the Chamber.

For most of the years Bruce has been in Bellevue, she has worked for various defense contractors, marketing and recruiting employees to work at STRATCOM or various locations in the United States. “This is when I first interacted with the Bellevue Chamber,” said Bruce, “and I learned how they interacted with the community and Offutt Air Force Base.  I quickly learned what role the Chamber played in Bellevue, and it was the start of my appreciation for the Bellevue community.”

Bruce shared that her favorite job in the community was when she and her partner Jerry Charvat owned and operated B & B Classic Dogs, a popular restaurant and arcade. “Besides how much I enjoyed the restaurant side of things, it was then that I really understood the value of what the Bellevue Chamber can do for a business,” Bruce said.

As the new Chamber President, Bruce said one of her top goals is to help businesses grow and be successful, giving them opportunities to network and “get their name out there”. She believes referrals are the best marketing tool a business can have and that the Chamber is a great resource to help make those connections.

Other goals Bruce has include helping to bring businesses to Bellevue that she knows would succeed and help fill a need in the community and also to continue to strengthen the relationships between Offutt Air Force Base, Bellevue Public Schools, the City of Bellevue, and Bellevue University.

Currently, there is one other person on the Chamber team. Sarah Dighans is the Bellevue Chamber Director of Community Engagement.  She is responsible for helping assist current members and recruit new members.  She also helps in planning events from start to finish – marketing material, communication, planning, and organizing volunteers. “Sarah was instrumental in our ‘Who Done It?’ fundraiser in September,” Bruce said. “We chose to do this instead of our normal annual awards event.   We work really well together, and we will be hoping to add another like-minded person to our team soon.”

Bruce said the Chamber will be continuing many of its traditional events, including the Official Veteran’s Day Parade of Nebraska this Saturday, November 11th, at 10am in Olde Towne Bellevue. “This is a long-standing tradition in Bellevue to show our military community our appreciation for them and all they’ve sacrificed for our country.”

Other upcoming Bellevue Chamber events include:

• Operation Holiday Cheer: This legacy event was started by the Bellevue Chamber over 20 years ago. Members and the Bellevue community donate items or money to help provide a better Holiday season for our military members who are living in the dorms at Offutt AFB.  Bruce said, “The Chamber provides 500 gift bags to show our military members our appreciation.  This event and many of our community events help our members give back to the community without having to organize and run the event on their own and gives them time to focus on their business while helping the community at the same time.”
• Members Holiday Party: December 7^th at the Bellevue Volunteer Firefighters Hall. Bruce mentioned this party is a great time to network, but also help the Bellevue Food Pantry at the same time.
• Networking Meetings: On either Wednesday or Thursday morning for members to talk about their business and share referrals. Bruce shared that these are great meetings because they really get to know each other and what the other members offer, so they are another marketing resource for each other.

Bruce also provided a “Teaser Alert” for an event the Chamber is very excited about for 2024.

Bellevue-Opoly is a new gamification idea that Bruce hopes will become an annual event hosted by the Bellevue Chamber. “We are in the process of putting the rules together, but it should be ready to roll in early 2024!”

More information about the Bellevue Chamber of Commerce can be found on their website at BellevueNebraska.com or their Facebook page. They are located on the Bellevue University campus at 1036 Bruin Boulevard and they can also be reached by phone at (402) 898-3000 or eMail at [email protected].