Ambassadors
(Left to right) Front Row: Tamara Hamel, Brenda Hutchison, Marie Froelich, Jane Schumacher, Wilma Powers, Kelly Ellner, Darla Froelich, Callie Kolacny, LaVonne Giess, and Sandi Maier
Second Row: Kaley Conner, Christine Stacken, Janette Meis, Crystal Young, Macey Pfeifer, Kelly Lewis, Jenny Bates, Brittney Squire, Sarah Meitner, Emily Knowles, and Julie Rider
Third Row: Larissa Kuhn, Madeline Hutchins, Erica Berges, Monica Watson, Stephanie Howie, Scarlett Deutscher, Anne Zimmerman, Rachel Ruder, Aubree Broyles, and Jayne Inlow
Fourth Row: Emily Hartman, Jacob Callaway, Leah Reed, Andrew Rupp, Luke Oborny, Renee Moritz, Anna Towns, Amy Warfield, Jessie Roth, and Mendi Anschutz
Fifth Row: Neal Younger, Brenda Martinez, James Gerstner, Kayla Lonnon, Vernon Ruder, Mason Ruder, Ruth Ruder, Dustin Schlaefli, and Tasha Eichman
Sixth Row: Brian Weimer, Jason Werner, Blake Ruder, Adam Kober, Travis Grizzell, Lisa Raub, Gene Stramel, and Lindsey Elsen
Not Pictured: Amanda Rupp, Chrisy Crough
How do the Ambassadors advance the community by supporting The Chamber in Hays, Kansas?
The Chamber Ambassadors are a group of 55-75 elected volunteers who make it their mission to attend as many Chamber events as possible throughout the year and learn what our businesses are providing, listen to their stories and share that information throughout our community while living their everyday lives.
This group of people represents over 41 businesses in the community. Collectively they have served over 400 years as Ambassadors representing our organization and they attend more than 120 hours of events every year. They are a priceless piece to the Chamber puzzle, allowing the Chamber staff to focus on additional projects while they assist with our number one priority —business prosperity for our members and in Hays. This group works very closely with the Chamber staff and reports directly to The Chamber Board of Directors.
You can recognize our Ambassadors at chamber events by their Ambassador nametag or chamber branded clothing.
2026 Ambassador Leadership
Chair - Lindsey Elsen, Emprise Bank
Chair-Elect - Brenda Martinez, Cloud Storage
Past-Chair - Tasha Eichman, Nex-Tech Wireless
Secretary - Wilma Powers, Fort Hays Tech | North Central
Our Ambassadors cover six different areas that The Chamber believes to be at the heart of our mission by dividing up into teams with various goals per team.
Ambassador Teams
Agriculture Appreciation Team
Ambassador / HYP Mentor Team
Golf Tournament Team
Member Relations Team
Volunteer Team
Holiday Business Showcase Team
Ambassador Expectations
Ambassadors are expected to serve on one of the above teams, and attend a minimum of (3) Chamber sponsored events each month (which includes the monthly Ambassador lunch). Attendance is required for the following events: monthly Ambassador lunch, Awards Banquet, Ag Appreciation, Stepping Out (annual membership decal delivery), Golf Tournament, Business and Career Expo, and any Business After Hours events.
New Ambassadors will be given onboarding training and will receive ongoing support from a designated fellow Ambassador (aka "buddy") as well as from Chamber staff.
Interested in serving as an Ambassador?
Applications open every year at the beginning of August and are due by 8/31. Applications are reviewed by current Ambassadors with elections held during their monthly lunch in October.
If you would like to learn more about becoming an Ambassador for The Chamber, please fill out the form below, visit the office at 2700 Vine St., or reach us at (785) 628-8201 or hayscc@hayschamber.com.
