Business Appreciation Month to be Celebrated May 29th   Covington, VA (May 22, 2019) - The Alleghany Highlands Chamber of Commerce & Tourism and the Alleghany Highlands Economic Development Corporation are celebrating May as Business Appreciation Month, designated to recognize the contributions that businesses in the Alleghany Highlands make to the quality of life in the region. “This year, Virginia celebrates the contributions the Commonwealth’s small business community makes to our community, state, and national economy. Without them, our economy would not continue to grow and larger businesses would not have the support they need to thrive.” states Marla Akridge, Executive Director, Alleghany Highlands Economic Development Corporation. “I am privileged to honor every business in our community.” The AH Chamber of Commerce and the AHEDC are sponsoring a Business After Hours Reception on Wednesday, May 29, 2019 from 5:00–7:00 pm at the Moomaw Center at Dabney S. Lancaster Community College. All area businesses are invited to attend. “While the benefit and impact of area businesses can be seen every day, Business Appreciation Month is a time for the Alleghany Highlands to publicly recognize the business community’s meaningful contribution towards this area’s economic vitality and quality of life.” said Teresa Hammond, Executive Director, Alleghany Highlands Chamber of Commerce & Tourism. “Please join us for this opportunity to network and be recognized for your hard work and dedication. Thank you for doing business in the Alleghany Highlands.” This year President and CEO at Virginia Economic Development Partnership (VEDP) Stephen Moret will be the guest speaker. Moret previously served as secretary of the Louisiana Economic Development, president and CEO of the Baton Rouge Area Chamber of Commerce and associate at McKinsey & Co. He also worked as public policy fellow at the Public Affairs Research Council of Louisiana, assistant chancellor at LSU and project supervisor at Trinity Consultants. At VEDP, he has collaborated with state, regional, and local partners to craft an ambitious vision focused on transformational goals, including accelerating employment growth; enabling every region to grow; and moving back to the top of national business climate rankings. He led Virginia’s successful state-and-local team bid for Amazon’s HQ2 and is launching a world-class, custom workforce program along with the Virginia Community College System. “Having met with Stephen, I agree with the board that his executive management experience in both public and private sector economic development roles make him the right choice to lead VEDP at this critical time for the organization, ” stated former Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe. Moret also attended Louisiana State University where he received a B.S in mechanical engineering. After receiving his B.S in 1995, he continued to further his education to receive an MBA from Harvard law school in 2001 and also obtain a Doctorate in Higher Education Management in 2016. For more information, please contact the Alleghany Highlands Chamber of Commerce & Tourism at (540) 962-2178 or the Alleghany Highlands Economic Development Corporation at (540) 862-0936.

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