August 2026 MCCE Board Member Newsletter Article

Laura Stein

Aug 17 2026

The View in the Rearview Mirror
And You Were There

Jackie Buboltz
President
Detroit Lakes Regional Chamber of Commerce

Chamber executives spend a lot of time looking through the windshield.

What’s ahead? What does our business community need next? What challenge should we be preparing for? What program needs to evolve? Who haven’t we reached? There is always another event to plan, member to engage, issue to understand or opportunity to pursue.

It’s the nature of our work. We are always looking forward.

But every once in a while, it’s worth glancing in the rearview mirror.

Not to dwell on where we’ve been, but to see how far we’ve come.

Think about the past year in your own community. A new business opened its doors—and you were there. An existing business celebrated an expansion or milestone—and you were there. An employer needed a connection, an introduction or a resource—and you helped make it happen.

When an issue affecting businesses needed a voice, you were there. When community leaders needed to come around the same table, you helped pull up the chairs. When hundreds of people gathered for an event, chances are you and your team were behind the scenes making sure the details no one else noticed came together.

And when your community faced a difficult conversation or an uncertain future, your Chamber was there, too—listening, connecting, convening and helping move things forward.

Much of Chamber work happens quietly. We don’t always get to see where an introduction leads. We may never know the impact of a conversation, a connection or an idea planted at just the right time. And often, before one success has even had time to sink in, we’re already asking, “What’s next?”

Maybe that’s why the occasional look in the rearview mirror matters.

This work isn’t for just anyone. It requires us to be strategists and problem-solvers, advocates and relationship-builders, cheerleaders and sometimes referees—all while keeping our eyes on what our members and communities will need tomorrow.

So before you move on to the next thing on your list, take a moment.

Look back at the businesses you’ve celebrated. The people you’ve connected. The conversations you’ve started. The challenges you’ve helped navigate. The community you’ve helped strengthen.

Be proud of that view.

Then turn your eyes back to the road ahead—because there is more good work to do, and chances are, you’ll be there.